I write to you from Tanzania, where I am currently on my third volunteer mandate with Crossroads, with a simple message: global citizens for change are needed now more than ever.
I work every day to support survivors of gender-based violence. As an Advocate in Toronto’s domestic violence court, I prepare survivors to actively participate in our legal system, thereby increasing their access to Justice.
In 2016 a landmark case won by 2018 UN Human Rights Prize Recipient Rebeca Gyumi raised the legal age of marriage to 18. In July, the government appealed the decision. If successful, child marriage will be legal once again.
There is a gap between a woman’s right to vote and the decision to exercise this right. The next elections is the opportunity to seize this right because we have a responsibility to those without it.
When I saw the late-night amber alert I got a lump in my throat. The next morning brought the heartbreaking news. Riya Rajkumaran, an 11-year-old Brampton, Ontario girl, was dead, murdered, as we later learned, by her father.
COVID-19 has exacerbated gender-based violence. From child marriage to physical abuse and Female Genital Mutilation, women and girls are most vulnerable to the pandemic and its consequences. Stand with them. Join our COVID-19 response.
