HERSTORY WRITERS WORKSHOP INC

Since 2003 Herstory workshops have become a favorite offering in Suffolk County's Correctional Facilities.  The "dare to write so another person will care" has markedly impacted family and peer relationships, leading to changes in life plans on release, as well as a decrease in recidivism.  Captain Helen Geslak of the county's correctional system calls Herstory "the most effective program ever attempted in Riverhead."  Former inmates often continue as Herstory Outside members in our community-based workshops.

Spanish-speaking women come together in Herstory workshops in libraries and other settings, where they find access to an inner voice that is encouraged to speak its own language, especially in communities that are riddled with intolerance and hate crimes.  Our bilingual workshops provide participants an opportunity to learn one another's languages and build writing skills as they hear one another's stories.

Herstory's classroom visits, mini-forums and readings in community-based and educational settings feature personal readings by Herstory writers, including former inmates, and create the ripple that magnifies the impact of their art.  Invited program featuring Herstory writers on topics including immigraiton, restorative justice, domestic violence and pay equity work to change hearts and minds, to improve tolerance and open a dialogue with future decision makers.

In addition to our anthology-format journals and magazines featuring Herstory's prison and Latina writers, Herstory has published two member-written memoirs and a manual that offers gackground and applications of our empathy-based method.  Readings, classroom presentations and educational discounts are available. 

 

Says Erin Gruwell, author of Freedom Writers Diary:  There are many charismatic teachers, but Erika Duncan (Herstory's founder and artistic director) is one of the few who can deconstruct and articulate their methods.  Her manual Paper Stranger:  Shaping Stories in Community effectively demonstrates the methodology to teach compassion-based listening and story construction. The tools she has developed are dynamic and versatile, and are based on the simple challenge -- to shape each piece of your story so that the reader will care.  This book will act as a complete kit for teachers looking for something new because it is a passionate testimonial to the power of well-crafted stories.  It is a unique handbook and tool for empowerment!"