Healthy Sexuality and Challenging Sexual Violence
Public Lecture and Workshops with Navila Rashid and Haddijatou Ceesay
May 1 and 2, 2023
Part of the Campus Culture and Belonging Series and Sexual Assault Awareness Month
Navila Rashid, MSW and Haddijatou Ceesay, MSPH, PhD from the national nonprofit HEART will engage the campus community in conversations about supporting Muslim survivors of sexual violence and promoting healthy sexuality. They will discuss their recent book, The Sex Talk Book: A Muslim’s Guide to Healthy Sex and Relationships, as well as workshops for staff and students to respond to survivors of sexual assault with rahma (compassion).
To request disability-related accommodations for these events, please email diversity@illinois.edu. Early requests are strongly encouraged to allow for sufficient time to meet your access needs.
Sponsored by the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion in collaboration with the Women’s Resources Center, Muslim Students Association, and the Underrepresented Muslims and Minority Advocates.
Public Lecture: Why We Wrote The Sex Talk Book: A Muslim’s Guide to Health Sex and Relationships: Conversation with the Authors
Monday, May 1 from 6–7 p.m.
Room 2035 Campus Instructional Facility
1405 Springfield Ave., Urbana
Join Navila Rashid and Dr. Haddijatou Ceesay, authors of “The Sex Talk: A Muslim’s Guide to Health Sex and Relationships” as they talk about why they wrote this book, and its importance for Muslims and everyone else. Written in collaboration with various experts, this resource intends to shift the conversation around sex, believing that all Muslims have a right to access accurate reproductive and sexual health information in a way that’s empowering, gender equitable, and free of judgment. A book signing will follow the lecture. This event is free and open to all.
Faculty/Staff Workshop
Responding with RAHMA: Understanding Muslim Survivors
Tuesday, May 2 from 10–11:30 a.m.
Office of the Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
614 E. Daniel St., Champaign
Room 3070, Third Floor
Join Navila Rashid and Dr. Haddijatou Ceesay from the national nonprofit HEART as they share their RAHMA model for caring for Muslim survivors of sexual violence. Using an approach based in faith, compassion, and humility, the educators will help University staff and faculty learn more about responding with care. HEART is an organization dedicated to promoting sexual health, uprooting gendered violence, and advancing reproductive justice by establishing choice and access for the most impacted Muslims.
Student Workshop: Responding with RAHMA: Having Compassion and Holding Space for Survivors
Tuesday, May 2 from 1–3 p.m.
Women’s Resources Center
616 E. Green St., Suite 202, Champaign
Join Navila Rashid and Dr. Haddijatou Ceesay from the national nonprofit HEART as they engage college students in an open conversation about sexual violence and strategies to create spaces for support for survivors. Hosted by the Underrepresented Muslim & Minority Advocates and Muslim Students Association.
About the Speakers
Haddijatou Ceesay, MSPH, PhD is a Gambian Muslim, researcher, writer and social justice advocate with expertise and significant experience in research, project management and advocacy, primarily focusing on education policy, youth empowerment, public health, and gender. She holds a doctorate from City, University of London, where her research centered on sexual and reproductive health education policy for young people.
She has extensive experience working with survivors of various forms of gender-based violence (GBV) including Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), child marriages and sexual violence. Dr. Ceesay is a health educator and consultant at HEART, and has consulted for other agencies, including the United Nations Populations Fund, the Institute for Human Rights and Development in Africa, and the Population Council. Prior to this, she was part of an inter-agency committee that worked with the African Union’s (AU) campaign to end child marriage, and successfully lobbied to pass a law to ban child marriage in The Gambia. Dr Ceesay co-founded the #SaveGambianWomen initiative, an online repository for documenting violence against women cases in The Gambia. She is a firm believer of activism through digital spaces for the global amplification of women’s voices.
Navila Rashid, MSW is a Muslim, Queer, Bangladeshi-American. She’s a trauma-informed forensic social worker, and community educator. She joined HEART in 2019 full-time and is the Manager of Training and Survivor Advocacy. Before HEART, Navila was consulting for public defenders, government agency staff, and nonprofits to support in creating safe(r) spaces for victims & survivors either through organizational programming or 1:1 case management.
Navila also Co-Founded ‘The Cathartist’ in 2012, a web-based platform for victims & survivors, allies, and co-conspirators to find a safe, judgment-free home for their storytelling as a part of their journey on coping and healing. Navila is also featured as a survivor in the award-winning documentary, Breaking Silence, where she addresses the nuances and experiences of being a survivor of sexual violence in a Muslim and South Asian community, and the journey towards healing. She earned her Master’s in Social Work from Long Island University-Brooklyn, a Post-Baccalaureate Degree in Biology from University of North Carolina-Greensboro, and a BS in Health Science and Creative Writing from University of the Sciences in Philadelphia.