Yagoona mum and sons rap against domestic violence
SARAH Abouloukme has turned the heartbreak of losing her husband into a positive message for her two sons and the local community.
The Express
Don't miss out on the headlines from The Express. Followed categories will be added to My News.
SARAH Abouloukme has turned the heartbreak of losing her husband into a positive message for her two sons and the local community.
The Yagoona mother and her two young sons Zinedine, 11, and Zaid, 8, will sing rap verses with others at the fourth Break the Silence Youth Showcase on Thursday, July 26, at the Bankstown Central shopping centre (across from Kmart) from 6pm.
The show will include original songs, dances and other performances about speaking up and out against violence against women.
Mrs Abouloukme lost her husband Mazen Lazkanmi to cancer six years ago but wants her sons to remind them of their father’s memory and what he stood for.
“I have sung in choirs and concerts before but have never done rap,” Mrs Mrs Abouloukme said.
“There will be 12 rappers each doing a verse and it’s a different challenge for me.
“It took us about 15 minutes to write our verses and I wanted people not to accept domestic violence and stick up for themselves.
“My lyrics are aimed at empowering women and saying that DV is not OK.”
Mrs Abouloukme, who has two sisters and a brother, said eldest son Zinedine spoke to Craig Taunton from Bankstown Youth Development Service, about wanting to be get involved with activities outside of school that have meaning to them.
“This helps him learn to and meet new people,” she said.
“So I took him to his first practice and helped write more verses for his rap.
“The most beautiful place I have performed at was the Sydney Opera House but I have never rapped before.
“My son asked me if I could be apart of this and I could not resist him, you can’t say no to a great cause.
“Zaid was happy to watch at this point but as soon as we got home, Zinedine and I helped Zaid write his own verse.
“It’s been such a great avenue to meet people and to see the amazing local talent we have here in Bankstown.
“It has been a positive experience for us and we are very happy to be apart of a great cause.”
Mrs Abouloukme said wanted to remind the boys of their Dad’s memory and what he stood for.
Beak the Silence Youth Showcase is focused on the White Ribbon message, which is about speaking up and about domestic violence and treating women equally.
“The respect Mazen gave me and the love he gave me was so rare,” Mrs Abouloukme said.
“I wish my boys got to see more of it but at least they can hear it from me,”
“We were best friends. Everything was so easy and perfect.
“We used to cook together, clean together.
“We took every opportunity to do things together. Everything was equal.
“After Mazen passed away, I had so many people come up to me saying they were going to change the way they were going to interact with their partner, just because of how he treated me.
“He was the type of man that, when he was diagnosed with cancer, he was grateful it was him that had it and not someone else he loved.
“That’s the type of person I want our boys to know growing up.”
Zinedine said that every White Ribbon event made a difference.
“It reminds people that this (domestic violence) is a very real and serious issue in society, and it’s happening every day to thousands of people,” Zinedine said.
“I want to make sure my memory of my Dad being a caring, loving and equal partner to my mum lives on, and I want to teach other people they have a choice in how they treat their partner in a relationship.”
The special event is an initiative of the Bankstown White Ribbon Working Party committee, with BYDS partnering with White Ribbon, The Smith Family, BaptistCare, Bulldogs, Muslim Women Association, CatholicCare, Bankstown Central and City of Canterbury Bankstown.
White Ribbon Ambassador, Mayor Khal Asfour, said it was inspiring to see the City’s youth understand the seriousness of domestic violence.
“I am pleased the rate of domestic violence has fallen by 17 per cent in Canterbury-Bankstown, but one assault is one too many, so we still have quite a way to go and these programs certainly help,” he said.