If you've been reading Cool Mom Picks for a while now, you know we're strong advocates of increasing opportunity for women and girls across the globe in all kinds of ways. Sometimes it's promoting businesses that support women in need, like FashionABLE, Raven & Lily, or To the Market. Sometimes it's sharing organizations like Amy Poehler's Smart Girls or simply seeking out smart toys for girls that defy the pink aisle and open up opportunities.
And sometimes it's finding ways to collectively raise our voices constructively to make substantial change in the world.
In honor of today's International Women's Day, we ask you to spend one minute and click over to ONE's #PovertyIsSexist campaign then sign the letter to lawmakers.
Because your voice matters.
You'll be in pretty amazing company -- it's already been signed by an impressively diverse and bipartisan group including Oprah Winfrey, Maria Shriver, Meryl Streep, Lady Gaga, Shonda Rhimes, Lauren Bush, Mark Zuckerberg, Danai Gurira, Condoleeza Rice, Melinda Gates, Sheryl Sandberg, John Green, Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Laura Ling, Muhammad Ali...and of course, Bono. The list goes on.
The letter itself specifies initiatives that need funding, policies that support female economic empowerment, and the need for more data gathering on girls and women who have been overlooked entirely in previous research.
Here are a few facts:
- 62 million girls are denied the right to education.
- Half a billion women worldwide can’t read.
- 155 countries still have laws that discriminate against women.
Read the report and we think you'll understand why this is so important.
The truth is, as ONE has so perfectly said it, "Nowhere on earth do women have as many opportunities as men. Nowhere."
Haunting when you think about it.
The quote comes from Rabbi Hillel, but glad to see Emma Watson is on board with the sentiment
She always nails it.
If you want to do more than adding your name to the letter, you can share these images on social media using the hashtag #PovertyIsSexist. You'll find more on the Poverty is Sexist page on the ONE.org site. And hey, share the info with your kids too. In countries where women are supported better, with the chance to learn and earn living wages and get access to good nutrition and healthcare, research shows their economies do better as a whole. The whole country benefits when the women are treated better. And that has global impact. So we truly hope you'll join us in telling world leaders that we want more opportunity for women and girls everywhere. It's one simple thing you can do today. And wow, what an impact it can make. -Kate + Liz Sign the #PovertyIsSexist letter to global leaders to help support women around the globe now. You'll find it at the ONE.org site.
