WOMEN TO-GATHER: WSU AURAK COIL Project Fall 2021
Channel: Sabir Haque
Date: 2022-02-11

What is common between Emirati Traditional Textiles and American Poet and author Lucille Clifton?

The answer was explored by the students of the American University of Ras Al Khaimah in the UAE and Wayne State University in the US in a Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) project. Both the universities initiated the COIL project to expand on US-UAE Higher Education Collaboration.

Here is a short video synopsis of what underwent from April 2021, finally ending with a project titled 'WOMEN TO-GATHER.'

The project is to create a photo story. The photo story documented women from all walks of life, bringing their stories of resilience, highlighting the pivotal role they have historically played in the UAE community. The students from WSU bought in critical texts by African American women's literature and worked with their counterparts at AURAK, creating a mixed media visual narrative titled 'Women To-Gather.'

When photos and narratives (or photographers and writers) work together, they allow the work to take on a whole new meaning. It's more than a caption or an explanation; it's a revelation. A revelation of coming 'To-Gather' across the borders transcending cultural differences focused on women leaving much open to interpretation.