When she came to give her testimony, Kelli couldn't express the significance of the past 14 years in her life.
"I took the time to put together my life story, and then I thought, 'I'm just one person,'" she said. "Who's going to care about the details of my miserable life?"
A victim of domestic abuse for the past 14 years, this 34-year-old woman, though divorced and in a new city, is still stalked by an abusive former husband.
Kelli, a local domestic violence survivor who requested her full name not be used, spoke at the Reitz Union on Thursday as part of the opening of Verizon Wireless' Clothesline Project at UF.
Following the company's sponsorship of Gator Growl, Verizon Wireless approached Florida Blue Key about bringing the exhibition to UF.
The Clothesline Project will remain at UF until Dec. 2.
The display sitting on the second floor of the Reitz Union is simple, but its message is one of strength.
Hanging by clothespins on two lines are 12 T-shirts decorated by survivors of domestic violence.
Twelve anonymous testimonies are pinned between the shirts.
Nearby is a hamper where donors can toss old or broken cell phones from any provider. Verizon will give the repaired phones to victims who left everything behind to escape an abusive partner.
In the exhibit's opening ceremony, Kelli spoke of her frustration with the law, feeling powerless and the long-term impact of her ongoing abuse.
"(The courts) want to see bruises and blood today," she said in an interview. "Well, the bruises and blood go away."
Meanwhile, she said the internal scars stay.
Kelli said the safe home she lives in provides safety but not permanent peace.
"There's nothing I can do about it," she said.
Alachua County Sheriff Sadie Darnell said in a speech that the silence on domestic violence must be broken, and she encouraged communication on this issue.
Darnell said while many recognize the severity of 58,000 U.S. soldiers who died in the Vietnam War, few may know that 51,000 women were murdered as victims of domestic violence in the same amount of time.
"It's the only murder that we can prevent, so we need to recognize that intervention is key," Darnell said in an interview.
Last year, about 1,300 residents of Alachua County, most of them women, were victims of a simple offense, which includes types of physical abuse, she said.
"Those terms are offensive," Darnell said. "There's nothing simple about it."
Darnell liked the campaign's method of spreading the message.
"I love the T-shirt," she said. "It's just such a ubiquitous garment."
Theresa Harrison, executive director of Peaceful Paths, an organization that serves domestic violence survivors in Alachua and neighboring counties, also attended the opening ceremony.
Harrison said art is often therapeutic for victims, who have "little time for introspection because they're surviving."
Art often acts as a release valve and allows victims to express issues they may not even be able to voice, she said.
"It's incredibly cathartic," she said, adding that the process sometimes brings out built-up feelings of anger.
The project has made stops at five college campuses this year to address the prominence of intimate violence among students.
Judith Bellaire, a victim advocate at the University Police Department's Office of Victim Services, said in an interview one out of every three college students are victims of physical violence, based on a 2000 nationwide survey.
Bellaire said she was disappointed that more students didn't attend the ceremony because many are not aware of the resources available to them on campus.
Only three students, two of whom represented Florida Blue Key, attended.
Harrison said there is a lack of awareness among students on what defines abuse, especially dating violence. She said jealousy and possessiveness are not signs of caring too much, she said.
"They're not romantic," Harrison said. "They're creepy."
In her experience, most students just go home after dealing with an issue of domestic violence instead of tackling it long-term.
She said projects like Clothesline help spread a critical message.
"The only way we can confront it in a meaningful way is to confront it together," she said.
Harrison recognized the limitations of the law, but she also saw progress.
"The reality is that 40 years ago, domestic violence wasn't even a criminal act," Harrison said.
"I think the frustration comes in when we realize no matter how much we do, it never seems to be enough."
