Kathryn Loomis Composition 1 Professor Reynolds April 14, 2024 “Girls Not Brides,” Ending Childhood Marriages Girls Not Brides started their mission to spread awareness about childhood marriages. The organization aims to work collaboratively on governmental and societal levels, explaining that “we know that we are more effective when we work together and believe that – as a partnership – we will foster real change in girls’ lives.” (GirlsNotBrides.com). The mission has positively affected the outcomes for many young women and has changed societal views through education, harm reduction, and collaborative efforts with multiple organizations. Girls Not Brides works to educate the population by spreading awareness, as well as educating individuals …show more content…
Girls not Brides works to educate the population on the effects of childhood marriage, and how the outcomes are detrimental to the young woman’s mind, body, and soul. The organisation also works to educate the young women on core values and skills to allow further opportunities for schooling and careers, as well as their own bodies’ biology and sexual wellbeing. Girls Not Brides’ main goal is to educate individuals and society. Girls Not Brides uses fundraising events, speeches, and online courses to spread their message of awareness about how individuals can join. The organization works with the country’s laws and traditional standards to best navigate success in their missions based on societal needs. As divided members work on governmental needs, other organizers offer workshops in a plethora of fields, whether it be traditional schooling, sexual education, or education on child marriages and the damaging effects they cause. Girls Not Brides works on government funding and spreading the campaign using online sources. With the funding, many small groups form the overall …show more content…
Girls Not Brides has found success in networking and outreach programs, directly empowering several young women. Stories can be read about individuals on the webpage GirlsNotBrides.org, and detailed effects of childhood marriage and how the organization helped specifically based on the needs of the individual. Girls Not Brides has successfully helped end over 25 million marriages since the beginning by spreading awareness and continuing to fight for a better future. The organization has shown power in unifying for a better tomorrow and has shown success by starting with ninety-five individuals and growing to over 14 hundred unified groups, spreading the message in over one hundred different countries, and cities. Girls Not Brides has shown its mission to be impactful through its expansion in the last decade and continues to support young women’s journey into impactful education. The wonderful benefits Girls Not Bride has received over their expansion have shown their work is worth doing. Young girls deserve the opportunity to flourish alongside their peers and have the equal opportunity to become more than mothers and wives if they wish
Human beings are not isolated individuals. We do not wander through a landscape of trees and dunes alone, reveling in our own thoughts. Rather, we need relationships with other human beings to give us a sense of support and guidance. We are social beings, who need talk and company almost as much as we need food and sleep. We need others so much, that we have developed a custom that will insure company: marriage. Marriage assures each of us of company and association, even if it is not always positive and helpful. Unfortunately, the great majority of marriages are not paragons of support. Instead, they hold danger and barbs for both members. Only the best marriages improve both partners. So when we look at all three of Janie’s marriages, only her marriage to Teacake shows the support, guidance, and love.
The mission of Girls Inc, as stated on their website is, “to inspire all girls to be strong, smart and bold” (girlsinc.org, 2014). This mission statement can be seen on nearly every publication and public image, it has remained central to the organization, and it continues to be a driving force in the future of the organization. The vision of Girls Inc is “empowered girls and an equitable society,” (girlsinc.org). Girls Inc. has also developed a Girls Bill of Rights, which states that the girls have the right to: “1) be themselves and resist gender-stereotypes, 2) express themselves with originality and enthusiasm, 3) take risks, to strive freely, and to take pride in success, 4) accept and appreciate their bodies, 5) have confidence in themselves and to be safe in the world, and 6) prepare for interesting work and economic independence” (girlsinc.org).
For this paper, I will examine three pieces of literature. The first is a website article written by Tracy Moore, Can You Marry Outside Your Class? Yes, If You Talk About It, from a so-called blog Jezebele. The second will be a
Imagine seeing a girl no older than eight years old, being forced into marriage to a man twice her age. For many girls around the world, being forced into marriage to much older men is an everyday occurrence in their lives. The word “arranged” is not usually associated with the word “forced” but in cases like these the girls have no choice but to agree to marry. Arranged marriages are deeply embedded into the cultures of some countries, with girls being promised into marriage when they are as young as a month old and marrying before they reach maturity. About a third of the women married in developing countries are married before they are eighteen years of age.
Henry David Thoreau famously said that “the mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation. What is called resignation is confirmed desperation.” When we compare and contrast these two stories, “The Story of an Hour” and “Desiree’s Baby,” by Kate Chapin, we learn that this sentiment may be especially true for women. Kate Chapin uses “The Story of an Hour” and “Desiree’s Baby” to bravely explore the social inequalities of women in terms of marriage and divorce. The combination of these two stories point out that despite the presence of love, not all marriages are happy and not all divorces are sad. In “Desiree’s Baby,” Desiree has married for love and wishes to stay married and through no fault of her own, she is forced to divorce. In contrast “The Story of an Hour” is about Louise, who has married out of social obligation and wishes to divorce, but is forced to stay married. Both women are forced to follow paths not of their own choosing and submit to the rules set down by a male dominated society. In spite of society’s tendency to romanticize marriage, many women find marriage to be a limiting burden; for others, marriage may be the only chance at life.
