Vara standing up for what she believes

Friday the 8th of March was an incredible day, International Women's Day. Not only is it important to recognize your rights as a woman daily, but it is important to stand up for yours as well as other women's. Working at the Commission for Gender Equality has made me aware of all the inequalities women face here that we take for granted, like rights to property regardless of a man in your life, or rights to dress freely. Gender based violence (GBV) is a serious issue here especially in the townships and I have met people who have had personal experiences with GBV and shared their stories of survival but they have little hope for the future. That's why I have been so interested in women's rights lately. I have always been interested in learning more about the treatment of women in various cultures, but this experience has really shown me a new dark side of womens' personal realities. So when Marita sent me information about a rally in the city bowl, I immediately looked into it and had to attend. It was a rainy day but the drowsiness of the morning didn't slow me down. The first event was a church service that brought every religion to the table on gender issues and what I saw as most impacting was the discussion of the Q'ran. Religious leaders are speaking out as to the explicit sexism claims to beating women into submission for men. All the religious leaders vowed to work at ending sexism through their lectures in their place of worship. After a powerful discussion in the church we headed to the streets for a rally. We held up signs and blew whistles signifying our intolerance of GBV. The protest was called "Ringing the Bell" and that is precisely what we did. We rang a physical bell as well as a metaphorical bell showing that all genders, races, ethnicites,  etc can help to end gender based violence. There were women and men alike promoting the cause and showing a totality of support for those who suffered or would potentially suffer from GBV in their lifetime. The protest was such a powerful moment when so much noise was made from our whistles and bells as well as the passion behind each participant. The efforts of the people in the protest showed the power of free speech. We were able to capture the attention of passerbys, buses, cars, and anyone else who was in the radius to see or hear us. Promoting what you believe isn't just something to cross off a list, it's an effort to help others who feel similarly and to uphold your duty to benefit humanity as a whole.