WOMEN'S ENEWS by LORI SOKOL

Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s eNews presents

21 Leaders for the 21st Century

2017 (East Coast)

From the Executive Director

Congratulations Ambassador Alice Dear

Thank you for serving as Women’s eNews’ Board Chair for the past three years. Your passionate, steadfast and tireless commitment to our organization has proven invaluable. We will surely miss you! - Lori Sokol, Ph.D., Executive Director

SPEAKING TRUTH TO POWER

‘I CAN’T BELIEVE I HAVE TO MARCH FOR FACTS!’, read one protest sign at last month’s March for Science in New York City. Yes, these times are astounding, indeed. Yet, whether having to defend facts that have already been scientifically proven, or advocate for the rights of immigrants in a country that has been built upon the very shoulders of immigrants, or marching against the reversal of rights that have been granted to women and other marginalized groups decades ago, people are courageously taking to the streets to not only advocate for themselves, but for others. And it is representative of this steadfast commitment of support that Women’s eNews has selected this year’s ’21 Leaders for the 21st Century’ honorees. Each has demonstrated a relentless commitment to ‘Speaking Truth to Power.’ From Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney (NY-12), a tireless leader and champion for women’s rights and equality, to Mariam Jalabi, a businesswoman turned peace activist who advocates for democracy and gender equality in Syria, to Michael Kimmel, a sociologist and best-selling author who has been pitching feminism to men for almost 40 years, these courageous pioneers represent just three of the 21 honorees who understand that the power of truth is necessary to move the needle forward for women and girls, both at home and abroad. And no organization understands the power of truth more than Women’s eNews. For over seventeen years, our award-winning news organization has been providing professional, factual and transparent journalism on issues facing women and girls throughout the world. It is by giving a voice to those who would otherwise not have one that we exist, and why these 21 Leaders deserve to be recognized for doing so as well. Please join us in celebrating them!

“Speaking truth to power means believing deeply in what you say and fighting every day to have that heard. It may not be popular; it means taking a risk, it means standing for something.” - Shari Runner, President & CEO, Chicago Urban League

Women's eNews would like to thank our '21 Leaders for the 21st Century' 2017 Sponsors

Supporters Loreen Arbus Sheila Lennon Jeanne Madoxx Annie Meacham Barbara Nessim Jan Pascal

Publication Design by KV Design

Lori Sokol, Ph.D.

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CONGRESSWOMAN CAROLYN MALONEY D-NY-12, Senior member of House Financial Services Committee and the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, Ranking House member of the Joint Economic Committee

First elected to Congress in 1992, Carolyn B. Maloney is recognized an to represent New York’s 12th Congressional District; the first as a national leader with extensive accomplishments on financial woman to represent New York City’s 7th Councilmanic district services, national security, the economy, and women’s issues. She (where she was the first woman to give birth while in office); and is a senior member of both the House Financial Services Committee (where she serves as Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Capital Markets) and the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, and the Ranking House member of the Joint Economic Committee. Maloney has authored and passed more than 70 measures, either as stand-alone bills or as language incorporated into larger bills. Ten bills Maloney authored or co-authored were signed into law at formal Presidential Signing Ceremonies, either as a standalone bill or part of a larger bill. Among her most significant legislative accomplishments are the Credit CARD Act, which levels the playing field between consumers and credit card companies, and the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, which provides health monitoring, treatment and compensation to those who became sick or were injured as a result of their work or exposure at Ground Zero. Her career has been a series of firsts. Maloney is the first wom-

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was the first woman to Chair the Joint Economic Committee, a House and Senate panel that examines and addresses the nation’s most pressing economic issues. Only 18 women in history have chaired Congressional committees. A champion for domestic and international women’s issues, Maloney helped pass legislation that targets the “demand” side of sex trafficking; provides annual mammograms for women on Medicare; and the Debbie Smith Act which increases funding for law enforcement to process DNA rape kits, termed “the most important anti-rape legislation in history.” Her legislation to create Women’s Health Offices in five Federal agencies was part of the landmark health care reform legislation signed by President Obama. Maloney is the House sponsor of the Equal Rights Amendment, which would guarantee women’s rights in the Constitution. She is also working to establish a Smithsonian museum on the National Mall dedicated to women’s history.

