As part of The Pixel Project’s Read For Pixels campaign, we interview authors and poets from genres as diverse as Science Fiction and Fantasy to Romance to Horror about why they support the movement to end violence against women and girls.
For Domestic Violence Awareness Month 2025, we present an interview with Read For Pixels poet Lana C. Marilyn who contributed her original poem daughter is a bad religion to our 1st charity poetry collection, UNDER HER EYE. Lana is an interdisciplinary literary artist of Afro-Caribbean descent from Brooklyn, NY. Her writing is influenced by her love of horror, existentialism, and the escalating absurdity of internet culture. Find her on Twitter (@Cinniie), Instagram (@Cinnxessa) or through her website: https://www.cinncerely.me/
Inspired to support The Pixel Project’s anti-violence against women work? Make a donation to us today OR buy our 1st poetry collection, UNDER HER EYE, that is published in partnership with Black Spot Books. All donations and net proceeds from book sales go towards supporting our campaigns, programmes, and initiatives.
1. Why is ending violence against women important to you and why did you decide to support The Pixel Project by contributing your poem daughter is a bad religion to UNDER HER EYE which is The Pixel Project’s first charity poetry collection published in partnership with Black Spot Books?
A close friend of mine was in a physically abusive relationship and my mother grew up in a household affected by domestic violence from her father. But, even if I didn’t have these close personal examples from my own life, I think it’s important to lessen and speak up against harm against women. I write primarily for and about women and it made sense to me to support The Pixel Project’s mission by contributing to Under Her Eye, and it was an honour to have my poem selected for the collection.
2. What do you think poets can do to help with the cultural change needed to stop violence against women and girls?
Violence is a complex issue and so of course the solutions will be complex too. I think prevention involves combatting the trauma that can sometimes create abusive cycles, reducing the stigmas that hinders access to aid and resources for victims, and raising awareness of what counts as violence so that fewer things get dismissed or excused.
I think that poets are in a unique position to reach people in subtle, but impactful ways. I think by creating work that speaks to these issues, we are able to be a part of the healing process. Poetry, like other creative mediums, can offer an alternative to dangerous or violent behaviour, be a mechanism for coping and processing, and help shift perspectives. Cultural change is often gradual, and I think poets play an important role in voicing the unspoken.
3. Any final thoughts about why everyone should support stopping violence against women?
Most people probably support violence prevention on its face, in the sense that I don’t think it’s a controversial position to argue we should care about others and reduce their exposure to danger or abuse. I think everyone likely has a woman in their life they care about. I think what’s probably less easy to get a consensus on is what “counts” as violence. People think about violence in the extremes, in terms of visible injuries or overt abuse. But protecting women begins much earlier, because it so rarely starts in the extreme. To ensure our safety effectively requires community awareness and community effort.
Listen to Lana read daughter is a bad religion here: