About this item
A true story, Tanya Selvaratnam uses her abuse at the hands of former NY State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman to expose the prevalence of intimate partner violence -- offering steps to recognize, expose, and end it.When Tanya Selvaratnam met Eric Schneiderman, they fell quickly and effortlessly in love -- fueling each other's growing political ambition. But their power dynamic soon took a dark turn, as Schneiderman criticized Selvaratnam and began to try to control her, even telling her that he would have to kill her if they broke up. Sex turned frighteningly violent. At a friend's urging, she opened up to a domestic violence expert, who confirmed what Selvaratnam, on some level, already knew: she was in an abusive relationship. Eric's behavior mapped a pattern: entrap, isolate, demean, control, abuse.
About the Author
Born in Sri Lanka and raised in Long Beach, CA, Tanya Selvaratnam is a writer and an Emmy-nominated and Webby-winning filmmaker based in New York City and Portland, Oregon. She is the author of ASSUME NOTHING: A Story of Intimate Violence (Harper) and THE BIG LIE: Motherhood, Feminism, and the Reality of the Biological Clock (Prometheus) . Her essays have been published in the New York Times, Vogue, CNN, NBC News, McSweeney's, Cosmo, ELLE, and Glamour among others. She is the Senior Advisor, Gender Justice Narratives for the Pop Culture Collaborative. She has also worked with the Ms. Foundation, NGO Forum on Women, Third Wave Fund, The DO School, and World Health Organization. As a producer, Tanya has collaborated with Glamour Women of the Year, Planned Parenthood, Aubin Pictures, For Freedoms, Joy To The Polls, The Meteor, and the Vision & Justice Project. With Laurie Anderson and Laura Michalchyshyn, she is a cofounder of The Federation - a coalition of artists and allies committed to keeping cultural borders open. Her projects have played on HBO, IFC, PBS, Starz, and the Sundance Channel; and have premiered at Sundance, Berlin, Tribeca, and SXSW. She received her undergraduate and graduate degrees from Harvard University. Tanya has been a fellow at Yaddo and Blue Mountain Center. For more information, please visit: tanyaturnsup.com.
