International Women's Day

March 8th, 2010 was International Women's Day. So in honor of all the women in the world, I write this entry.

I am proud to be a woman, and am proud to recognize what women have fought for throughout history, all over the world - for freedom, equality in treatment, education, and independence of mind and action. Every culture, every ethnicity, every nation, and every tribe has plenty of great women who have come and gone; and every culture currently has great women among them, working hard not only to improve themselves but to improve the lives of those around them and those to come. Look around you; consider your community; read the annals of the past; and you will find inspiring stories of women everywhere.

Women have been victims and women have been ill-treated; yet women still seem to rise up with persistence, if only to ensure that their children will not face the same harsh realities. Countless women go unrecognized and countless women still suffer in various places in the world, but I hope that the rest of us can raise awareness of that suffering and recognize the strength and resilience with which women go on day after day in poverty, despair, tragedy, and economic insecurity.

On this International Women's Day, I hope we remember those women who have become victims of earthquakes in Haiti and in Chile; and women who become victims of violence. More personally, I remember my mother, who is my inspiration in all that she has overcome to improve our family's well-being. Who is your inspiration?

Here's an inspiring story shared by Madonna on the Huffington Post.

Prayers for Haiti

It has been a while since I blogged, but that doesn't mean I've been away from all the news and happenings around the world. Of course, by this time, it has been about 3 weeks since the earthquake in Haiti and everyone has heard of what is going on there. I would be remiss to not mention it, however, on this blog because this blog is about being a voice for those who are poor, disadvantaged, and suffering.

It is a tragedy that people who were already poor to begin with are suffering even more as a result of the earthquake; and the situation that has been unfolding post-earthquake has been heartbreaking. The news recently showed bodies of the dead plowed aside, and of those who have survived looking for ways to continue their survival despite the shortage of medical care, shelter, food, and water. The need is truly great, just as it was in the wake of the tsunami in southeastern Asia.

Amidst the difficulty the country faces, I pray that hope will not be lost and that all those whose lives are in upheaval and grief due to this tragedy will be comforted and renewed. And I pray that the world will recognize that we are all interconnected, that the suffering of people in Haiti is our suffering as well, and that this is a time to show our compassion and our benevolence in whatever ways we can to those who are less fortunate than us.

Violence against Guinean women

On September 28th, there was a demonstration in Guinea to protest the political events that have been unfolding in Guinea since December 2008, after the death of the president Lasana Conte (who had been president for 24 years). A group of military officers, calling themselves the National Council for Democracy and Development, had seized power after the president's death; and during their nine months in government, Human Rights Watch states that their government has been "characterized by arbitrary arrests and detentions, restrictions on peaceful political activity, unpunished criminal acts by the military, and calls for vigilante justice." For the rest of this article, click here.

A group of activists had decided that they were going to go ahead with demonstrations despite being warned, and people (about 50,000) had gathered at a stadium to join in protest and hear the activists speak. But before they even got a chance to speak, the police fired into the crowd and committed violent acts against the civilians, especially women. A New York Times article details the brutality of acts towards women that are absolutely horrific. Women are being raped and beaten by the soldiers, targeted for violent attacks. These acts are truly heinous, a crime against Guinean women and the citizenry as a whole. Where is the humanity in all of this? Do these soldiers not have mothers, sisters, girlfriends, daughters? Perhaps this is the savagery that comes to light when someone is so desperate to hold on to power, but for what purpose? At the cost of brutality against their own citizens, so much so that it is decried as inhumane? It is just terrible. Human rights organizations say that 157 people have been killed, but I'm sure there are many wounded and even more who have been raped and abused. What will the international community do? France has already acted, being the former colonial power in Guinea. What else needs to be done to bring justice to these women and the rest of the civilians in Guinea?

Here's another New York Times article about the recent events in Guinea.

I Am Because We Are

We are all connected to each other, in our communities, in our cities, our states, our countries, our regions, and ultimately our world. In this economic crisis, people around the globe are feeling the effects. No person is an island to her/himself. It's not just economic crisis, however, that should raise our awareness of how we are connected. If we just step back from our individual lives and try to look at the world as a whole, the suffering of one community should be on the radar of our own, the plight of one country should be something we are aware of in our own country. The world is a large place, and yes, our lives can get busy and crazy, but still, I find that the least we can do is try to learn about one more place each day, month, or year.

I meant to post this when it first became available on YouTube, but I am a guilty party to being busy with the goings-on of my life and forgetting that I meant to share this with you. What is it? It is a documentary by Madonna. I know that a bit of the media and probably several people are just tired of news about her and her adoption issues. Granted she's not perfect, at least she's attempting to use her fame and her fortune to be a part of someone else's suffering. The documentary called "I Am Because We Are" is one that I recommend because of a couple of reasons: 1) It is about my childhood home--Malawi, and 2) it sheds some light on the reality that Malawians face on a daily basis. Although every country in Sub-Saharan Africa afflicted by HIV/AIDS has its own personal story, the general theme of difficulty and suffering are the same. So I urge you to watch it. Click here to watch it online.

Bullying should not be ignored

There has been so much in the news recently about 2 boys who killed themselves, driven to suicide by bullying. Such a tragedy. These are not rare incidents, unfortunately. Bullying occurs all the time. But what are educators doing about it? It is not enough about intervening when bullying happens, but it is about preventing bullying from happening in the first place.

Creating a culture of tolerance and acceptability, creating compassion for others without judging, and maintaining that environment is just as important as acting on the situation when it happens.

Here's a fact sheet put out by the National Association of School Psychologists on bullying. And there's also a book that talks about the effects of bullying that I think should be read by adults everywhere. It's called "The Wounded Spirit" by Frank Peretti.

Let's raise our awareness about bullying and be a voice for those children who are victims of bullying, regardless of whether it is your child involved directly or not.