Sex Slave Survivors Sing to Heal

Young Yazidi girls who were kidnapped as sex slaves in northern Iraq are now part of a choir created by survivors of Islamic State violence. The choir is helping the girls overcome trauma, while protecting ancient Yazidi music.

“I feel very happy with them. It’s helped me a lot psychologically,” says Rainas Elias after performing at a London music conservatory in England. At the age of 14, she was kidnapped by Islamic State militants who considers the Yazidi community as devil-worshippers.

The 15- to 22-year-old girls say the choir helps them form friendships and heal from the traumatizing past they endured. The music – engraved in Yazidi religion and culture yet never written or recorded – is traditionally performed by men, but half of those learning today are girls and women.

“It’s extraordinary how they’ve grown in confidence,” says British violinist Michael Bochmann, who has been working with Yazidi musicians and the AMAR charity on recording the Yazidi music, adding that the choir is having a transformative effect. “The great thing about music is that it makes you live in the here and now. More than any other art form, it can make you happy in the present moment.”