Set in a small African village, four young girls face a ritual "purification" flee to the household of Colle' Ardo Gallo Sy, a strong-willed woman who has managed to shield her own teenage daughter from mutilation. Colle' invokes the time-honored custom of moolaade (sanctuary) to protect the fugitives, and tension mounts as the ensuing stand-off pits Colle' against a village traditionalists (both male and female) and endangers the prospective marriage of her daughter to the heir-apparent to the tribal throne.