Girls rising through education: let's get behind it - Women's Agenda

Girls rising through education: let’s get behind it

If there was ever any doubt about the power of education to change the world, the documentary Girl Rising offers the evidence. Girl Rising is part of a social action campaign by 10×10, founded by award-winning journalists, to promote girls’ education. It tells the stories of seven girls, from some of the poorest nations in the world, with a shared dream of getting an education.

The stories are both heart-breaking and inspiring. Girls like Wadley from Haiti, who wasn’t allowed to go to school because her mother couldn’t pay the fee, offer hope. Wadley goes to school anyway, every day, until the teacher tires of telling her to go away and lets her stay. For young Wadley, a primary school student, going to school is the difference between happiness and despair.

Then there’s Suma from Nepal who was bonded to her first master at the age of six. Her parents were so poor that they offered her as a child slave to give her somewhere to sleep and eat. But all she wanted was to go to school like her brother. By the age of 11 she had been bonded to her third master. While at that house a lodger, who was a school teacher, changed her life. He convinced the master to let Suma join a night class for girls who were slaves. Together the girl slaves rose up and chose freedom for themselves and for all other girl slaves. Suma was the last bonded worker in her family. “After me everyone will be free,” she said. “I feel like I have power. I feel like I can do anything.” Suma is using her education to make sure all girls in Nepal get to school.

Yasmin of Egypt was raped by a man at the age of 13. She has never been to school and cannot read or write. As a ‘stained’ woman she also now has no future without an education. The point was made that lack of education in developing countries leads to the vicious cycle of poverty and violence.

In Ethiopia, Azmera was saved from being married off to a stranger by her older brother.

Her mother is a widow and thought she was offering her daughter a chance at life by marrying her off early. In Ethiopia girls as young as seven have been married even though the law states that 18 is the minimum age. Azmera’s brother said he would sell everything he had to keep his sister in school and give her a free life. Together they stood up to their mother and refused the marriage. She is one of the lucky few.

Senna in Peru was also fortunate to have the support of a strong male in her life.

Her father insisted she go to school. “Make a better person of yourself Senna, study,” he said. Senna’s family were the poorest of the poor families, working in the mines searching for gold in vain. Her father named her Senna after Xena the female warrior and told her she could grow up to be an engineer. He died from ill-health but she is determined to prove her father right.

Teenager Mariama from Sierra Leone is the first person in her family to go to school. She is a bright, lively teenager who loves to solve problems and landed her first job while at school as a host at a radio station. She talks to girls all over the country and helps them with their problems. Girls being kept from school and girls who have been sexually abused call her for help. Mariama’s dream is to be the first African in space even though she has never been on a plane or outside of Sierra Leona. She’s not afraid to dream big. When her father tried to stop her from hosting the radio show she enlisted the help of her father’s wife to convince him to change his mind. Women working together. It worked.

The final story belongs to Amina of Afghanistan. She is masked and muted in a blue lace cloth that covers her completely and doesn’t offer an opening to speak through. Amina has been forced to wear the covering since becoming a teenager. Her father, brother, uncles would kill her if they knew she wanted to learn. Her mother never learned to read or write.

Amina started working from the age of three years old: cleaning, laundry, caring for younger children. She learned early to serve. Her happiest times were the few short years of her education before her life changed when she was married off at the age of 11. Her parents sold her to a cousin for the equivalent of $5000. They used the money to buy a secondhand car for her brother. It is not uncommon for young mothers to douse themselves in flames and set themselves alight. But Amina is defiant: “I will read, I will study, I will return to school. I am the beginning of a different story in Afghanistan.” She has returned to school despite the dangers of being shot, bombed or stoned.

The seven stories are compelling and demonstrate unequivocally why we need to advocate for access to education for girls in developing countries.

The facts are:

  • 33 million fewer girls are in primary school than boys worldwide.
  • A girl with one extra year of education can earn 20% more.
  • Educated girls are a powerful force for change.
  • Educated mothers are twice as likely to send their children to school.

The Girl Rising message is: “Knowledge is power. Ignorance is the enemy of change. But change is coming. This is how it happens. One girl follows behind another.” Let’s get behind this social action campaign.

Girl Rising screens on CNN today from 11am, with further screenings in the next 14 days

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