Deugain Llais, Deugain Mlynedd / Forty Voices, Forty Years

Forty Voices, Forty Years is a heritage project led by Welsh Women’s Aid in collaboration with the George Ewart Evans Centre for Storytelling at the University of South Wales. We recognise that women’s memories, voices and lives are often written out of national heritage Because of this, our Project Associate has been visiting women across Wales who have been involved in the Women’s Aid movement over the past 40 years, recording their fascinating stories. Alongside preserving these stories, we have also been collected objects from people and organisations who have been involved in the movement. Objects include protest banners, handmade posters and t-shirts, leaflets from past years and more! This project commemorates the work of these women over the past forty years, but also enhances understanding of the movement to stop violence against women in Wales, improving community knowledge about these types of abuse and our work to prevent it. We also want to encourage reflection on our future priorities as a movement, as we work towards our shared goal of eradicating violence against women once and for all. “We believe that sharing stories enables us to hear the voices of those who have often been omitted from the history books. The stories collected in the Forty Voices, Forty Years project will give us a chance to reflect on who we are, where we have come from and what we want to be. Sharing stories can create community and a greater understanding of one another through listening to the tales that make us who we are.” We are grateful for the generous support of our funders enabling this project to go ahead, including Heritage Lottery Fund, the Big Lottery Fund’s National Lottery Awards for All and Hanfod Cymru.