Talia Rashid is a 19-year-old heterosexual female of Iranian descent and a practicing Sunni Muslim. She is a first year college student who lives in an all-women dormitory on campus. Talia excelled her first semester at the university earning a 3.89 GPA and Dean’s List recognition. She has a work study position at the college gym. In addition, Talia is a member of a sorority on campus whose philanthropic focus is women’s physical and mental health wellness. After a conversation with her sorority sister, she spoke to the Chapter Advisor who offered support and accompanied Talia to the on campus rape crisis services office.

Talia’s family lives two hours away. Her father, Mohammad, age 43, has retired from the military and now works for a home security company. He has always taught Talia to be cautious and aware of her surroundings. Her mother, Manha, age 40, is a hairdresser and works at a neighborhood salon where she is very popular. Her clients often have to book out weeks in advance. Talia also has two younger siblings, her sister Zoya who is 16 and her brother Amir who is 14. She loves her family deeply. She is aware of the sacrifices her parents have made so she can attend the school of her dreams. She works hard academically to make everyone proud of her. 

Talia has not shared the sexual assault with her family members.

MAIN/CURRENT EVENT: Talia is a 19 year old female student who was sexually assaulted on campus after finishing her evening shift at the campus gym. As she left the gym on the academic side of campus walking toward the dorms, she realized that she was being followed by three males. They quickly caught up to her, knocked her can of mace out of her hand, and one of them dragged her by her hijab onto the running path near the sidewalk. All of the males used racial and sexual slurs while ripping her clothes, including her hijab off her head.  Two of the males held her while the other male sexually assaulted her orally and vaginally. Eventually Talia passed out from the trauma. She woke to find herself bleeding, she did not have enough clothing to cover herself, and she could barely walk. Eventually, she found the gym bag she dropped and called her ‘Big’ (sorority sister mentor) who immediately came to get Talia.

PRECIPITATING EVENTS: Until the recent attack, Talia absolutely loved being an on-campus student. She had met lots of friends, excelled in her studies, and felt very comfortable everywhere she went, e.g. the dorms, class, and social settings. Her parents were hesitant when she first approached them about attending college. They were worried about how she would be treated, if she would be safe, and even if they would all be okay with distance. Talia knowing her parents and how much they valued education shared different campus write ups on diversity and inclusion. She shared the campus safety report from the following year. She even organized a family meeting to show the elder Rashids how to use Zoom and Facebook Messenger, so that they could talk face-to-face everyday. 

If someone would have told Talia that her life would change so rapidly in 24 hours - she would have never believed them.

Scenario A: Perpetrators are identified as unknown, older males believed to NOT be students.

Scenario B: Perpetrators are identified as known college students who have frequented the gym Talia works at.

Scenario C: Perpetrators are unknown to Talia and she has difficulty with identifying markers, e.g. age, hair/eye color, etc.

Talia Rashid is a 19-year-old heterosexual female of Iranian descent and a practicing Sunni Muslim. She is a first year college student who lives in an all girl dormitory on campus. Talia excelled her first semester at the university making the Dean’s List recognition. She has a work study at the campus gym working in the equipment return age. Talia is a member of a sorority on campus whose philanthropic focus is women’s physical and mental health wellness.

Talia’s family lives two hours away. Her father, Mohammad, age 43, has retired from the military and now works for a home security company. He has always taught Talia to be cautious and aware of her surroundings. Her mother, Manha, age 40, is a hairdresser and works at a neighborhood salon where she is very popular. Her clients often have to book out weeks in advance. Talia also has two younger siblings, her sister Zoya who is 16 and her brother Amir who is 14.

History & Context

Talia has a strong family unit with a rich history. Her great grandfather was part of the 1953 Iranian coup against Iran's elected Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh that was directly orchestrated by the United States of America’s Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). During the 1979 Irananian Revolution, Talia’s paternal grandparents fled to the U.S.A. as refugees. Talia’s father, Mohammad, was born in the U.S. a few months later assisting the family in receiving permanent citizenship. Mohammad continued his family's history enlisting in the U.S. military at 18 years old. He retired after 20 years and currently works for one of the top home security services. 

Talia’s maternal grandparents also came to the U.S. after the ‘79 Iranian revolution. Talia’s maternal grandfather, Kamal, worked for the Iranian government prior to the revolution and was briefly held hostage by Iranian rebel forces. He and Talia’s grandmother were able to flee Tehran in the middle of the night and eventually make their way to the United States. Although they started a new life in America her grandfather, Kamal, was haunted by his experience often having night sweats and violent nightmares. He was never officially diagnosed , but it is believed that he had PTSD.

A few years after arriving in the U.S. Talia’s mother, Manha, was born. As a young child, she witnessed her father’s verbal outbursts, sleep deprivation, and paranoia. When Manha was six, Kamal committed suicide leaving Manha and Talia’s grandmother, Farrah, alone in a new country with no family and few friends to lean on.

Due to the cause of death, Farrah was not able to collect on the family’s life insurance policy. In addition, she also faced stigma within the community. In the 1980’s suicide was prohibited and rarely discussed. The fiscal and mental impact on the family was immediately felt. Farrah knew that in order for her and Manha to thrive in the U.S. it would be up to her to find a way.

Farrah, who had been taking classes to be a hairdresser, completed her training and applied for a small business loan. Due to her training, marketing, and talent she was able to open a shop. Over time she created a strong clientele. More importantly, Manha was able to be with her everyday after school. Also, she was able to schedule her client’s around Manha’s doctor’s appointments and school functions. Farrah wanted to give Manha the love and attention of two parents to help replace the absence of Kamal. 

Farrah did notice Manha’ anxiety at a young age. She was determined to be proactive and open with Manha about mental health hoping to create a safe space for discussion. Concerned about the impact of the suicide coupled with Manha’s anxiety, Farrah began counseling for her and Manha immediately after Kamal’s death. At the age of twelve, Manha was placed on a low-dose antidepressant for her anxiety. 

Manha would tell her therapist years later that she did not remember a time when she was not anxious. She remembered trying to be quiet so she did not disturb her father, as well as hiding under her bed at night when she heard her father’s screams. She often felt nervous around others. She was described by her teacher as a quiet, but serious student who had amazing artistic abilities. 

Mohammad was the first person, besides her mother, that Manha felt safe and even a bit calm with. She was finishing her certification to work in her mother’s shop when Mohammad brought his mother to get her hair done. The families had an instant connection and supported the relationship. They were married a year later. 

Manha was in love with the idea of having a family. The birth of Talia brought Manha great comfort and calm during this time period. Unfortunately, she would experience postpartum depression with her daughter Zoya and led to significant struggles that were difficult for the whole family. Eventually with the family's support, adjustment to her mental health medication, and therapy Manha began to thrive once again. The final child, a son Amir, was born two years after Zoya.   

Talia grew up with a strong sense of responsibility due to being the oldest. She was often responsible for assisting her mom and watching her younger siblings. She always enjoyed helping out and caring for others. As she looked at different programs at the college level she thought about possibly being an OB/GYN or possibly a family therapist. She was not sure, but she knew she wanted to make a difference and she wanted to help people.