Each garment on display in Lancaster County was either the actual one a survivor wore at the time they were assaulted or a replica assembled by volunteers.
A Mennonite child's head covering and dress hang on a clothesline as part of an exhibit showing the modest outfits worn by survivors at the time they were sexually abused, on Friday, April 29, 2022, in Leola, Pa. LEOLA, Pa. — Clotheslines with billowing linens and long dresses are a common sight on the off-grid farms of Pennsylvania’s Lancaster County, home to the nation’s largest Amish settlement.
Dresses donated by sexual assault survivors from Amish and other plain-dressing religious groups hang on a clothesline beneath a description of each survivors' age and church affiliation, on Friday, April 29, 2022, in Leola, Pa. The exhibit's purpose was to show that sexual assault is a reality among children and adults in such groups. Similar exhibits held nationwide aim to shatter the myth that abuse is caused by a victim's clothing choice.
Sexual assault survivors Mary Byler, left, born Amish, and Hope Anne Dueck, whose background is Mennonite, look at a video taken of their exhibit, which displays articles of clothing from sexual assault survivors in the Amish, Mennonite, and similar plain-dressing religious groups, on Friday, April 29, 2022, in Leola, Pa.
“At the end of the day, it was never about the clothes,” said Mary Byler, a survivor of child sexual abuse in the Amish communities where she grew up. Byler, who founded the“I hope it helps survivors know that they’re not alone,” she said. Plain church leaders have acknowledged in recent years that sexual abuse is a problem in their communities and have held seminars to raise awareness.