RACS Clothesline Project
The Clothesline Project is a visual display of shirts with graphic messages and illustrations that have been designed by survivors of violence or someone who loves a woman who has been killed. The purpose of the project is to increase awareness of the impact of violence against women, to celebrate a woman’s strength to survive, and to provide another avenue for her to courageously break the silence.
The Project originated in 1990. According to the Men’s Anti-Rape Center in Washington, D.C., 58,000 soldiers died in the Vietnam War. During that same period of time, 51,000 women were killed by men who supposedly loved them. That mind-numbing statistic became the catalyst for a small group of women who came together to find a dramatic way to break the silence and bear witness to the horror of violence against women. The idea of using a clothesline was a natural.
Doing the laundry was traditionally considered women’s work. In the days of close-knit neighborhoods, women often exchanged information over backyard fences while hanging their clothes out to dry. Through this project, the clothesline provides a way to air society’s dirty laundry.
When this project began, the following color code was adopted to help provide a visual statistic of the types of abuse represented by the shirts:
- White – women who have died as a result of violence
- Red, Pink, or Orange – women who have been raped or sexually assaulted.
- Yellow or Beige – women who have been battered or assaulted
- Blue or Green – women survivors of incest or childhood sexual abuse
- Purple or Lavender – women attacked because of their sexual orientation
- Black, Gray, or any color not listed above – survivors’ choice of designation
Any woman who has experienced such violence is encouraged to create a shirt to be added to The Clothesline Project. Identities of T-shirt creators will be kept confidential. For more information, contact The Rape and Abuse Crisis Service, (573) 634-8346, Ext. 7.
