Education
Pregnant girls barred from an education in Sierra Leone
An education is one of the keys to climbing out of poverty, but this privilege is denied to many girls around the world. In Sierra Leone, girls who are visibly pregnant will not be allowed to have their right to an education due to the separation of these girls from other students in a new law by Minkailu Bah.
The issue
As the teen pregnancy rate in Sierra Leone climbs following the Ebola outbreak, the government has put into place a new law preventing girls from receiving an education and sitting an exam if they are pregnant. Minister of Education Mankailu Bah justified the law by stating that "innocent girls" may be affected by seeing their peers' pregnancies. However, this has far-reaching consequences: preventing seniors from sitting exams can prevent high school graduation and acceptance to college. Without an education, these women will forever by stigmatized and prevented from climbing from poverty and to success. This prevention of rights is blatant discrimination against a minority, and must be stopped.
The Right to an Education in Pakistan and Afghanistan
International headlines were made when schoolgirl Malala Yousafzai was shot by the Taliban on October 9, 2012. International outcry mounted as Malala's struggle to live dominated the world. After her survival, she made a hallmark in women's activism campaigning for the rights of girls to receive an education in the Middle East.
The issue
Many girls throughout Pakistan and Afghanistan either don't receive an education or are barred from it for religious and cultural reasons. In some tribal areas, it is estimated that only 9.5% of women are literate. Girls are not only uneducated, they are often prevented from attempting to receive an education, as in the case of Malala Yousafzai, who was shot for trying to receive an education.
Where to go to help and learn more
Visit malala.org to learn more
Read more in order to understand the stats
Make It Right campaign
Stay updated in Afghanistan's peace process
Sign one of Malala's many Change.org petitions
Poverty
Poverty among women in the United States
Though the United States, a first world country, may be the last place one would look for abject poverty, a large majority of women suffer through it every day.
The issue
It is startling that in America, a leader in world equality, the forerunner of democracy, 1 in 3 women live in poverty. That's 42 million women, not counting the millions of children dependent upon these women (according to a Maria Shriver report last year). The average woman makes 77 cents for every dollar a man makes. This is not right- for a society breaking free of gender discrimination, this is a step back. Even more shocking, Hispanic women make a mere 55 cents for every dollar a white man makes- a completely unacceptable figure for a nation built on justice and equality.
Where to go to help and learn more
Maria Shriver report
NOW (National Organization for Women)
Sign a petition through World Hunger
Human Rights
#BringBackOurGirls: Disappearance of the Chibok girls abducted by Boko Haram in Nigeria
Many of us remember the outraged outcry surrounding the abduction of the Chibok schoolgirls by Boko Haram. However, almost two years from the kidnapping, hundreds of the girls have yet to be returned as global attention fades.
The issue
On April 15, 2014, the Islamic extremist/terrorist group Boko Haram kidnapped 276 schoolgirls in the town of Chibok, Nigeria from the Government Girls Secondary School. While a few escaped, an estimated 219 are still in captivity. Their fate was unclear until Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau released a video showing the girls in hijab, stating they would be sold as brides and had converted to Islam, not believing girls should be educated.
Snibbe, Kurt. Women's Right around the World. Digital image. Orange County Register. Orange County Register, 3 Jan. 2016. Web. 1 Feb. 2016. <http://www.ocregister.com/articles/women-698009-world-around.html>.
Syrian Refugee Women
The issue
Women fleeing the Syrian civil war have ended up scattered, but many cross into Jordan. Camps such as the Zaatari camp offer refuge, yet for many even this is not a safe haven. Desperate for money, sometimes fathers will sell their daughters in return for enough to escape and assaults, kidnappings, and rapes are reported to be widespread. Sometimes, unaccompanied or widowed women will often offer themselves or accept offers in which they are lied to and taken advantage of. Many fathers, brothers, husbands, and sons have to walk and guard them as they use the bathroom and find the situation desperate. In Europe, many women who are separated from their husbands during registration find themselves helpless, not speaking the language, having supplies or money. These are people, children, who are fleeing torture, gassings, executions, ISIS, civil war, much like people who fled persecution to the West throughout the years. Why are we ignoring on people who seek a better life? We will not turn our back and stay silent like those in the face of other mass murders- the Holocaust, the civil rights movement. Those whose ignorance and hatred would prevent life we will stand against.
Stats (IRC)
Where to go to help and learn more
http://womensenews.org/2015/12/in-croatian-refugee-camps-haste-poses-hardship-for-women-children-2/
Women for Women training program
http://www.channel4.com/news/syria-women-rape-marriage-refugee-camp-jordan
How to Help Syrian Refugees without donating money
http://www.ccvt.org/how-i-can-help.html
Global Giving fund
Understanding the life of a typical refugee woman: IRC
"Women rock the cradle with one hand and the world with another"
-Syrian saying
"We ask for humanity- for people to treat us like human beings."
-Nada, refugee
Women's Rights in India
About
I have always been an activist at heart, but it was difficult to learn and get involved. This site will hopefully cultivate knowledge and ways to assist with all issues affecting women today in an easy-to-navigate website. The goal is to help people passionate about women's rights find the issue right for them in order to make a difference.
