International Day Of The Girl

Author: Tara Delano, Fall 2021 Intern

October 11th, 2021 will be the day to celebrate young girls who are breaking down barriers of gender inequality!

Some of you may be wondering what International Day of the Girl is, the history of this day began in 1995 at the World Conference on Women in Beijing. This conference adopted the most advancing declaration for not only women’s rights but girls as well. In 2011 the United Nations Assembly declared October 11th as the official day to recognize girl’s rights and the adversity they encounter around the world.

This day was put into effect to empower girls across the globe and promote awareness that every adolescent girl deserves to live a fulfilling and healthy life with endless opportunities. After researching this International Day, I have had such an eye-opening experience and I hope that this blog posting can do the same for everyone reading. Living in America sometimes we do not fully realize what goes on in other places. For example, statistics show that 12 million girls are married before the age of 18 years old and globally 1 in 5 girls experience sexual violence. In Eastern and Southern Africa HIV infections are growing among young girls and many girls living in war zones are stuck in disrupting cycles of conflict and poverty which denies them from an education.

Although a lot of progress has been made across the world the struggles of young girls continues and the best way, we can provide a better life for young girls is to educate them. EDUCATION CAN reduce the risk of sex trafficking in which girls from uneducated and poor families are lured into. EDUCATION CAN reduce the spread of HIV in young girls, EDUCATION CAN reduce the amount of child marriages, EDUCATION CAN boost economies.

Girls globally deserve equal access to education as boys and deserve their human rights to be protected. By sharing this message on International Day of the Girl and every day we can make a difference in these young girls lives!

I encourage you to get involved now in the fight for justice and inclusion for our current generations as well as our future generations! I challenge you all to share stories on social media of inspiring adolescent girls who are fighting for positive social change. This year’s theme is Digital generation, our generation due to COVID 19 we have witnessed the power of technology and how much social media can spread positivity.