Why Do I Scream at God for the Rape of Babies? [Paperback]

Claudia Ford (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 16, 2004

At the center of Why Do I Scream at God for the Rape of Babies? is the tragic story of a five-month-old South African baby named Vyanna who is left alone in a Johannesburg porn theater by her homeless mother and then gang-raped. The story's heart, however, is one of healing, courage and growing love that Vyanna's adoptive mother experiences from the moment she sees the little girl. Journal entries, letters to friends and South African courts, and memories weave together Ford's two-year chronicle of a most unusual—and rewarding—mother-daughter relationship.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"What can I say? I wept; I laughed in rueful recognition of the transcendent, luminous ordinariness of mothering. It is a work of staggering love and courage."
-Dr. Margaret Orr, Director of the Centre for Learning, Teaching, and Development at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa

From the Inside Flap

In South Africa, over 15 percent of all reported rapes are against children under age eleven; 26 percent are against children ages twelve through seventeen. In 2000, fifty-eight children a day were raped or the victims of rape attempts. On December 2, 2001, in a ghetto porn theatre in Johannesburg, a five-month-old girl was violated and defiled—gang raped and left for dead. Within two weeks of the transgression, little Vyanna would find herself in the care of her new mother, Claudia J. Ford. This short book is a love letter: a record of the suffering and ongoing strength of one miraculous baby girl; of the bonding between a mother and daughter who found each other in the most heartrending of circumstances; of the celebration of tiny successes and enormous strides in the aftermath of a brutal crime.

Infant and child rape are an unfathomable offense, so much so that it hurts to talk about it, gives us chills to read about it. Ford brings compassion and awareness to an offense that goes too often ignored or unreported. In the weaving together of journal entries, poems, epigrams, letters, and portions of scholarly papers, Ford sets out to leave a written testimony for her daughter and to lift the veil of secrecy as one step toward the prevention of such unspeakable assault. Sharing this story is an act of love, a project of faith, and, most of all, a declaration of the power of courage and hope.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: North Atlantic Books (November 16, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1556435479
• ISBN-13: 978-1556435478
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,312,077 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How did it get this bad?, February 27, 2005

By 

Joyce Woodson (Alexandria, VA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Why Do I Scream at God for the Rape of Babies? (Paperback)

How can we live in a sophisticated high tech world where desperate ignorant men rape babies to rid themselves of AIDS, addicted and abused women allow their babies to be brutalized, and governments play games with HIV/AIDS statistics to make sure tourism is not undermined in their country? When I finshed the book and wiped my tears, I too felt angry and wanted to scream. This poignant journey of one strong woman and one strong-willed woman-child changes the screams of anger into shouts of victory. Ford embodies the strength that we all need to make changes in our "sophisticated" societies ... we can each stop screaming and start doing something about the challenges we see every day. Ford did that. A powerful book from a powerful spirit.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book is engaging, moving and unforgettable., December 7, 2004

By 

AJSBaker "Baker" (Virginia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Why Do I Scream at God for the Rape of Babies? (Paperback)

This book is engaging, moving and unforgettable. It will toll in your heart like a bell.
The reader begins a journey with Ford at her first meeting with the baby, a survivor of rape at five months old. Ford asks us how the world became complacent, how we lost feeling, lost compassion, and then takes the reader by the hand, and says "walk with me" and we begin to regain our senses. Through the clarity of her writing we allowed into Ford's tears, her grappling, her powerful mother's love and her struggle for solutions. Our Compassion is restored. This book will change you forever.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Embraces the power of love, courage, faith, and hope, March 9, 2005

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Why Do I Scream at God for the Rape of Babies? (Paperback)

African American, globetrotter, midwife, activist, scholar, feminist, author, mother, Claudia J. Ford is an extraordinary woman who has lived many places in the world while honing her expertise of issues of international development while raising three sons. On December 2, 2001, in a ghetto porn theatre in Johannesburg, a five-month-old girl was sexually violated -- gang raped and left for dead. Within two weeks of this incredible assault, little Vyanna would find herself in the care of Claudia Ford. In Why Do I Scream At God For The Rape Of Babies? Claudia candidly addresses an horrific reality. In South Africa more than 15 percent of all reported rapes are against children under the age of eleven. 26 percent are against children ages twelve through seventeen. In the year 2000, fifty-eight children a day were raped or the victims of attempted rape. This seminal, ground breaking memoir is a testament woven of journal entries, poems, epigrams, letters, and even portions of scholarly papers, and is specifically intended to lift the veil of silence and secrecy on this widespread atrocity. Why Do I Scream At God For The Rape Of Babies? embraces the power of love, courage, faith, and hope to change the world into something better for the sake of future generations. Would there were more autobiography voices against other such social injustices in the modern world.