Northeastern Illinois University to host “Echoes of Silence: Portraits of Pain, Reflections of Resilience”

Northeastern Illinois University’s Genocide and Human Rights in Africa and the Diaspora (GHRAD) Center will host “Echoes of Silence: Portraits of Pain, Reflections of Resilience” March 2-23.

The exhibit features portraits of survivors of the 1972 genocide in Burundi, Africa as well as other images taken on study trips to Burundi with Northeastern students, faculty and staff between 2023-2025. “Echoes of Silence” is free and open to the public. It will be held in the University’s Ronald Williams Library on the Main Campus, 5500 N. St. Louis Ave. in Chicago.

Northeastern Professor and Coordinator of Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages Jeanine Ntihirageza, Ph.D., is the Director of the GHRAD Center.

“There has been a deep silence around the 1972 genocide of the Hutu people in Burundi,” said Ntihirageza, who is a survivor of the genocide. “There is such power in seeing the images and hearing the stories of survivors. It is also incredibly moving to work with Northeastern Illinois University students, faculty and staff members to go to Africa, meet with survivors and truly listen to their stories and let them know they are not forgotten.”

Northeastern student Viktor Gerasimovski traveled with Dr. Ntihirageza to Burundi in 2024 and 2025. Gerasimovski used his skills as a photographer in the hopes that people will learn about the survivors.

“‘Echoes of Silence’ is both an artistic and educational initiative, asking not only what we remember, but how we teach, learn and lead in the aftermath of collective trauma,” Gerasimovski said. “The photographs emphasize color and presence — rejecting erasure and restoring dignity to stories too often left out of formal curricula and public discourse.”

This marks the fifth exhibition of ‘Echoes of Silence,’ following previous presentations in Armenia (2025), the Adler Arts Center, and previous exhibitions at Northeastern and other venues. This exhibition expands the project’s scope through a series of learning-centered programming alongside the visual work:

• March 3: Opening reception, 7 p.m.
• March 10: Documentary and Storytelling Photography, 3 p.m.
• March 11: Lecture and discussion: “Human Resources Development Principles of ‘Echoes of Silence,’” 4 p.m.
• March 12: Film night and reflection: The Oral History of Léonce Ngabo, 6 p.m.

Curated artist walks will be held at 1 p.m. on March 4, 5 and 11; and at 5 p.m. on March 12.

Northeastern is home to the only oral history archive at a university devoted to survivors of the 1972 genocide in Burundi, Africa. Housed within the Ronald Williams Library, “Mass Atrocity Testimonies — An Oral History Archive,” began in 2023 and continues to grow as University students and employees travel to Burundi and speak with survivors.

“Echoes of Silence” is part of Northeastern’s College of Arts and Sciences themed semester, “Staying the Course for Human Rights: From Awareness to Action,” which centers the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights in classes and public programs throughout Spring 2026. 

Top photo: A photo of a survivor of the 1972 genocide in Burundi, Africa. Photo by Viktor Gerasimovski.