ROSA ‘ROSIE’ RIOS 43rd Treasurer of the United States and Visiting Scholar, Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, Harvard University

Rosie Rios was the 43rd Treasurer of the United States and is a currently appears on a record $1.2 trillion out of the $1.4 trillion Visiting Scholar at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at in circulation worldwide. Her almost eight-year effort to redesign the nation’s currency Harvard University. She is most recently known for initiating and leading the efforts to place a portrait of a woman on the front of U.S. currency for the first time in the nation’s history. Upon her resignation in 2016, she received the Hamilton Award, the highest honor bestowed in the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Treasurer Rios was the longest serving Senate-confirmed Treasury official beginning with her time on the Treasury/Federal Reserve Transition Team in November 2008 at the height of the financial crisis. In her role as Treasurer of the United States, Treasurer Rios was the Chief Executive Officer of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing and the United States Mint, including Fort Knox. Her day-to-day responsibilities included overseeing all currency and coin production activities with almost 4,000-employees in eight facilities nationwide and an annual budget of approximately $5 billion. In the first five years of her tenure, she saved over $1 billion by implementing efficiencies and innovative concepts while meeting increased production demand and increasing employee morale at record levels. Treasurer Rios was the first Treasurer to ever have her portfolio which also included the Chair of the Advanced Counterfeiting Deterrence Steering Committee and Senior Advisor to the Secretary of the Treasury in the areas of community development and public engagement. Her signature

included the first-ever nationwide public engagement process in the history of the federal government using a social media portal, roundtables and town halls. In April of 2016, Treasury announced that women will be placed on the $5, $10 and $20 bills reflecting the theme of democracy. The concepts will be unveiled on August 26, 2020 in recognition of the 100th anniversary of the 19th amendment granting women the right to vote. Prior to her presidential appointment in Treasury, Treasurer Rios was Managing Director of Investments for MacFarlane Partners, a $22 billion investment management firm based in San Francisco. Her career has focused on real estate finance, economic development and urban revitalization in both the public and private sectors. She is a graduate of Harvard University and was selected as the first Latina in Harvard’s 380-year history to have a portrait commissioned in her honor. The portrait will be publicly unveiled in 2017. Treasurer Rios continues advocating for women and girls and has launched EMPOWERMENT 2020 at Harvard. Its first project, Teachers Righting History, www.teachersrightinghistory.org, began as a pilot program on August 26, Equality Day, to recognize historic American women in classrooms across the country. She currently lectures about her tenure in Treasury and building leadership and civic engagement.

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AMBASSADOR ALICE DEAR

WENDY DIAMOND

Board Chair, Women’s eNews, Former U.S. Executive Director of the African Development Bank, Member of the International Planning Committee of the Global Summit of Women

Social Entrepreneur, Humanitarian, Endangered Animal and Rescue Advocate, World’s Premiere Pet Lifestyle expert, Best-Selling Author, and TV Personality

Ambassador Alice Marie Dear, Africanist, banker, consultant, and tution headquartered in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire. From 1994-2000, diplomat has enjoyed and excelled in multiple careers with a global Ambassador Dear, the first woman appointed to this position, focus. In each endeavor she has proudly deployed her creative represented the U.S. Government on the Boards of Directors of energy to empower women and girls. In this milestone year, the Honorable Alice Dear celebrates her 50-year membership in Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. She became a member on the very Howard University campus in Washington, DC where the international service organization was founded in 1908. She credits AKA, the first Greek-lettered organization founded by African American college-educated women, with modeling for her at an early age how to leverage the power of women through collaboration, preparation and service. AKA enabled her to develop and fine-tune critical leadership skills for success. Those early building blocks propelled her career achievements that we celebrate this evening. Ms. Dear honed her skills in international banking, finance and marketing during an 11-year tenure on Wall Street in the Middle East and Africa Group at Irving Trust Company, now Bank of New York Mellon. Her familiarity with the nuances of African business, economic, political and cultural affairs complemented her skills acquired at Irving as an international lending officer, trade finance specialist and marketing officer for operational services. She left banking in 1988 as a Vice President to launch an international consulting business with a focus on Africa, and to make a difference in the lives of those she encountered. In early 1994 President Bill Clinton appointed Alice Dear, with unanimous Senate confirmation, as U.S. Executive Director of the African Development Bank Group, Africa’s premier financial insti4 | 21 LEADERS FOR THE 21ST CENTURY

