Breathtaking Bravery

“Women facing poverty, oppression, and violence are usually viewed as victims. Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn’s Half the Sky shows that unimaginable challenges are often met with breathtaking bravery. These stories show us the power and resilience of women who would have every reason to give up but never do. They will be an inspiration for anyone who reads this book, and a model for those fighting for justice around the world. You will not want to put this book down.” — Angelina Jolie


From 2 of our most fiercely moral voices, Pulitzer Prize winners Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, a passionate CALL TO ARMS against our era’s most pervasive human rights violation: the oppression of women & girls in the developing world. In Half the Sky, they show how a little help can transform the lives of women and girls abroad, and help us see that the key to economic progress lies in unleashing women’s potential. You can help accelerate change if you'll just open your heart and join in.

With Kristof and WuDunn as our guides, we undertake an odyssey through Africa and Asia to meet the extraordinary women struggling there, among them a Cambodian teenager sold into sex slavery and an Ethiopian woman who suffered devastating injuries in childbirth.





They show how a little help can transform the lives of women and girls abroad. Countries such as China have prospered precisely because they emancipated women and brought them into the formal economy. Unleashing that process globally is not only the right thing to do; it’s also the best strategy for fighting poverty.

“The stories that Kristof and WuDunn share are as powerful as they are heartbreaking. Their insight into gender issues and the role of women in development inspires hope, optimism, and most importantly, the will to change. Both a brutal awakening and an unmistakable call to action, this book should be read by all.”

— Melinda Gates

Deeply felt, pragmatic, and inspirational, Half the Sky is essential reading for every global citizen.

“Half the Sky is a passionate and persuasive plea to all of us to rise up and say ‘No more!’ to the 17th-century abuses to girls and women in the 21st-century world. This is a book that will pierce your heart and arouse your conscience. It is a powerful piece of journalism by two masters of the craft who are tireless in their pursuit of one of the most shameful conditions of our time.”

— Tom Brokaw

           
Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn are co-authors of Half the Sky. Kristof writes an Op-Ed column for The New York Times. WuDunn is an investment advisor, with a focus on philanthropy. Together, they won a Pulitzer Prize for their coverage of China. They have also won a George Polk Award and an Overseas Press Club Award.

Together, they have also written two previous books about Asia: Thunder from the East: Portrait of a Rising Asia and China Wakes: The Struggle for the Soul of a Rising Power.



“I read Half the Sky in one sitting, staying up until 3 a.m. to do so. It is brilliant and inspirational, and I want to shout about it from the rooftops and mountains. It vividly illustrates how women have turned despair into prosperity and bravely nurtured hope to cultivate a bright future. The book ends with an especially compelling ‘What you can do’ to exhort us all to action.”

— Greg Mortenson, author, Three Cups of Tea

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WhyAreWeWhispering.com

Join Eve Ensler & V-Day - a fierce, wild, unstoppable movement and community

Violence against women determines much about who we are as a society, Eve points out that the fate of the girl is entwined with the fate of humankind. The capacity for girls to overcome situations is mind-blowing -- as a species, we need to learn from that capacity.

Eve was named one of U.S. News & World Report's Best Leaders 2009!

V-Day Founder Eve Ensler has been named Best Leader 2009 along with 22 of the country's most exemplary individuals, including Newark Mayor Cory Booker, Operation Smile founders Bill and Kathy Magee, Artist Twyla Tharp, and Rockefeller Foundation President Judith Rodin.
She spoke recently with U.S. News. Excerpts:



Q: Is violence against women different from violence against men?

Eve: All violence is abhorrent. But violence against women determines much about who we are as a society. Take the example of a woman who has been raped and never talked about it. Then she gives birth to a son. Her experiences are going to be passed on to that child and be a part of who the child is. And that trauma will continue and continue. The U.N. statistics say at least 1 in 3 women and girls is beaten or raped in her lifetime.






Q: If what the United Nations reports is true, why isn't more being done?

Eve: Some people can't understand. For a woman who has been the victim of rape or incest, burned with acid, or had her genitals mutilated, the rest of their lives are about recovering from that experience. If you're not a woman, you can't understand that. We also live in a patriarchal system where crimes against women are not taken as seriously as crimes against men. There are quarters of the world where empowerment of women is feared. It threatens the people in power. Violence is the way to keep that system in place.

We've helped 8-year-old girls who were raped for weeks by soldiers and their insides were just torn out so that they couldn't help defecating on themselves; women who had babies cut from their bodies and [were] then forced to eat them.

Q: How has collecting these grotesque stories affected you?

Eve: I wonder if, after hearing all of this, one day I will go mad. I do have what I call days of mourning where I don't get out of bed. I am a changed person. The things that once mattered to me don't hold the same value. And that's a good thing. It's hard to go around the world and see so much suffering and then return to the U.S., where people have so much.

Q: The mantra of V-Day is "until the violence stops." Is that a realistic goal?

Eve: Does it matter? You have to have a big idea and a vision that guides you. Does that mean that all violence will end by the end of my lifetime? Maybe not. My goal is to keep fighting violence against women until it stops. Imagine what the world would be like if women could walk around without fear.

Source: Originally published in:
U.S. News & World Report
Photo Credit/Source: Ulf Andersen/Getty

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V-Day is an organized response against violence toward women.

V-Day is a vision: We see a world where women live safely and freely.

V-Day is a demand: Rape, incest, battery, genital mutilation and sexual slavery must end now.

V-Day is a spirit: We believe women should spend their lives creating and thriving rather than surviving or recovering from terrible atrocities.

V-Day is a catalyst: By raising money and consciousness, it will unify and strengthen existing anti-violence efforts. Triggering far-reaching awareness, it will lay the groundwork for new educational, protective, and legislative endeavors throughout the world.

V-Day is a process: We will work as long as it takes. We will not stop until the violence stops.

V-Day is a day. We proclaim Valentine's Day as V-Day, to celebrate women and end the violence.

V-Day is a fierce, wild, unstoppable movement and community. Join us!

Read Eve Ensler's profile, find out what’s going on, get to know everyone involved and GET INVOLVED at the V-Day website >>http://vday.org/