Myself a survivor of childhood sexual abuse, I know firsthand the transformational power of story within the healing process. In this film our team has worked to provide a space for Michelle to finally tell her version of her story. While Michelle’s artwork has always been a source of healing and strength for her, we watched the camera and filmmaking process also bring confidence and magnitude to her spirit and voice.

Rarely in the most difficult moments of Michelle’s life had her voice been heard. In fact, she was often taken advantage of due to her disability. Being deaf from the world and speaking with an unseen voice left Michelle vulnerable to abusers within her family and community, unprotected by systems that were supposed to protect her, and manipulated at the cost of her freedom.

Throughout the process of filming, we learned that there are few protections in place for disabled persons within the U.S. prison system. Not only that, but many disabled persons are wrongfully victimized and unable to defend themselves. More needs to be done to protect disabled persons in the U.S. and around the world and we feel confident that Michelle's powerful story will be the spark to ignite such change to support others like Michelle.

I love Michelle. And I believe her story empowers all of us to recognize our own strengths and innate abilities even when our surrounding culture and systems do not. The systems must change in the United States and globally to support everyone. 

 We all deserve to be heard no matter the form of our communication.

-Atin Mehra