Aliya Abbas, Survivor and Activist: “I hope to see a day when survivors no longer have to relive their traumas to advocate an end to child marriage, because good people in this world have eliminated it.”

WASHINGTON – After her father found out she was raped, Vilas Wright was forced to marry a man twice her age. Speaking before the Washington, DC City Council Committee on the Judiciary & Public Safety on Monday, October 21, she testified, “No one asked me. I was a naive and innocent little girl even if I was a feisty redhead. No one stopped it. No one stood up and questioned if this was right or wrong. You have the power to do that today.”

DC Council held a hearing on the Child Marriage Prohibition Amendment Act of 2024, introduced by Councilmember Brooke Pinto (Ward 2), as the next step in the legislative process. According to a Tahirih Justice Center report, Washington, DC is the only jurisdiction in the mid-Atlantic region that has not taken action to end child marriage. This legislative hearing was the next step in righting that horrible wrong.

In her moving testimony Vilas, a Maryland resident, described being repeatedly raped at 13 years old, treated “as a mere possession” until being “tossed aside” and becoming homeless. “I never attended high school. I was not able to get a job because I had no training and was not old enough to be hired. I survived by trading my body for shelter and food. After all, it seemed to carry no other value. The consequences of the events of my childhood will remain with me for the duration of my lifetime,” she added.

Aliya Abbas, another metro DC resident, said, “I wholeheartedly support this bill because it hits home. It’s extremely personal. I am a product of child marriage and who better than a child bride to know the reality of this injustice.” She went on to describe being removed from high school at the age of 17, and flown to another country to be married to a total stranger.

“That one instance changed my life forever. I became a mother at 18 and then again at 20, both times without my consent. Being a mother is one of the most fulfilling jobs I have, but I won’t lie, it took every ounce of my being to get to where I am today. It’s actually a miracle. No child should ever have to endure that unimaginable heavy load of raw pain. The years I spent in the marriage, if you can even call it that, were the most painful years of my life where I endured mental, emotional, and physical abuse and torture as well as marital rape,” Aliya said.

In her testimony, Aliya described herself as a “survivor who had the courage to finally stand up for myself and for the sake of my children at any cost.” She also explained that being an advocate on such a personal issue is “not only emotionally and mentally traumatic, but has physical implications. I will spend this day writing the testimony along with the day when I have to orally testify in sorrow and unimaginable pain of having to relive the trauma in sharing my story, yet again, in hope of seeing a day when … survivors no longer have to relive their traumas through advocating to end child marriage, because good people in this world would have worked together to eliminate it.”

Survivors Brigitte Combs (Virginia), Sara Tasneem, and Judy Wiegand also testified before the DC Council, alongside Dr. Indira Henard, Executive Director of the DC Rape Crisis Center, Lul Mohamud, Executive Director of The Person Center, and Alex Goyette, Public Policy Manager at the Tahirih Justice Center. Find all testimonies here.

Said Sara Tasneem, “At fifteen years old I was forced to marry a stranger who was 13 years older than me. I was legally married to my rapist and abuser at the age of 16 and clearly pregnant — which was evidence of rape…. It took me seven long years of surviving my abusive relationship and overcoming enormous obstacles to separate and file for divorce. It then took three years to finalize my divorce. As a minor, I faced extreme and numerous barriers to being able to leave my abusive marriage. Sadly, I am not the exception. It has taken me years to recognize and address the severe impacts child marriage has had on me, including PTSD from the prolonged abuse, recovering from the financial abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, and physical abuse, the educational impacts of being taken out of school as a fifteen-year-old led directly to extreme poverty. It has taken me years to recover.”

These brave survivors, and others, are speaking up to protect children from having to endure these same experiences.

“If my efforts and words to you as a survivor and an advocate can save one child from living the hell that comes as a result of children getting married, then I am asking you to hear my testimony and protect future generations of innocent children from this fate. You have the power to do that today by setting the minimum age to marry at 18 with no exception,” concluded Vilas.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Read additional testimonies in support of the Child Marriage Prohibition Amendment Act of 2024, offered during the October 21 DC City Council hearing.

See the Tahirih Justice Center report, “Child Marriage in Washington, DC,” and two-page issue brief about the DC legislation.

Learn more about the DC legislation and find quotes from Alex Goyette, Public Policy Manager with the Tahirih Justice Center; Dr. Indira Henard, Executive Director of the DC Rape Crisis Center; Lul Mohamud, MPH, Executive Director of The Person Center; Sasha Taylor, child marriage survivor-advocate and founder of SK Sultana LLC; and Councilmember Brooke Pinto (Ward 2), the bill’s sponsor, here.

CONTACT: Lynn Tramonte ([email protected] / 202-255-0551)