Rise
Up and Walk
“We
owe it to the present and future generations of all species to rise up and
walk!” ~Wangari Maathi
And walk is what we
did! This year the Wilmington UN Women
Walk to Prevent Violence Against Women and Girls fell on Earth Day, National
Immunization Week (www.shotatlife.org),
and during the ONE THRIVE Campaign (www.one.org).
There was so much information to share
and so many people there ready to take action.
When I read the above quote from the late Professor Wangari Maathi,
winner of the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize and founder of The Green Belt Movement http://www.greenbeltmovement.org/
in
her 2006 memoir, Unbowed, I was struck with
that feeling of how we are all connected.
Not just to one another, but to this Earth. Professor Maathi was not just a steward of
the Earth, she was a powerhouse for social justice and equal rights for
women. Her fearless dedication to being
a voice for justice left me thinking I have to do more!!
The Sunday forecast
called for heavy rains here in Wilmington, NC. I sent a tweet the evening before to our
local weatherman asking him to please make a window for our walk. Well he must be magic—there was no rain and
almost 100 people came to participate.
They were there to make a statement that gender based violence must come
to an end! The fact that up to 70% of
women and girls will be beaten, coerced
into sex or otherwise abused in their lifetime was on the minds of the walkers
as they made their way around a 3k or 5k course. Seeing the compassion and energy in these
participants was uplifting! They raised
money and gave their time for this important cause. This is still a new event for the community, and with the labor of love put into it I know it is only going to grow larger year by year.
Participants also took the
time to stop by the ONE table and fill out their carrot seed postcards to the
White House urging President Obama to work with the G8 leaders to sow the seeds
of change and lift 50 million people out of extreme poverty. It is in these impoverished areas where
violence breeds. To end violence against
women and girls we MUST end extreme poverty!!!
What
actions can we take? Here are a few:
*visit
www.unwomen.org and learn the facts, then look for a local
chapter to donate your time or resources.
*sign
petitions and send letters to your Members of Congress……when you sign these petitions
you are making your voice heard!! http://act.one.org/sign/thrive_us/?source=home
*shop
with a conscious—I wrote a post last December with several links for shopping
with a heart: http://www.rachelfoxcomingalive.blogspot.com/2011/12/gift-giving-from-heart.html I am also a HUGE advocate for The Body
Shop!!! Read about their values campaign here to stop sex trafficking: http://www.thebodyshop-usa.com/values-campaigns/trafficking.aspx
*and
of course.....sign up to be a ONE Mom right here www.one.org/moms!!! ONE Moms and ONE Dad are in Ghana this week
for the launch of two new vaccines for rotavirus and pneumococcal thanks to
GAVI. No mother should have to watch her
child die because of a preventable disease.
Let’s support women all ways that we can!
Professor
Wangari Maathi faced these challenges and more remaining unbowed. We must honor her
by doing the same. “RISE UP and WALK”
for women everywhere……………………