the African Development Bank Group, sharing responsibility for oversight of the Bank’s financial, operational and administrative management, including its then $3 billion annual lending portfolio, a key contributor to the economic development and social progress of the Bank’s 54 regional member countries. Upon her return to the U.S. in 2000, Ambassador Dear revitalized her consulting business, drawing on her expertise in banking and thirty years of operational experience in Africa. As President of A.M. Dear & Associates, a business advisory boutique with a focus on Africa, she promotes private sector investment, and strategies to support small and medium-scale enterprises, particularly women-owned businesses. The frequent lecturer, panelist and moderator at conferences on international development, finance and gender issues also lends her voice and talents to advocate on behalf of women’s empowerment and gender equity as critical components to peace, security and development. Ambassador Dear currently chairs the Board of Directors of Women’s eNews, Inc. and is a Board Member of International University of Grand Bassam Foundation. The Life Member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. represents the organization at the United Nations in special consultative status with the UN Economic and Social Council. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the International Planning Committee of Global Summit of Women and formerly served as Board Director of Abyssinian Development Corporation, Africare and Plan USA.

Wendy Diamond is a social entrepreneur, humanitarian, founder of Animal Fair Media and an Ellis Island Medal of Honor recipient. She was inspired to launch WED in 2013 after volunteering in Honduras with the Adelante Foundation, an organization that provides microcredit to locally impoverished women. Recognizing the fact that women perform 66% of the world’s work, yet only earn 10% of the world’s income and at the same time, women account for 85% of consumer purchases and control $20 trillion in worldwide spending, Diamond was inspired to create a simplified movement in the world to empower women in business to alleviate poverty. WEDO ignites women leaders, innovators, and entrepreneurs to initiate startups, drive economic expansion, and advance communities worldwide. WEDO is celebrated in 144 countries and 110 universities and colleges internationally. Our mission is to empower the 4 billion women across the globe to be catalysts of change, and uplift the 250 million girls living in poverty globally. We are a movement to amplify our message of expanding women in business in communities around the world. New York State’s Governor Andrew Cuomo and New York City’s Mayor Bill De Blasio proclaimed Women’s Entrepreneurship Day an official day on November 19.

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XIAN HORN

MARIAM JALABI

Disability Advocate, Founder of Give Beauty Wings, and Changeblazer, Inc.

Director, Representative Office of the Syrian National Coalition to the United Nations, Member, Women’s Advisory Committee to the Syrian Opposition’s Higher Negotiations Committee

For Xian Horn advocacy was an accident. Her disability was not. Wings, a weekly workshop tailored to the needs of young women Born 7 weeks early “because [she] was so excited about life - and couldn’t wait to get started,” Xian was diagnosed at a year old with minor Cerebral Palsy - something she calls the blessing of her life so far. “I struggled so much with self-esteem as a girl becoming a woman and finding my purpose in life. As strange as it might sound, my disability has been the one thing I have always had confidence in. It has helped me cut lines and talk to strangers in NYC where I grew up and still live. I know walking with ski poles makes me stand out and it brings me so much joy.” However it was for this reason it never occurred to her to advocate around disability. She says, “I felt it would have been the obvious thing to do. And it was what everyone said I should do, but that wasn’t a good enough reason; it wasn’t until years later when I saw friends I looked up to struggling, that I knew something had to be done. I didn’t know what the something was just yet, but I knew I wanted to foster positive dialogue around our inherent beauty and disability.” So, Xian set out to send a message to the beauty industry and anyone with a heart. Filming in her mother’s living room, she made a one minute pitch to the Dove Campaign to call for the inclusion of people with disabilities in their advertising. The video went semi-viral and unexpectedly gifted her with ongoing classes at NYU and a blog on Positively Positive and its now 2.5 million readers. Using her own spiritual journey to self-acceptance and the realization that her body was a temple, she helms Give Beauty

