Sosina, advocate for Tigrayan women

In March I provided photographs at a fundraiser for Tigrayan Women. The “photobooth” part of the event was organized by a woman named Sosina, who said at the time that she’d like to invite Sue and me to her house sometime for a Tigrayan coffee ritual, and today it happened. She served us a beautiful lunch and then roasted, ground, and prepared fresh green coffee beans in the traditional way. We enjoyed intense and delicious cups of coffee as we talked about our lives. Normally the ritual is done outside, but because of a heat wave, Sosina moved the whole setup (see Extra) into her living room.

Sosina has three nearly-adult children, and she is a caterer who specializes in middle eastern food (her husband is Syrian) and operates a food truck. She is vibrant, imaginative, and committed to making a contribution to Tigrayan women. The war is currently in a ceasefire, but the Ethiopian government is blocking aid to Tigray, and people there are suffering. Currently Sosina is raising money to establish a bakery in Tigray as a place of employment for Tigrayan women rape survivors. 

She explained to us that rape is an instrument of war in Tigray and northern Ethiopia, so thousands of Tigrayan women have been raped, but in their culture a woman who has been raped is shunned, as if the rape were her fault. Some rape survivors are widows whose husbands were killed during the war, and others were rejected by their husbands after the rape. Many live in large hostels with their children, without the support of family. They are able to work but because of the stigma associated with rape, they struggle to find work and to care for their children. 

Sosina left Tigray when she was fourteen and has never been back, but she and other Tigrayan women in Portland are in touch with families in Tigray, and with doctors, social workers, and others who are working to eradicate the social stigma of rape and to provide ways for rape survivors to earn a living.