Such an honour to be asked by @thesouthafricanist to create a puzzle that will serve as a conversation starter on the topic of gender based violence and gender equality. My artwork is to create a conversation on consent in the household. My artwork is a depiction of two women and their hair spells out “NO”. In my illustration hair is being used as a tool to express the anti-rape slogan “No means no”. Many cases of gender based violence also include rape and with my artwork I hope to create dialogue amongst parents and children on the topic of consent. It’s important that parents talk about the concept of consent. Though these conversations can be difficult and uncomfortable at first, they play a huge role in helping children understand and internalize the importance of respect and caring in romantic relationships. Children who are not taught about consent can end up being perpetrators of gender based violence or become victims of it because they are unclear what the boundaries are. I hope that my art can be the conversation starter for this very important topic. Being a woman in South Africa means that you have a very high chance of becoming a victim of gender-based violence because the statistics of crimes against women are extremely high in our country. I am extremely grateful to be given the opportunity to use my platform and art as for a cause very close to my heart. I believe that as creatives we have always been at the forefront of driving political change and raising awareness on particular issues can create change, even if it’s just a small change. Thank you to The South Africanist for coming up with this great initiative.