by Ellen Snortland
- USA -

Let me introduce you to my friend John Stoltenberg, a warm and generous American man full of good will and humor, who is also one of the United States’ leading male feminists, widely respected as a thoughtful activist, scholar, author, and magazine editor, all at once. He holds degrees in divinity and fine arts.

He was the husband of Andrea Dworkin, the noted radical American feminist and writer best known for her criticism of pornography, which she believed was linked with rape and other forms of violence against women. Andrea died prematurely at 58 in April 2005.

by Ellen Snortland
- USA -

Midnight. Intensely urban downtown neighborhood in Los Angeles where the alleys reek of urine and garbage. Dark Craftsman house in the Carpenter-Gothic style. My home. I cross the threshold and meet an interrupted burglar who raises his knife, ready to plunge it into my throat or heart. My scream is so intense he drops his knife, grabs his ears and runs like hell. “Thank you, mister,” I neglect to yell, because I was yet to know the impact this event would have on the balance of my life.

by Rose-Anne Clermont
- Germany -

Before we had our own children, my husband and I began sponsoring a child in Senegal named Absa, a pretty little girl with clever eyes.

• Absa in Senegal. Photo courtesy of World Vision Germany. •

It has been seven years and our children know the pictures of Absa, standing behind a large wooden bowl and holding onto a tall wooden mortar.

Recently, we received a check-list with a blank space next to school attendance. My eyes rested on the latest picture of Absa, now almost a woman, and I wondered what would become of her?

I called the aid organization and asked why Absa was no longer in school. The woman on the other end of the telephone line sighed.

by Constance Manika
- Zimbabwe -

“The stories we listened to made us bleed inside, the genital wounds we later had to help nurse evoked us, the long distances we traveled every day and night to educate girls on their rights made us strong, the songs of joy and sorrow the girls sang made us more passionate, everything to do with girlhood and the fact that we were there for the girls pushed us to do even more and more from the heart, soul, mind and all. The fact that we finally claimed the girls' spaces where the girls now live and develop free of violence makes it imperative that we share these great tidings” - GCN Director and Founder Betty Makoni

• Betty Makoni has led thousands of girls towards a brighter future.
Photograph courtesy of GCN •

When I first heard Betty speak back then, I immediately fell in love with her. This woman spoke with so much passion and emotion about the issue of rape and abuse of young girls. She was equally disturbed by girls’ general lack of opportunities in life when compared with those given to boys.

by Michelle Chen
- USA -

• Students line up to enter KGIA on the first day of school. Photograph courtesy of Brooklyn Paper (Tom Callan) •

The recent New York Times article focused on key players in the political wrangling over the school. We believe the WIP’s coverage of this issue complements the Times’ investigation by highlighting the voices from the communities involved–students, grassroots groups pushing for multicultural education in the city, and the youth activists who, in an effort to bring visibility to Arab community issues, found themselves swept up in a political firestorm.

by Courtney E. Martin
USA

You might guess that this subject was a perfect stranger, someone I was intimidated by or nervous about getting to know. Instead, she was my best friend.

Don’t get me wrong. Reporting and writing my recently released book, Perfect Girls, Starving Daughters: The Frightening New Normalcy of Hating Your Body did involve speaking with a lot of strangers. I interviewed over 100 girls and women between the ages of 9 and 19, as well as dozens of experts, including psychologists, nutritionists, medical doctors, and media critics. Nonetheless, I was convinced that to tell the real story of contemporary girls and their bodies, I would also need to sit down with my nearest and dearest—many of whom were my inspiration for writing the book in the first place.

by Imelda V. Abaño & Esther Nakkazi
Philippines/Uganda
Reporting from Sydney, Australia

One of the greatest public health failures in the fight against AIDS is the world’s inability to prevent widespread HIV infection among Men who have Sex with Men (MSM), according to officials from the Foundation for Aids Research (amFAR). MSM is the most prominent method of HIV transmission in nearly all Latin American countries, as well as the US, Canada and some Western Europe countries. The roots of this public health failure are denial, discrimination and criminalization.

by Imelda V. Abaño
Philippines

• Photograph courtesy of IRRI •

Yet according to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), only 16 percent of mothers in the Philippines breast-feed their children, an extraordinarily low rate for such a poor country.

by Delphine Zulu
Zambia

• Zambian school children. Photograph by Jennifer Milner. •

Because this problem continues to plague Zambia’s children and in addition accelerates the spread of AIDS, Zambia’s High Court judges have urgently called for the amendment of the Defilement Act: the hope is that publicly parading and photographing the offenders will deter them, where prison sentences have not.

by Juliette Terzieff
USA

View larger image
School children in Rajasthan.
Photograph by Sarah McGowan

By Suad Hamada
Bahrain

A young girl has faced the threat of being expelled from her primary school only because her mother is infected with AIDS.

This secret was neither known to the girl nor the school, but was exposed by a parent who insisted on suspending her to protect other children from infection. Despite the mother’s adamant protestations that her daughter was not infected with the virus, the school persisted until a blood test was performed on the girl. The test revealed what the mother passionately claimed from the beginning - her daughter is HIV negative.

The girl’s story is but one account of the many injustices suffered by youngsters with infected parents and those children who have HIV/AIDS.

by Pilirani Semu-Banda
Malawi

The on-going adoption process of a one-year old Malawian orphan, David Banda, by Pop Star Madonna has highlighted the plight of orphans in Malawi.

A million children are orphaned in Malawi, of which half were AIDS-related illnesses affecting one or both parents, most of whom are cared for by relatives who are already experiencing severe economic hardship. About 8 million of Malawi’s 12 million people live below the national poverty line of $1-a-day. Child-headed households are becoming increasingly common, where many households have been discovered to be run by children as young as 12 years old.

One of the orphanages benefiting from Madonna’s financial assistance is the Consol Homes in Malawi’s Central region. When Madonna visited this orphanage with David on Thursday, April 19, she urged the multitude of orphans and the poor who gathered to see her to help themselves.

"This is a partnership, it's not only for me to do everything, but we need to work together and you have to help yourselves," Madonna said.

But the orphans have already been doing what Madonna is urging them to do.

by Pilirani Semu-Banda
Malawi

In recent months, Malawi’s president, Bingu wa Mutharika, has embarked on a series of whistle-stop tours during week days. Consequently, female teachers feel compelled to dance for him for fear of reprisals from authorities. In Malawi there is a lot of hero-worshipping for politicians, which started during the 30-year dictatorial rule from 1964 to 1994.

Malawians, especially women, sing and dance to songs in praise of politicians they support and conversely castigate those they do not. The president, however, uses civil servants for these demonstrations, including teachers.

A spokesperson for the country’s most influential opposition party, Sam Mpasu, describes this tendency by the president as detrimental to the country’s education standards, which are already grim.

Malawi’s education standards started declining as soon as the country attained democracy in 1994 and abolished school fees for primary education; this resulted in an increase in enrollment from 1.9 million pupils to 3.2 million.

by Janelle Weiner
USA

Johnny realized late in his high school career he needed to make a change or face the fate of not graduating with his class. After cutting school regularly his first two years, he decided he didn’t want to struggle like his mother and father, both of whom never graduated.

Once he made that decision, his behavior changed.

“I started coming to school a lot and not getting into fights,” he said. “Stayed away from the bad behavior and drugs.” Johnny’s turnaround is exactly what every teacher and administrator in the Sacramento public school Johnny attends wants to see.

However, Johnny has a major hurdle remaining: the California High School Exit Exam. (CAHSEE). He has failed it four times.