Yesterday was International Day of the Girl. This year’s theme, “My Voice, Our Equal Future,” focused on “the opportunity to be inspired by what adolescent girls see as the change they want, the solutions—big and small—they are leading and demanding across the globe.”
We work to honor and uplift women every day, but we also passionately support girls and are inspired by their work, ideas, and the powerful women they’re growing into. That’s why—even though it’s the day after International Day of the Girl—we’re taking today to recognize, support, and empower (not to mention honor the power of) girls, and we’re calling for everyone to do so all year long. We’re looking at issues that threaten and challenge girls, deeper conversations and the continuing dialogue about advocacy for girls, resources to help, and year-round inspiration from amazing girls around the world.
How You Can Celebrate International Day of the Girl and Raise a Leader, from Forbes—“After almost twenty years of doing this work, I want us to stop teaching our girls the importance of being pretty, polite, and likable. I wonder what preschools and elementary schools would look like if our girls with the pressure to be brave, funny, and smart.”
Michelle Obama and Malala Yousafzai in Conversation for International Day of the Girl, from Teen Vogue—“Joining the indomitable pair is Priya Mondol, a 17-year-old student in Kolkata, India, for whom their work is personal. Priya faced obstacles to getting an education, but with the help of Her Future Coalition, an organization supported by the Girls Opportunity Alliance, she's able to keep learning during this challenging time. She joined Mrs. Obama and Malala to discuss the importance of developing resilience and to share insights about girls’ education and empowerment in advance of the Day of the Girl.”
How Shouting, Finger-Waving Girls Became Our Conscience, from The New York Times—“While aggression in women remains suspect, the public is drawn, now more than ever, to girls who reproach and rebuke, calling the world to account for its ills — and girls in turn are learning to harness that public gaze to effect larger change.”
International Day of the Girl Child, from the World Health Organization—“The 2020 theme of International Day of the Girl is “My voice, our equal future.” This is a striking call to recognize girls’ inheritance of the still-unfinished Beijing Agenda, their expertise on the challenges they face especially for their sexual and reproductive health and rights, and their limitless capacity as change-makers. To commemorate the day, WHO co-organized a virtual intergenerational dialogue between girl advocates and high-level leaders about putting girls and their rights at the centre of decision-making processes.”
How You Can Help on International Day of the Girl, from Refinery29—“Worldwide, nearly 1 in 4 girls aged 15–19 years is neither employed nor in education or training. And by 2021, nearly 435 million women and girls will be living on less than $1.90 a day—including 47 million pushed into poverty as a result of COVID-19, also according to the UN. In addition to those startling numbers, 1 in 3 women worldwide have experienced physical or sexual violence. And since the pandemic began, violence against women and girls has become even more intense. [...] There are plenty of community-based initiatives working to solve these issues and more for girls.”