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Amnesty
41 in
x
45 in
(104 cm x 114 cm)
Year
2008
Photo Credit
Tim Becker
Exhibition
Price
$1,050.00
Amnesty was inspired by the story of Fauzia Kassindja, a 17-year-old girl who fled Togo to escape being forced to endure a polygamous marriage and the custom of female genital cutting.
Fauzia had an idyllic childhood, raised by loving parents. After her father's death, her aunt made plans for her cutting ceremony and marriage to an older man. Fauzia fled to the United States, naively thinking she would receive asylum. Instead, she was put in detention for more than a year. She ultimately won her case, creating a precedent for granting asylum based on gender-based persecution. Using color to contrast her happy childhood with her dark time in prison, I hope to convey the pain caused by our immigration laws.
Fauzia had an idyllic childhood, raised by loving parents. After her father's death, her aunt made plans for her cutting ceremony and marriage to an older man. Fauzia fled to the United States, naively thinking she would receive asylum. Instead, she was put in detention for more than a year. She ultimately won her case, creating a precedent for granting asylum based on gender-based persecution. Using color to contrast her happy childhood with her dark time in prison, I hope to convey the pain caused by our immigration laws.