Celebrate International Day of the Girl Child with Vital Voices

Today we’re celebrating girls everywhere! It’s the International Day of the Girl Child, a global moment to come together and recognize the brilliance, courage, creativity and transformative power of girls.

For nearly 25 years, Vital Voices has been investing in leaders who boldly take on the world’s toughest challenges. And if there’s one thing we know for certain, it’s that there’s no age requirement for leadership. From Costa Rica to Afghanistan, time and again we’ve seen young women reimagine what’s possible in their communities and step up to right a wrong.

Whether they’re artists, social entrepreneurs or fearless advocates, the girls and young women we’re proud to call Rising Voices are actively doing their part to create a more equal world. Our Voces Que Inspiran and HERlead fellows are proof that some of the most ingenious ideas for social change come from the youngest generation.

When you invest in a girl, you invest in her school, her community, and her country. She pays it forward, rises to meet challenges, and comes up with bold solutions for change. In our programs, we have found that when you invest in one girl, she impacts thousands. Learn more about some of the incredible young women striving to create a better world:

Ursula Martínez Barrueta (Mexico 2021 Voices that Inspire Fellow):

During elementary school, I was bullied and one day I decided to defend myself. Everyone said I was aggressive and rebellious. I was just a girl who did not understand why adults do nothing in the face of injustice.

I decided to take all that rebelliousness and to never stay silent. Today that rebellious girl from a small city in Guerrero, Mexico, wants to be a rebel lawyer who fights so that women and girls who have survived an act of violence can take all their emotions and transform them into power to save their lives.

I want to tell all the girls that being a rebel is okay. And to all the girls who are women today, never stop rebelling and raising your voice.

Aarna Dixit (HerLead Fellow):

As a young women of color myself I have experienced first hand and had to conspicuous of the various barriers and threats that women face. I am passionate about women’s rights because I want to ensure that future generations of women don’t have to live in fear or shame. I believe it is important that we empower and celebrate all women.

The biggest threat to women’s rights is the constant policing and violation of our bodies. From abortion bans to sexual violence to sexual objectification in media, young women’s bodies are exploited by the male gaze, making us feel as though our bodies are not our own but property of others.

To support women’s rights, one can always support organizations like RAINN and National Organization of Women. But the most important thing allies can do is uplift and empower the women in their own lives. It’s important to start conversations surrounding consent, bodily autonomy and reproductive justice. Make sure that you are treating the women in your life with respect and dignity and ensuring that others around you are doing the same.

Candela Yatche (2020 Voices that Inspire Fellow):

We live in a culture obsessed with the female body and it is a barrier to gender equality. We work so that future generations can grow up free of social mandates, and care for their mental, physical, and emotional health.

Emmy Puerto (2020 Voices that Inspire Fellow):

For me these spaces are too important, telling our stories and making visible the violence that was previously invisible and so normalized is something that empowers us and makes us stronger, knowing that we are not alone and understanding that what happened to us is the result of an oppressive system that hurts us every day, that’s my drive to fight every day.

There are also plenty of incredible women in our global network who are championing girls, creating opportunities for learning, leadership and community-building. Read more about Judith Martinez and Christina Limbird, and listen to these podcasts with Kiran Bir Sethi and Vital Voices Board Member Sherri Westin.

On October 11th, learn more from these young leaders as they are featured in YouTube’s ‘Body of Knowledge’ Campaign.

We also invite you to attend our International Day of the Girl panel on Thursday October 12th. Here is the invitation: https://vvinternationaldayofthegirlpanel.splashthat.com/.