Author: Catherine Giese
The prevalence of gender inequality both within the US and around the world is old news. Luckily, the female bond is unlike any other, and as women fight for their own equality, more and more turn around to raise each other up. One student group on campus, the SchoolGirl Project, understands that education is the path to knowledge and empowerment and to that effect, are sponsoring a showing of “Girl Rising” on April 14th. To inspire you, here are eight women who are making it happen around the world.
1. Michelle Obama
Our first lady isn’t just sitting pretty next to her prominent husband. Instead, she’s using her status and platform to push for US support of women’s education around the globe. With a little help from the Peace Corps, she implemented “Let Girls Learn” to encourage girls to go to school and stay in school.
2. Malala Yousafzai
Not only was this girl granted the Nobel Prize for Peace in 2014 for her advocacy efforts surrounding women’s education, but she’s also our age. While we were struggling through AP classes, she was struggling to even get to class in the face of violent Pakistani extremists. Malala continues to dedicate herself to advocating for national and international policy changes.
3. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf
First of all, she’s the president of Liberia. After a year in office, she led Liberia to join the Global Partnership for Education in addition to implementing improvements to preschool and primary school education. She advocates to ensure that every child will stay in school and learn while giving special attention to young girls.
4. Hillary Rodham Clinton
Whether you’re feeling the Bern or voting Republican this election, it cannot be denied that Hillary is a major advocate for women’s education. In 2014, she launched the Collaborative for Harnessing Ambition and Resources for Girls Education which provided substantial financial support for girls’ education around the world. She truly hit the nail on the head when she said, “We know when girls have equal opportunities to primary and secondary school, cycles of poverty are broken, economies grow, glass ceilings are cracked and potential unleashed.”
5. Angelique Kidjo
In addition to being a singer, Angelique is the founder of the Batonga Foundation. Rather than focusing on primary school, this foundation places importance on empowering women through secondary school and higher education. In her view, this is the route to true empowerment and a way for African women to escape the consequences and oppression that comes with only being seen as commodities.
6. Julia Gillard
As the former Prime Minister of Australia among other notable public positions, she has advocated for women’s education around the world. She believes that women’s education is integral to developing economies. After all, if girls cannot contribute, then a country is essentially leaving half of its population behind.
7. Graça Machel
This prominent philanthropist created a trust for women’s education and children’s rights, through which she raises awareness about various children’s issues such as early childhood marriage and genital mutilation. She believes that by encouraging girls to stay in school, developing countries will be able to see stability.
8. Emma Watson
We love Emma Watson, from her edgy pixie cuts to her incredible launch of the HeforShe campaign. The campaign seeks to tear down the social and cultural barriers to women’s equality. The argument is that by eradicating gender stereotypes, both genders will enjoy increased opportunity.
Women’s education is being taken seriously on a global level by many prominent female figures. Education for girls is not only the gateway to empowerment and gender equality, but also imperative to nations’ economies. Be sure to learn more by checking out SchoolGirl Project’s screening of “Girl Rising” on April 14, and attend the panel afterwards! More information is on the Facebook event, which can be found here.