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14-32 at NYU’s Initiative for People with Disabilities. Since then, Xian’s workshops have expanded to the JCC Manhattan, Middle School 131 in Chinatown, and even the Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities where she crafted vocational workshops for their annual Disability Mentoring Day. Xian now speaks and mentors around the country, including at the White House, something which still shocks and delights her: “I was the most stage-frightened girl you could imagine, so for this to be my lifework was something of a miracle and a welcomed surprise.” Since then, the surprises keep coming. In 2014, Xian was asked to be commencement speaker at her old high school (NYC Lab School, a magnet school in Manhattan). In 2015, she began working with AT&T to serve as an Exemplar and Judge for the AT&T and NYU Connect Ability challenge collaborating with developers as they designed solutions for people with disabilities. Xian’s own story and the stories of three others were used to inspire innovation. She continues working with AT&T on Diversity and Inclusion efforts via her consultancy, Changeblazer, Inc. Xian also serves the ReelAbilities Film Selection and Advisory Committee, the New York Women’s Foundation’s Committee for the Future, the National Disability Mentoring Coalition and Kota Alliance. She observes: “In many cases, my only qualifications are my body and my beliefs - my truth. I simply go where the need is, where I feel I can be most helpful and that has broadened the scope of my life.”

In late August 2013, women’s rights and peace activist Mariam Jalabi responded to the breaking news that one of the worst chemical weapons attacks on civilians in modern history had been launched in her native Syria. In her capacity as Director of the United Nations Office of the Syrian National Coalition, the largest and most representative opposition political group, she immediately organized meetings with UN officials and diplomats to demand an investigation, accountability and that the international community heed Syrians’ call for the world to protect them against the indiscriminate attacks of the Assad regime. Four years and countless appeals later, Ms. Jalabi continues to direct the UN Office of the Syrian National Coalition. She has consistently lobbied the international community to protect Syrians from Assad’s ongoing campaign to maim, starve, bomb and gas them with impunity. Recognizing a real opportunity to make a difference while simultaneously frustrated by a lack of Syrian women in positions of decision-making, Ms. Jalabi also channeled her energy and resources to advancing Syrian women’s participation in the political process. From the Geneva negotiations of 2014 to those of 2017, Ms. Jalabi has engaged with negotiators, Syrian women’s groups, and the international community in her tireless effort to coordinate Syrian women and to ensure their place at the table. As a member of the Women’s Advisory Committee to the opposition delegation to the talks, Ms. Jalabi counsels negotiators on strategy for

streamlining gender sensitivity into the peace process. Her efforts, she hopes, are helping to not only secure a political solution to the Syrian crisis and an end to the violence, but are also cultivating a new generation of Syrian feminists. Born in Damascus and raised in the Golan Heights, Ms. Jalabi ran a fashion company that advanced women’s freedom of movement through clothing prior to the start of the Syrian revolution in 2011. Inspired by the peaceful protests and community organizing in the early phase of the revolution, Ms. Jalabi fully shifted to political work, advocating for democracy and gender equality as a founding member of the Syrian Non-Violence Movement. She led events and rallies in support of the Syrian revolution and joined the Syrian National Coalition, opening its UN office and directing it since 2013. In her work with the Syrian Women’s Network and the Syrian Feminist Lobby, she has spearheaded numerous initiatives to expand the political participation of Syrian women and minorities, as well as to increase their presence in the media. Ms. Jalabi is an independent business owner with degrees in political science from McGill University in Montreal, fashion design from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York and is an MA candidate in Political Science and Gender Studies at NYU. True to what Syria represents, she has a rich multi-ethnic cultural background and is fluent in English, Arabic, and Circassian.

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In Honor of Founding Board Member

MICHAEL KIMMEL Recipient: Gordon Gray Jr. Outstanding Male Leadership Award SUNY Distinguished Professor of Sociology and Gender Studies at Stony Brook University

Michael Kimmel is one of the world’s leading experts on men and masculinities. He is the

Gordon Gary Jr.

