HUM SAB EK (We Are One) – Multi-Media Exhibition

This spring, the Mittal Institute is hosting an exhibition highlighting the voices and experiences of women in India’s informal sector during the COVID-19 pandemic. HUM SAB EK (We Are One) is an immersive show that grew organically from a survey of over 1,000 households in Western India and 30 hours of oral testimony with members of India’s Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA).

This exhibition is inspired by the actions of poor working women in India, who have survived societal and state indifference through half a century of relentless organizing. Hum Sab Ek Hai (We Are One) is the rallying cry of the 2.9 million strong Self Employed Women’s Association, situated at the confluence of the labor movement, the cooperative movement, and the women’s movement.

In 2022, Dr. Balsari’s team studied SEWA’s response to the impact of the pandemic on its members. The study comprised 30 hours of oral histories and a survey of over 1000 households. Unburdened by the luxury of conformation, these disadvantaged but extremely empowered women were found to have implemented solutions that were practical, expedient, and mutually beneficial. 

The origins, scale and impact of public health emergencies, like the COVID-19 pandemic, are determined by underlying societal, economic and political arrangements. The vast material resources mobilized in response to the pandemic were unable to offset long years of poor investments in communities. The story of SEWA’s response to the pandemic is important because it demonstrates how such investments help mitigate against intractable problems. 

Hum Sab Ek, the exhibition, has been designed by an interdisciplinary team of graduate students working closely with women leaders at the forefront of the pandemic response. The oral histories will be donated to the Harvard Countway Library’s History of Medicine archives, and can also be accessed throughout the exhibit. CGIS will be the first stop in a longer journey of storytelling and change, where global artists and scholars will be invited to work with the archival material and with SEWA’s members, to retell, reinterpret and rebuild futures.