Award-Winning Author & Filmmaker | Founder of, Film, Author & Photography Festival |
Miss Black Ohio Pageant, Team Leader | Writing Coach | Speaker
Proud Member of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women, Inc.
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Ohio Grown Film series: Woman refuses to stay silent about domestic-abuse victims
By Terry Mikesell The Columbus Dispatch
Genius Is Common
Don't Be Quiet is proud to partner
with Bruce George,
Founder of the Genius is Common Movement and
Co-Founder of Def Poetry Jam on HBO.
As a child, Danielle D. Smith knew the sting of a slap and the hurt of an insult. To this day, the 39-year-old East Side resident still fights the aftereffects of having constantly been told to “shut up.” “I hear someone say it to someone else,” she said, “and I go into a shell for a second.”
The author, speaker and advocate against domestic violence is now a filmmaker, too. On Sunday, as part of the Ohio Grown Film series, Smith’s first work — “Don’t Be Quiet” — will make its debut.
In 2017, Smith wrote the book “Yesterday’s Tomorrow,” her story of suffering from abuse. A companion to the book, the 27-minute “Don’t Be Quiet” (11 minutes of footage was added to the film just last week) features Smith revisiting her childhood home — where, at age 3, she says she endured abuse from some family members.
Danielle Smith is the author of "Yesterday’s Tomorrow" a first-hand account of her own suffering of abuse as a child. After finding the courage to speak out about the pain she endured, Danielle is now using her experience to inspire others to do the same. In November 2016, she became a Court Appointed Special Advocate to speak on behalf of children in abuse cases to ensure their safety. Danielle is the founder of the “Don’t Be Quiet” movement, an organization with a mission to help victims of child abuse and neglect. In April 2018, she released a Short Film by the same name that gives a visual account of her book and walks you through the challenge of going from victim to victor!
Reach out at danielle@iamdanielledsmith.com or call (614) 363-3006