Sexual assault, abuse and rape cross all cultural and religious boundaries. The Muslim community is no exception. Muslim communities throughout America, made up of cultures that stigmatize the very mention of sex-related subjects, suffer from widespread sex abuse. The proliferation of sex abuse is further propagated by the fact that when instances occur, they are often kept secret – either by the victim or the victim’s family. The perpetrator is almost never confronted. 

Breaking Silence aims to do exactly what its title suggests: break the silence around sexual assault in the Muslim Community. The first and foremost purpose of this film was to weave together the stories, emotions, hardships, and lives, of three young Muslim women as they opened up to us about their assault experiences. We explore the issue and its implications through their personal narratives in order humanize this stigmatized issue – to put a face to victims of these atrocities so that Muslim audiences that may be reluctant to deal with the issue, are forced to, when faced with relatable characters.