Girl Rising

A different direction than my normal posts, this comes from a very special place...

I had the privilege to attend a viewing of a very important documentary entitled, Girl Rising by Academy Award Winning director, Richard Robbins. It has not yet been released worldwide and shockingly enough despite the film's number of Hollywood narrators and star power, it does not seem to have much notoriety behind it.

Girl Rising is a groundbreaking peak into the stories of nine girls (innocent children) from all around the world who have changed their life and the lives of those around them contrary to their upbringings of slavery, trafficking, (marrying girls off as young as the age of 7, just to ensure they have a chance...Can you process that for a second...) and other heartbreaking injustices that women around the world face.

I left the theater feeling blessed, feeling empowered, and yet still envious of these women and their stories. Envious???? That certainly doesn't seem like a normal feeling or the proper word to use after watching what they have been through. I chose that word because they have been through hardships I could never even begin to understand and regardless were still filled with astronomical amounts of strength, hope, and compelling voices that will not be silenced.  How can there possibly be no admiration there? It really got me thinking...

To the point that I am able to write my silly, little blog, and spend a life where I will never know what it is like to be truly silenced. Not only because that goes beyond anything I am capable of, but also because no one has ever forced silence upon me. I grew up in an Italian family for crying out loud, and with parents who are native New Yorkers. No one in my family knows silence, male or female. I grew up where females seem to know a little less silence as a matter of fact.

I can't even imagine the reality of that world no matter how many glimpses cinema can give. Some may feel this doesn't effect them or concern them. It is a cultural difference or just how their economy is structured. Period. But I ask anyone who believes in equality and education to give this film an opportunity to spark something within.

Men, if you think this is mindless or simply a "women's issue", I ask you to look at your mother, sister, or daughter, and imagine them being born into a life mirroring the ones portrayed. This cannot just be a women's issue. Things happen in our own country and we blissfully plead ignorance. We need voices! We need people to care about people again! Every person you reach is a stepping stone for a better opportunity and future.

"When girls go to school and get an education, they stay healthy. They save money. They speak up. They build businesses. Then they pass it all on...and poverty declines. Challenges become opportunities; progress happen." - Richard Robbins, the Girl Rising Director

For more information:
Check Out- Girlrising.com and Get with the 10x10 Girls' Education Fund!