Invitation to Share Your Stories in the “Profiles in Courage: African Women Overcoming Onerous Challenges”

Every single day in Africa, a woman wakes up to a new challenge:- The challenge to be a woman, a mother, a wife, a provider and a caregiver in a society where patriarchy has systematic control of all the tools that she needs to face up to her challenges. Slowly but surely, the African woman has been able to fight and continues to fight patriarchy by taking a courageous stand against the system that controls her sources of livelihoods.

Every day, we read or hear of stories of courage by women who sought to re-define or dismantle patriarchy; women who resisted the oppressive structures of power and control; women who defied the very practices and traditions that have kept them in a place of domination. We hear of stories of women who because they stood up against such oppression, found themselves exposed to excruciating pain, violence, maiming, and/or were banished as outcasts from their communities. But even then, they refused to succumb and lived through the machinations to tell their stories of courage. But some women were not as lucky as they paid the ultimate price for seeking to claim their rights. But even in death, their causes refused to die and their children, friends, neighbours carried on the fight for justice, for dignity, for life.

As a pertinent stakeholder in this fight, you are the person or you do know of a woman who has

been able to step out and face the day with a resolution to change and challenge this systematic control
been able to step out and declare that she is human:
stepped out in big steps and sometimes small steps to declare that a woman’s place is the world, not only in some parts of the world
a Profile in courage!

We need to tell this story.

In the up-coming book entitled “Profiles in Courage:- African Women Overcoming Onerous Challenges“ , we seek to tell such stories of resistance, of determination, of survival with the sole view of inspiring and empowering other women who find themselves faced with the same plights and or challenges in the face of patriarchy. Your single story, joined with other stories from other women from Africa will be woven together into a tapestry that depicts the picture of the day to day struggle of a woman to face another day; a story that inspires other women to take the courageous first step toward claiming their rightful place in their own story and in their society.

The Centre for Rights Education and Awareness (CREAW) is a non-profit, non-governmental national women’s rights organization based in Nairobi and whose vision seeks a transformed and just equal society. Its mission is to champion, expand and actualize women’s rights.

Format

You can choose to tell your story as a first person narrative that captures your journey as a woman of courage. After you have sent your story to us and our team of editors have edited it, we shall send it back to you for your review OR
You can answer the questionnaire provided and our team of editors will write your story, after which you will review and confirm it is a fair representation of your story.
Tell the story of a woman you know or get her to answer the questionnaire provided

We are really delighted that you have agreed to contribute to our book project and willing to send us your story or referred us to a story you feel fits in with the above criteria. Kindly join this exciting journey of resistance, resilience and courage! Let your story be part of this inaugural publication in Africa.

The deadline for submission is 5 p.m on the 15th October, 2014

You can download the Profiles in Courage Questionnaire here. You can send in your stories to nduta@creawkenya.org or info@creaw.org;

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