A safe space
SOMETIME in May last year, lecturer Nia Shahro and three of her friends – Azaria Tagaya, Atiqah Shahruddin and Jihan Salleh – launched The Scarlet Teja Project, an online platform to discuss topics that concerned them but were often considered taboo.
“Essentially, The Scarlet Teja Project offers us and others a safe space to talk about topics that we are concerned about,” explains Nia. “Many of these topics are viewed as taboo and therefore, it’s not easy to get information on them. We hope that our platform can also be a resource for women and girls ... and also men and boys, to get information on these topics,” she adds.
Sexual health, sex education, sexual harassment, unfair dismissal, revenge porn and even menstruation and piloxing (an exercise that combines pilates, boxing and dance) are just some of the wide range of topics that the young women have covered so far.
“It isn’t just for women. But, because we are four women, the topics tend to cover subjects that we are concerned and curious about. But I think they are topics that concern everyone,” says Atiqah.
In the one-hour long segments – the first few episodes were live but subsequent ones have been recorded sessions uploaded on the group’s Facebook page. The women invite subject experts who give credible advice, information and insight on the chosen topic.
“It started off as something personal for me,” shares Nia. “I am an educator and a mum but it wasn’t until recently, in my 30s, that I went through a process of self discovery. When I was younger, there were many things I wanted to do, but because I grew up in a very traditional community, I always felt ‘malu’ to express myself.
“I felt confined and even ‘different’ and so I kept my thoughts to myself. Things because worse when I became a mum – you know, these notions of what a mum should and shouldn’t be doing and all that kind of things played on my mind.
“But then I found friends like these three women, and they were supportive and I felt I could be myself and talk openly about anything without being judged. And so I came up with the idea of bringing them all together and having a space to talk about all sorts of things,” shares Nia.
“And, I think, there are a lot of people in my generation who want a safe space to talk about subjects that concern them,” she adds.
Her idea resonated with her friends who immediately got on board. Jihan says that The Scarlet Teja Project has given her a voice.
“To me, it has helped me feel not alone. I’m not the only one facing a certain issue or having questions. Also, it helps me be more empathetic to what others are going through. It’s been an eye-opening journey and the group has encouraged me to speak my mind and not be too afraid of saying the ‘wrong thing’,” says Jihan.
Adds Atiqah: “I love people. I like learning about people and after every session, I feel like I’ve been through such a learning experience. That’s the human experience for me.”
For Azaria, the initiative has been a ‘learning experience’ that has benefited her more than she could have hoped.
“Every session is so interesting and it opens up a whole new world to me. Although I hope we can reach more people, even if we reach and benefit one person each time, I think we’ve achieved a purpose,” she says.
Among Scarlet Teja’s main aims is to create a space where people can discuss topics in a relaxed atmosphere.
The girls get the ball rolling by posing questions that are on their minds: for example, what is sexual harassment.
“Sometimes, in an office setting, some guy would have said something that made me feel uneasy. But I was not sure if it was considered harassment or was I being too sensitive. I would usually just play it down. But what should I really do?” says Nia. “These are the things we want to know and clear up.”
Scarlet Teja also acts as a support group for anyone who needs a community to support them or help them with a problem or find answers.
“I think it is definitely very important for women to raise one another up and have each other’s back, especially in this day and age where social media content can be unkind to women and make them feel judged, and they have to behave or present themselves in a certain way. So we feel this could be a place for like-minded people to gather,” says Nia.
Those who want to suggest topics for Scarlet Teja to discuss or have questions they want answered can submit their comments anonymously at https://tinyurl.com/thescarlettejaproject.