My soul mourns the women of Afghanistan. All of a sudden, these women disappeared from the streets and had once again to hide in their houses. They were forced to cover their bodies and faces with the burqa, hiding their feminine attributes. This makes them lose their identity, as women and as unique beings. It is not only about the death of their rights, it’s also about losing their dreams.

I feel terrible pain for this situation in which we all as women are going backwards in this fight. We are all facing a great loss. The obligatory use of the burqa manifests a sense of ownership and domination of the woman’s body. We all should grieve for them. What is not good for me is not good for any.

This work is a scapular that covers the chest and back, and can be worn in contact with skin or clothing. It is made of layers of fabric alluding to the layers of grief. It honors Afghan women but speaks to all women, to their individual and cultural wounds. It protects the most intimate and sacred within us, and to which no ideology or religion can ever have access.