As part of a campaign to empower women everywhere, CARE has been conducting a book tour with Phil Borges, author and photographer of “Women Empowered: Inspiring Change in the Emerging World.” The book is a work of art, capturing female experiences from all over the world. While written stories are included throughout the book, the photographs tell their own story; stories of heroism in a world where women triumph in the face of adversity. At the book-signing in Los Angeles, we had the opportunity to meet with Phil Borges himself, who told stories straight out of the book, and the special privilege to meet Millicent Obaso, CARE’s HIV/AIDS Advisor to Eastern and Central Africa. Millicent shared her own experiences growing up as a Kenyan female and the realities of HIV/AIDS in her country.

Phil Borges retold one experience that seemed to have a particular impact on the audience. He told the story of Abay, (pictured right) a 28 year-old woman from Awash Fontale, Ethiopia. In the book he writes, “Abay was born into a culture in which girls are circumcised before age 12. When it came time for her circumcision ceremony, Abay said, “No.” Her mother insisted: An uncircumcised woman would be ostracized and could never marry, Abay was told. When her mother’s demands became unbearable, she ran away to live with a sympathetic godfather. Eight years later, Abay returned to her village and began work as a station agent for CARE, supervising the opening of a primary school and a health clinic and the construction of a well. After five years, she finally convinced one of the women to let her film a circumcision ceremony. She showed the film to the male leaders. They had never seen a female circumcision and were horrified. Two weeks later, the male leaders called a special meeting and voted fifteen to two to end female circumcision in their village.” View Abay’s story here.

Abay’s story reminded me of why it’s so important to advocate for better US policy on global poverty fighting measures; all around the world, at any given moment, women and men are standing up and advocating for themselves in the midst of dire situations. Given the millions of people who are affected by US policy every year, but have no voice in our system, it’s our obligation raise our voices with them!