Ehki: A Platform that Showcases the Stories of Sexual Assault Victims in the MENA Region
Khaled Al Qahtani on Ehki.
Khaled Alqahtani is a student at UC Berkeley, dabbling between the arts and sciences. He is the founder of Ward and Ehki and an artist and writer in progress.
What is Ehki, and when was it founded?
Ehki is a platform founded in my junior high school year in 2017. It is dedicated to giving the people of MENA the opportunity to share their untold stories in matters that are mostly unspeakable in our communities, such as sexual harassment, domestic violence, and gender identity. It also shares studies and articles, aiming to raise awareness about these issues.
Who is the team behind Ehki?
Currently, Ehki is a one-person team. I run, organize, and collect the stories.
Was there something in particular that pushed you to start Ehki?
For a long period of my life, I have denied the memory of being sexually harassed as a child. Vivid memories kept reoccurring in my head. I could not do anything about it and started impulsively writing about them. Writing healed me, and I wanted to include every person who has lost hope of being heard and embraced to join me by peeling one’s skin and sharing the stories underlying it.
What are your future plans and projects?
I want to reach more people through Ehki and spread awareness about the healing power of writing. I am currently working on organizing more events to establish a physical space and presence.
Below are two stories submitted through Ehki, courtesy of the platform and Khaled Al Qahtani:
7.
I am a girl and I was 5 but I remember it clearly..
My uncle has 3 boys, the older was about 14 and the younger were 9 (twins). One of the twins molested me and I wasn’t aware of what’s going on, it was nothing serious only touches but still!!! It felt so wrong but i don’t know why I kept quiet about it, after the 3rd time I told my mom that he’s touching me and i feel that it’s wrog, a cry for help, nothing happened though she said just don’t tell your father(I think she was afraid he might not let her see her brother again because of that) so I didn’t. I once was playing video games laying on a bed at their house and the older son tried to do the same thing his bro did to me, pushed him away and tried to act cool then run to the crowded room so he can’t do anything to me.I grew up feeling the need to get the same pleasure I had before, thoughts changed from pure to sexually active, I even tried to do things to my lil siblings!!!! Not proud of it now, I did nothing though but the thought that I actually was thinking of it really upset me every day.
Now I’m aware of what was happening to me and what I’ve done before I feel so sick and depressed, really depressed that I wish I could die.
Trying to act like nothing happened, smiling, having an optimistic mindset and getting the negative vibes by doing art and studying hard yet every time I’m alone that’s the only thing I can think of. I hate myself and ashamed of myself. Nothing more horrible than that. I’m now 23 by the way.– GG, Saudi Arabia.
1.
فيه حادثة صارت لي لما كان عمري 7 سنوات أنا كنت مع بنات عمي وخالي بنلعب بالحوش تبعنا وأنا كنت بحب بنت عمتي كتير وكأطفال كنا لما بنلعب بنتخبا أنا وهي لحالنا بمكان ونبوس بعض كنت أحبها وهي تحبني لكن مرة من المرات ولد خالي الكبير شافنا ونحنا نبوس بعض وهددنا يقول لأمي وأمها وبكينا وهو تقريبًا كان كبير بالعمر يمكن 20 سنة أو أكتر وأخذني أنا وبنت عمتي لغرفة بالسطوح قال اسمعوا كلامي وما راح أعلم وودانا عغرفة فوق السطح وفسخ ملابسه وخلانا نفسخ وقال سووا حركات مش تمام وبكينا بس هو يهددنا وسمعنا كلامه وهو يتفرج علينا وبعدين مسك بنت عمتي واغتصبها قدامي وصار فترة مرة علي ومره عليها لحد ما سافر وكبرنا بس للحين متأثر من هالحادثة وما علمنا أحد وحتى بنت عمتي صارت عندها عقدة نفسية وما تزوجت كل ما أحد يجيها ترفض وأنا .مو قادر أتقدملها برغم اني أحبها وتحبني والسبب الي صارلنا
أنا تعقدت وكرهت الزواج والحين عمري 28 سنه وما أريد أتزوج وكل ما أحد فتحلي موضوع الزواج أتضايق
.أحس أنه إذا مات رح أرتاح
.هذه حكايتي ولا عمري قلت لأحد عليها وأحاول أنساها ومو قادر– Dr. M, السعودية.
To read more stories or to submit your own, go to ehkimena.wordpress.com.
If you are a survivor of sexual assault of any form, please seek help and remember that you are not alone. Know that you and your story are valid. Our inbox is always open and we are willing to provide any form of aid or assistance we can.
contact@unootha.com