For a long time, girls have been denied the right to obtain an education as well as being forced to drop out of school. In many countries, they are forced into slavery (e.g. bonded labor, and human trafficking), and marriage. According to UNFPA, 14 million girls under 18 will be married this year; 38 thousand today; 13 girls in the last 30 seconds. By marrying too young, these girls increase their chances of becoming pregnant when their bodies are not fully developed. As stated by the World Health Organization, the #1 cause of death for girls 15-19 is childbirth. For the majority, these girls want to go to school but they are forced to do the opposite. This growing concern about girls’ education has caused many people to speak out on the issue.
There are movies, books, songs, poems, and even a holiday devoted to love. However, the concept of love that seems to be greatly glorified by our own society is also heavily binded by expectations that come from ignorance or beliefs. These restrictions are mirrored by the restriction that marriage seems to face due to the heavily embedded notion that marriage is the prioritized outcome of love. However, as many authors such as Meghan O’Rourke bring up, marriage seems to have grown old and might need to be renewed or replaced in some way. (O’Rourke, 2013) Some of the suggestions that are brought up in O’Rourke’s review, “The Marriage Trap,” seem to be a bit radical, but these suggestions are not to be ignored. While a new standard would be hard to implement completely, the concept of a more liberal form of marriage that removed the restrictions from its infrastructure would provide a less oppressive environment in the world that would let love more openly thrive. The failings of love as a whole are heavily connected with the failings of marriage in our society, and we should to be more honest about these failings because it would reveal the disconnect that love and marriage have always had between them and could allow for changes that would allow society to remove the roots of misogyny and discrimination while allowing true love to
...er reading interesting by comparing the differences of traditional and peer marriage. By introducing points and supporting them through personal accounts of couples from either type of marriage she managed to successfully support her contentions.
They never did anything to deserve this form of treatment. Therefore, it is time to stand up and listen because the voices of these young women need to be heard. The rights of these vulnerable young girls need to be protected, and in order to do so, a mission must be achieved to drive change. Social justice must be empowered for these young women to gain the ability to develop self-potential and implement the change they need to restore their lives.
Coltrane, Scott, and Michele Adams. "The Social Construction of the Divorce "Problem": Morality, Child Victims, and the Politics of Gender." Family Relations 52.4 (2003): 363-72. Print.
Girls all over the world are forced into marriages due to financial necessity, tradition and to ensure their future. Most of these girls married are at a young age: “One third of the world’s girls are married before the age of 18 and 1 in 9 are married before the age of 15”( “Child Marriage Facts and Figures”). The young ages of those being married reveal how crucial it is to resolve this problem. When child marriage occurs the parents of the bride usually chose the groom for their daughters; and these grooms can be three times older than the young brides. Some children are brought into the world of marriage at the of 8 or sometimes less depending on their cultural views. The following can be used to help reduce the impact of early marriage: reinforcing laws that are passed against child marriages, and providing information on contraceptives to victims of early marriage. The most efficient way of resolving the problem of child marriage is through educating the people who practice it about its adverse effects.
Ludden, Jennifer. “Can Child Marriages be Stopped?”. npr.com. 25 Nov 2013. Web. 10 Feb 2014
Despite progress in recent years girls still suffer a lot of disadvantage in education systems. While gender equality in education remains a crucial issue for many countries women still account for two-thirds of the world’s illiterate population. Estimated thirty one million girls of primary school age and thirty four million girls of lower secondary school age were not enrolled in school in 2011. (http://www.UNICEF.org/education/bege-61657.html) Girls’ education is both an intrinsic right and a critical lever to reaching other development objectives says UNICEF. Girls’ education is important to the achievement of quality learning. Girls who have been educated are likely to marry later and to have smaller and healthier families. Educated women can recognize the importance of health care and know how to seek it for themselves and their children. Education helps girls and women to know their rights and to gain confidence to claim them. However, women’s literacy rates are significantly lower than men’s in most developing countries. UNICEF recognizes the opportunities provided through girls’ education and it supports governments in the reduction of gender discrimination through interventions at national, local and community levels aimed to empower girls. As we look towards 2015 and beyond, UNICEF continues to take a more transformative approach to girls’ educ...
While arranged marriages are still a common practice, and some girls believe that there are benefits from the arranged marriage, some future brides feel uncertain and scared of getting married because it would mean that they would have to leave the comfort of their home. Not only that, but it is not uncommon for the family of the groom to put extra pressure on their new daughter-in-law. Everything, including her behavior, her clothing, and her housework will be under observation. Whether or not arranged marriages are the best way to create families or find love, it is interesting to see how there is not just one way to get married.
Arranging a marriage for a young girl is a simple way for the family to collect dowry money. For families living in poverty this is something they looked forward to since the birth of their daughter. Furthermore, having one less mouth to feed makes supporting the remaining children less demanding on the parents. In addition to financial reasons for the practice, in times of war an arranged marriage is a way to ensure that the child bride remains safe and out of harms way. An important aspect of most religions is purity. “The very idea that young women have a right to select their own partners—that