[I am following Anne Brooke‘s 2021 #52tagshannemade slow stitch challenge to make a little tag every week of the year – see them all here!] Anne brought up how we are all making tags but other than sharing them online, people aren’t really seeing them. She asked us to make a brooch that we could wear in public. I thought was a fun idea, but I don’t wear stuff like that. Instead, I decided to make a political statement and call for awareness and action.

This is a representation of the flag of Ethiopia. The green bar is on top when properly hung, but I hung it this way (where the tendency would be to put the pin on the left side with the red on top) because, at least in America, when you feel that your country is in distress, you hang the flag upside down. The actual flag does not have little black crosses – I added those to represent the murder, rape, and wanton destruction of livelihoods in Tigray. [This article summarizes the history of the conflict in three different sizes, depending on your attention span: Ethiopia’s Tigray War: The short, medium, and Long Story.]

It has been on my mind for a while, but it personally affects people I work with who are from that region. This week, I heard some stories and was shown some articles. It is the usual terrorist approach: slaughter the animals, poison the grains, pollute the wells, murder the children, rape the women, steal everything, and destroy what’s left. I don’t pretend I understand the politics and history of it, but I know it is a humanitarian crisis that isn’t getting enough exposure that would pressure Ethiopia to end it.

I hope you at least take the time to look outside your comfort and read this article: The Crisis in Tigray – Women & Girls Under Violent Assault. (There is a video at the end if that is more your speed.)