Pulitzer Center Update August 30, 2024
An Embroidered 'Archive of War' in Congo
Country:
Project
Women and War in Eastern Congo
Women have borne the brunt of escalating violence in eastern Congo. Yet, even in this relentless...
A generation of conflict recorded through tapestry
Lucie Kamuswekera, an 80-year-old embroidery artist in Goma, Congo, has spent the last three decades stitching detailed tapestries that chronicle the brutality of conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. She used to sew flowers and birds, but that changed after her husband was killed in 1997 while walking to their farm, in the early days of the violence.
The intricate stories she delicately weaves into the fabric—it can take her five full days to stitch a human face—have created a vibrant archive of Congolese history. She creates many of her tapestries from memory, refusing to ignore the past in hope of a better future, and fills in details with stories from her community.
Kamuswekera’s story is part of grantee Sophie Neiman’s project, Women and War in Eastern Congo, which looks at how women are responding to the many challenges of ongoing violence and displacement in the country. While some women lean into art as a form of activism, archival work, and a means of survival, others, like Marie Byamwungu, are taking up arms against M23 fighters.
Since 1996, eastern Congo has endured repeated waves of violence, killing more than 6 million people. The M23 rebellion has led to renewed violence and displacement, with at least 1.7 million people homeless and now living in makeshift structures and displacement camps.
Kamuswekera is teaching her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren her craft, and she believes in a brighter future for her family and Congo’s people. “Today I am making pictures of war, because we are in a war,” she says. “When the war ends, I will make pictures of peace.”
The Pulitzer Center has supported reporting and engagement on issues in the DRC since our founding in 2006—from lesson plans and student programs to film screenings and public events. To see how students are engaging with Congo’s current crisis, read this winning poem by 11th grader Lily Scheckner, written in response to “These Women Are Bringing Some Peace to War-Stricken Congo” as part of this year’s Fighting Words Student Poetry Contest.
Best,
Impact
Eighteen teachers who participated in the 2023-2024 Teacher Fellowship inspired 1,300 students in grades four through 12 across 12 U.S. states to engage with global news stories, empowering student creativity and action. In each of these educators’ classrooms, students explored reporting on global health, migration, racial justice, climate change and the environment, and AI accountability with the support of teacher-designed materials and activities. By applying media literacy and critical thinking skills to Pulitzer Center news stories, students developed a deeper dialogue with the world—recognizing personal and community connections to global issues.
All Teacher Fellowship units and examples of students’ work will be published throughout fall 2024 and highlighted in our weekly K-12 Education newsletter. Subscribe to the Pulitzer Center Education newsletter for more on the Fellowship. To learn more about the impact of the program, read the full update here.
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This message first appeared in the August 30, 2024, edition of the Pulitzer Center's weekly newsletter. Subscribe today.
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