United States
Filmmaker, Rape
Hijri Unknown-Present (AH); Common Era Unknown-Present (CE)
Aishah Shahidah Simmons is an independent documentary filmmaker and activist whose work focuses on using the moving image, the written and spoken word to centralize the literal and metaphorical margins. Ms. Simmons, a survivor of sexual violence, produced, wrote, and directed NO! The Rape Documentary (www.NOtheRapeDocumentary.org). This Ford Foundation-funded documentary explores the international reality of rape, other forms of sexual violence and healing through the first person testimonies, scholarship, spirituality, and activism of African-Americans. NO! also explores how rape is used as a weapon of homophobia. NO! is a recipient of the Audience Choice Award and a Juried Award at the San Diego Women’s Film Festival; and Best Documentary Award at the India International Women’s Film Festival. Subtitled in Spanish, Portuguese, and French, NO! has been widely distributed internationally to battered women’s shelters, rape crisis centers, government agencies, NGOs, and colleges/universities. A recipient of numerous awards and grants, Ms. Simmons has lectured extensively and her writings have been anthologized in the U.S. and in Europe. Her cultural work and activism have been highlighted in several media outlets including NPR, Radio France, BET, Ms. and Essence magazines. She is also featured in Farah Nousheen’s documentary Nazrah: A Muslim Woman’s Perspective. Ms. Simmons is now turning her cinematic lens to a feature length documentary, which she is working on with her mother Gwendolyn Zoharah Simmons, on African-American Muslim women.
