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High school girls encourage discussion about domestic violence through song

Jun 21, 2016 | 11:43 AM

For a school project, four Sakewew High School students decided to tackle a pretty serious subject.

Aaliyah, Brittany, Serita and Tahirah, who asked to be identified by their first names only, made a hip-hop music video about domestic violence and the hundreds of missing and murdered Aboriginal women in Canada.

Serita said she and the group wanted to focus on a topic which, in their opinions, is not discussed enough.

“There are so many girls going missing and half of them, you don’t know what happened to them…Some of them are found dead and you don’t even know how she got there or what her story was before that,” she said.

The music video What About Us premiered in front of roughly 300 people at the Dekker Centre in North Battleford Thursday, June 16. It opened with clips of two women who work at Sakewew, Jen Nicotine and Tanya Yahyahkeekoot, who were interviewed by the girls about their personal experiences in abusive relationships.

Nicotine said although she was nervous, she wanted to share a story other women in abusive relationships could relate to.

“I’m proud of myself for getting out of there and I hope that the part of my story that was shown can help those who are in something similar, for them to understand that isn’t the only life and there’s other possibilities out there for them,” Nicotine said.

She wanted young women to learn the warning signs of an abusive relationship, like name calling and pushing, and to feel safe talking to a counsellor. After watching the video, Nicotine couldn’t believe she stayed with her children in an abusive situation for so long.

Yahyahkeekoot said if more people realized they’re not alone, they might be able to get themselves out of abusive situations faster. She said the key for young girls is to love themselves first.  

“I think they should know that their worth is beyond what words can describe and they need to see that in themselves and not belittle themselves with what people are saying,” she said.

 

sarah.rae@jpbg.ca

@sarahjeanrae