As the U.S. pulls out of Afghanistan and the Taliban continues to seize power, one of the many looming humanitarian crises involves what the future will hold for Afghan women. The Taliban has promised to protect women’s rights within the strictures of Islamic law, but that doesn’t mean a whole lot considering the group’s history of extreme misogyny and oppression — which included confining women to their homes, requiring women to wear burkas, and prohibiting girls aged 10 and older from attending school.
“In the midst of the political tumult and our fear for women’s lives and rights, it’s important for all of us to know more about the country and the lives of women who live there — to see their struggles as well as their incredible triumphs over the last 20 years,” a press release from Women Make Movies (WMM) emphasized. “This context is important as we contemplate how to support women in Afghanistan moving forward.” The org is providing that context with “Voices of Afghan Women,” a collection of films spotlighting Afghan women’s experiences that is screening virtually at no cost through August 31.
Among the films featured in “Voices of Afghan Women” are “A Thousand Girls Like Me,” Sahra Mani’s portrait of a sexual abuse survivor seeking justice, and Rokhsareh Ghaemmaghami’s “Sonita,” the story of an Afghan refugee in Iran pursuing her passion for rap music. Anneta Papathanassiou’s “Playing with Fire,” which follows Afghan women chasing their acting dreams in spite of social barriers, will also screen, as will Eva Mulvad and Anja Al-Erhayem’s “Enemies of Happiness,” which chronicles Malalai Joya’s historic 2005 parliamentary campaign.
The current situation in Afghanistan is posing a particular threat to women filmmakers. Afghan cinema, especially films made by women, has flourished in the past 10 years — that could very well come to an end now that the Taliban is back in control. “The pressure [Afghan women] are under builds anger, and then that anger comes out in their talent, and so they fly. That’s where Afghan women were — they were just flying,” “Black Tulip” filmmaker Sonia Nassery Cole told Variety. “The art was coming back, the filmmakers were coming back. There’s so much talent in my country, so much hunger to tell the world their stories, but that’s all shut down and pushed behind a dark, dark curtain. I doubt we’ll see another film shot there for the next 30 years.”
“There are just two options now if you think differently, or are an intellectual, filmmaker, or artist — you leave the country or the Taliban comes and kills you,” Mani said. “We are just a few female filmmakers in Afghanistan, maybe 10, so they can easily find us, kill us, get rid of us — even in just one hour.”
Head over to WMM’s website to find out more about the “Voices of Afghan Women” collection or to register to screen the films. The titles are also available for virtual programming, for screening bookings, and for purchase on DVD or via Digital Site License. Many of the films are also streaming on Kanopy.
