Friday 21 November 2014
Saturday 1 June 2013
Half The Sky
If there was a book that needed to be read, it's this one.
'Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide' by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn.
'Half The Sky' shines a light on one of the most pressing issues in the world: the violation of women's human rights. In the developing world, being born a girl is the possibly the most dangerous thing a girl could do. Girls are subjected to some of the worse kinds of human rights abuses, such as being forced into prostitution, becoming child brides, sex slaves and the victims of violent assaults.
Here is a staggering fact from the book :
"The global statistics on the abuse of girls are numbing. It appears that more girls have been killed in the last fifty years, precisely because they were girls, than men in all of the battles of the twentieth century. More girls are killed in this routine "gendercide" in any one decade than people were slaughtered in all the genocides of the twentieth century.
In the ninetieth century, the central moral challenge was slavery. In the twentieth century, it was the battle against totalitarianism. We believe that in this century the paramount moral challenge will be the struggle for gender equality around the world."
A woman's value and her human rights should not be determined by the lottery of life. Attitudes and cultural prejudices against women need to change. Compared to men, women's death rates are excruciatingly high from unwanted pregnancies, untreated medical problems, disease and just a cultural indifference against women in general. A daughter suffering from a health risk is too often passed over in favour of a son's medical need instead.
Being a girl myself, I feel very lucky to live in a free country. I am so grateful to be born into a family that is accepting and loving (for the most part), whom encourages education and for us to seek the highest possibilities in life. Of course, favourability over having a son has never been lost on me while growing up. My family is Chinese and China's history and culture is seeped in the cultural superiority of men, so my family's gender preference has intrinsically been acquiesced by me. But it stops at their generation. I'm proud to say that I've never asserted any gender bias and I know it's certainly due to living in a different cultural environment.
A particular issue in Half the Sky that was especially eye-opening and heartbreaking to learn was the suffering of women from Fistulas. Obstetric fistula is the most devastating and serious of all childbirth injuries. In many cases, a girl is either too young and her hips not wide enough, or she does not have the means to seek medical help, that complications arise which cause obstructed labour. After enduring days of agonising, obstructed labor, a woman's body is literally broken by childbirth. Tissue in the body is destroyed and a hole in the internal organs result in the body being unable to hold urine and bowel contents. This is grievous for the woman - leaving her damaged, humiliated and ostracised by family and the community. Edna Adan is a true hero in this cause. Edna founded the 'Edna Adan Maternity Hospital' in Somaliland, dedicated to fixing fistulas and treating maternal and infant heath care.
Half the Sky needs to be staple reading. To not acknowledge that millions of girls are suffering from human right violations and billions of girls are subjected to discrimination and gender bias, is a disservice to you - and it is a disservice to humanity. Half the Sky is essential reading for every global citizen.
So spread the message to anyone, and everyone you know. It's important.
"Women hold up half the sky" - Chinese proverb
Invest in women, because they can change the world;
"Women are the largest untapped reservoir of talent in the world" - Hillary Clinton
"Girls are the most powerful force for change on the planet" - The Girl Effect
"If you educate a man you educate an individual, but if you educate a woman, you educate a nation." - African Proverb
"Love can mend even the deepest, unseen wounds. Love can heal, love can console, and yes, love can make change." - Somaly Mam
"I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still can do something and because i cannot do everything, i will not refuse to do something that i can do." - Helen Keller
'Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide' by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn.
'Half The Sky' shines a light on one of the most pressing issues in the world: the violation of women's human rights. In the developing world, being born a girl is the possibly the most dangerous thing a girl could do. Girls are subjected to some of the worse kinds of human rights abuses, such as being forced into prostitution, becoming child brides, sex slaves and the victims of violent assaults.
Here is a staggering fact from the book :
"The global statistics on the abuse of girls are numbing. It appears that more girls have been killed in the last fifty years, precisely because they were girls, than men in all of the battles of the twentieth century. More girls are killed in this routine "gendercide" in any one decade than people were slaughtered in all the genocides of the twentieth century.
In the ninetieth century, the central moral challenge was slavery. In the twentieth century, it was the battle against totalitarianism. We believe that in this century the paramount moral challenge will be the struggle for gender equality around the world."
A woman's value and her human rights should not be determined by the lottery of life. Attitudes and cultural prejudices against women need to change. Compared to men, women's death rates are excruciatingly high from unwanted pregnancies, untreated medical problems, disease and just a cultural indifference against women in general. A daughter suffering from a health risk is too often passed over in favour of a son's medical need instead.
Being a girl myself, I feel very lucky to live in a free country. I am so grateful to be born into a family that is accepting and loving (for the most part), whom encourages education and for us to seek the highest possibilities in life. Of course, favourability over having a son has never been lost on me while growing up. My family is Chinese and China's history and culture is seeped in the cultural superiority of men, so my family's gender preference has intrinsically been acquiesced by me. But it stops at their generation. I'm proud to say that I've never asserted any gender bias and I know it's certainly due to living in a different cultural environment.
A particular issue in Half the Sky that was especially eye-opening and heartbreaking to learn was the suffering of women from Fistulas. Obstetric fistula is the most devastating and serious of all childbirth injuries. In many cases, a girl is either too young and her hips not wide enough, or she does not have the means to seek medical help, that complications arise which cause obstructed labour. After enduring days of agonising, obstructed labor, a woman's body is literally broken by childbirth. Tissue in the body is destroyed and a hole in the internal organs result in the body being unable to hold urine and bowel contents. This is grievous for the woman - leaving her damaged, humiliated and ostracised by family and the community. Edna Adan is a true hero in this cause. Edna founded the 'Edna Adan Maternity Hospital' in Somaliland, dedicated to fixing fistulas and treating maternal and infant heath care.
Ultimately, education is the most powerful and effective tool a girl could obtain in the developing world. Educating a girl can bring her out of poverty, reduce health risks and allow her to fight against injustices. An educated girl is more likely to help progress and change her community and the world around her than an educated boy. Education changes everything.
Half the Sky needs to be staple reading. To not acknowledge that millions of girls are suffering from human right violations and billions of girls are subjected to discrimination and gender bias, is a disservice to you - and it is a disservice to humanity. Half the Sky is essential reading for every global citizen.
So spread the message to anyone, and everyone you know. It's important.
"Women hold up half the sky" - Chinese proverb
Invest in women, because they can change the world;
"Women are the largest untapped reservoir of talent in the world" - Hillary Clinton
"Girls are the most powerful force for change on the planet" - The Girl Effect
"If you educate a man you educate an individual, but if you educate a woman, you educate a nation." - African Proverb
"Love can mend even the deepest, unseen wounds. Love can heal, love can console, and yes, love can make change." - Somaly Mam
"I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still can do something and because i cannot do everything, i will not refuse to do something that i can do." - Helen Keller
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)