Afghan Women Writing Project

AWWP supports Afghan women and girls to have a direct voice in the world—one not filtered through male relatives or the media. Writing began for me as an escape from my burqa, an escape from my most painful moments. – Pari Some nations have airplanes Birds and other skyward creatures But Afghans live with blood flying Through clouds and countryside Since 2009, AWWP has helped hundreds of Afghan women and girls tell their stories. Wednesday 24th of August, 2016. The fourth day of my second semester. My last class finished at 6:20 p.m. I expected to meet a friend, but she did not come so I finished my dinner and went to the mosque to pray. At 7:04 p.m., I had just finished praying when three explosions went off two meters (6.5 feet) from the mosque. The air turned dark, the ceiling fell upon us. It was hard to breathe. Seconds later, gunshots began. I could not believe what seemed clear: the American University of Afghanistan was under attack. The 24th of August was the third day of my second semester at AUAF. I had started with so many hopes. I was in statistics class on the second floor of the Bayat Building, listening carefully to the lecture, when we heard gunfire close to campus. Growing up in Afghanistan, we think of gunfire as routine. Our professor continued his lecture. Seconds later, an ear-blasting bomb shook the building and shattered the window glass. The campus was under attack.