On Asking For It


Asking For It is a series of images, created by photographer Jayne Jackson, representing people from different eras. In each image, the person is photographed as if in a mugshot, with a board which lists their “crime” or the “reason” they were sexually harassed or assaulted. Viewers are then invited to question the motivations of individuals and societies that would consider these “crimes” provocation enough to justify assault. The exhibition highlights the historic and contemporary attitudes to victim-blaming, especially in cases of sexual and gender-based violence. 


Image's from Jayne Jackson's Asking For It series


The exhibition is due to go on display at the National Justice Museum in Nottingham in March 2025. As part of the project, I was asked to support some writing workshops, working with Jayne and a small group of women from Broxtowe Women's Project to write letters of support to women experiencing domestic abuse. 

We also looked at Mrs Pace's letters, which the museum holds as part of its collection. 

In 1928, Beatrice Pace was charged with the murder of her husband, Gloucestershire sheep farmer Harry Pace, by arsenic poisoning. Following the discovery that she had been a victim of domestic abuse for many years before her husband's death, it was ruled that Beatrice Pace was not guilty of his murder.

The trial was followed closely by many people across the country, and Mrs Pace received hundreds of letters from strangers, supporting her acquittal. Many of the letters expressed gratitude from other abused women for giving them a voice. 


Some of Mrs Pace's Letters archived at NJM



Back in our writing group in 2025, many of the women chose to write letters of support to their former selves, or to future generations, while others chose to write letters supporting the women in some of Jayne's photographs. 

Everyone wrote from the heart and their words were honest, poetic and generous. It felt so incredible to listen to women who'd had their individual resiliance tested to the limit, yet still found so much space to be supportive of each other. 

We finished the project with an arty workshop at the National Justice Museum, making our letters into collages, handwritten artworks, and photographs. 

Despite the heavy themes in these sessions, it was a truly uplifting project to be involved in, and I can't wait to see the women's writing displayed as part of the exhibition later this year!  


Writing up my poem for the exhibition


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