KUVAESSEE 2020 KUNNIAMAININTA
PHOTO ESSAY 2020 HONORABLE MENTION

For the past four years and since the birth of her twins, Nita reports to have been victim of violence from her boyfriend and father of the kids

When she decided to break up and sue her ex partner, Nita thought that things would have quickly been better. The reality is that she feels most of the time alone in the fight for her rights of woman and mother. She often complains for the lack of help and poor support received from the social services.

Nita applies some makeup before a work meeting. Since the breakup she had decided to fully invest in her dream of becoming a fashion stylist. She’s been lately meeting photographers, cloth designers and models so to start her career.

When she separated from her violent partner Nita lost also her job as they where working in the same company. To build her new career Nita has been organising and styling many photographic shooting trying to make herself known in the local fashion world. Her goal is to become a fashion stylist.

When back at home it’s hard for her not to feel sad. The distance with her kids (kids have been staying with Nita’s parents for the first months after the breakup) and the long road of the court case makes her often feel alone fighting for her and her kids’ rights.

After four months of separation, (in agreement with the social services the kids have been living for few months with Nita’s parents so to give her the chance to re-set a bit her life) Nita was finally in the conditions to take care of her kids again. Having them back at home is both a joy and a kind of problem as Nita still hasn’t managed to have a stable job.

A teardrop on Nita’s jacket moments before meeting with her lawyer. Every meeting is full of emotions, hope for the future but also pain for what has been and stress for the uncertainty about when all this will end.

Nita at the court house moments before entering the court room where is being discussed the case about the custody of her kids. This is the first of many criminal cases that involve her ex partner. The last one will be about the actual violence she’s been victim of.

Even though Nita constantly faces job difficulties and the complexity of recovering from years of violence, she manages to find little moments to be happy and imagine how life will be, for her and the kids, when all this will end.