October 11th, a special day honoring young women, is supposed to be a reminder for all of us to lift up young girls around the world. Last week girls marched all over the world to demand equal power, freedom and representation for girls and young women. International Day of the Girl increases awareness of issues girls face around the world. For example, did you know that globally, one in four girls are married before age 18. That is hard to get my head around.
This year girls are demanding radical change in the portrayal of girls and young women in films and entertainment, textbooks, advertising, in video games and through all forms of communication. They are challenging stereotypes, beliefs and attitudes reinforced by media and entertainment as these portrayals influence how the world views girls and how girls view themselves. Currently media still identifies men as leaders and women are far more often sexualized and objectified in a way that men never are. To see specific statistics on this, click on the Gina Davis Institute on Gender and Media. https://plan-international.org/girls-get-equal/rewrite-her-story
Women and men need to work together to prepare girls to participate equally with boys at all levels of social, economic, political and cultural leadership. Young girls need all of us to be allies to challenge the ideas, stereotypes and attitudes that hold girls back. The International Day of the Girl has passed but our opportunity to continue to support girls is available to us today and every day!
Some great organizations supporting young girls:
Young people in a global movement for good
Fight gender inequality through education
Encourages young people to vote
Tools to support and increase the number of young women in computer science