Though their stories have much in common with the dystopian world of “The Handmaid’s Tale”, these letters read by the show’s cast are anything but fiction.
In a new partnership with international women’s rights organization Equality Now, actors from the Emmy Award-winning series share testimonies by real women about their painful experiences with physical and emotional abuse in a 90-second short film.
An emotional Alexis Bledel and Ann Dowd read one woman’s story of genital mutilation. Samira Wiley and Joseph Fiennes share another woman’s story of emotional abuse as a pregnant teen. Tales of sexual assault, trafficking and violence are read by cast and production members including Amanda Brugel, Madeline Brewer, O-T Fagbenle, producer Warren Littlefield and writer Bruce Miller.
The organization calls on people to speak out in support of women’s and girls’ rights to achieve gender equality and justice through the Hope Lives In Every Name campaign. The campaign’s logo takes the comparisons between the women’s stories and the world of Gilead by directly referencing the Handmaidens’ bonnets.
Founded in 1992, Equality Now strives to hold governments to account over ending legal inequality, sex trafficking, sexual violence and harmful practices such as female genital mutilation and child marriage. For more information visit the Equality Now website.
