Blog 10- Organization

Like I have mentioned in earlier posts, a group of women from Rwanda came to Oklahoma last summer. They came to take classes and follow a local woman who was in the same profession that they had in Rwanda. These women had the opportunity to do this because of the Institute for Economic Empowerment of Women's program Peace through Business. Peach through Business currently works with women from Rwanda and Afghanistan. This May my mom is traveling to Rwanda to work more with the women and give a presentation on community involvement/activism. Rwanda and Afghanistan are both such turbulent places, but the situation in Rwanda is different than that of Afghanistan. Unfortunately, not many people know of the horrible atrocities that occurred in Rwanda in 1994. The genocide that happened did not really make the news nor is it talked about on the news today. It began in April 1994. The people of Rwanda are currently observing a month of mourning, but you don't see it on CNN or read about it on the front pages of papers.
Today, the women of Rwanda are in an interesting place. A large portion of the men were killed in the civil war and genocide. Women now hold positions of leadership in government and run many businesses. Peace through Business has allowed many to expand their businesses. A woman named Gloria owns a company called GLO Creations. She runs a shop that sells T-shirts, wall hangings, pillow covers, and table cloths that she sews and batticks.
I think that the opportunities that Peach through Business provide to women in countries that have gone through hardship are wonderful. I am so proud of my mom for going to Rwanda to further help these women, and I hope that as she continues to be active in the program, my role can increase as well.

Another passion that I have is the representation of women in politics which was the main subject of the reading for this week. It is to my great chagrin that women are so underrepresented in government on all levels. I really agree with Rowe-Finkbeiner that young women first need to start voting before they will ever be taken seriously as candidates. For women's policy issues to even be considered women need to vote. Candidates need to know that women are a viable, important part of their constituency. Young women of today need to mobilize for equality, as Pat Reuss says (185).