Women’s eNews is pleased to establish the

Gordon Gray Jr. Outstanding Male Leader Award

SUNY Distinguished Professor of Sociology and Gender Studies at Stony Brook University. Among his many books are Manhood in America, Angry White Men, The Politics of Manhood, The Gendered Society and the best seller Guyland: The Perilous World Where Boys Become Men. With funding from the MacArthur Foundation, he founded the Center for the Study of Men and Masculinities at Stony Brook in 2013. A tireless advocate of engaging men to support gender equality, Kimmel has lectured at more than 300 colleges, universities and high schools. He has delivered the International Women’s Day annual lecture at the European Parliament, the European Commission and the Council of Europe, and has worked with the Ministers for Gender Equality of Norway, Denmark and Sweden in developing programs for boys and men. He consults widely with corporations, NGOs and public sector organizations on gender equity issues. He was recently called “the world’s most prominent male feminist” in The Guardian newspaper in London.

(in perpetuity)

“Thank You, Gordon, for your long-standing passion and commitment to supporting Women’s eNews’ mission to providing award-winning journalism for over 17 years!” - Lori Sokol, PhD, Executive Director, and the Women’s eNews Board 8 | 21 LEADERS FOR THE 21ST CENTURY

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LENORA M. LAPIDUS

JESSICA NEUWIRTH

Director, ACLU Women’s Rights Project

Founder of Equality Now, Donor Direct Action and ERA Coalition

Lenora Lapidus is the Director of the Women’s Rights Project at the American Civil Liberties Union. She litigates gender discrimination cases in federal and state courts throughout

Jessica Neuwirth is an international women’s rights lawyer and activist. She is one of

the country, engages in public policy advocacy, and speaks on gender equity issues in the media and to the public. Her work focuses on economic justice, educational equity, and gender based violence. She and her colleagues won a unanimous ruling from the Supreme Court in AMP v. Myriad Genetics (2013), striking down patents on the human BRCA genes, which are associated with breast and ovarian cancer. She also won a landmark victory from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, in Jessica Gonzales Lenahan v. U.S. (2011), resulting in recommendations for policy changes to prevent and remedy violence against women. Ms. Lapidus is a founding steering committee member of the Equal Pay Today! Campaign, a collaboration among national, regional and state women’s rights organizations formed to close the gender wage gap through policy reform, strategic litigation and communications campaigns. Ms. Lapidus has taught courses in Gender and the Law, Reproductive Rights, Constitutional Litigation, and Women and Public Policy, as an adjunct professor at Seton Hall Law School, Rutgers Law School, and Rutgers University. She is the lead author of THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN (4th ed.) NYU Press, (2009), and has written book chapters and law review articles on a range of topics. Prior to becoming Director of the ACLU Women’s Rights Project in 2001, Ms. Lapidus served as Legal Director of the ACLU of New Jersey, held the John J. Gibbons Fellowship in Public Interest and Constitutional Law at Gibbons Law Firm, was a fellow at the Center for Reproductive Rights, and clerked for the Honorable Richard Owen in the U.S. District Court for the SDNY. Ms. Lapidus has received several fellowships and awards, including the Wasserstein Fellowship from Harvard Law School for outstanding public interest lawyers. She graduated cum laude from Harvard Law School and summa cum laude from Cornell University.

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the founders of Equality Now, an international women’s rights organization established in 1992, and the founder and Director of Donor Direct Action, an offshoot project now hosted by the Sisterhood is Global Institute to support women’s rights organizations around the world. She is also a founder of the new ERA Coalition, mobilizing a renewed effort to get the Equal Rights Amendment into the United States Constitution. To aid this effort, she has also written a book, Equal Means Equal, Why the Time for the ERA is Now. Jessica holds a J.D. from Harvard Law School and a B.A. in History from Yale University. She has worked for the human rights organization Amnesty International, for the Wall Street law firm of Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton, and for the United Nations Office of Legal Affairs, as well as the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. She served as a special consultant on sexual violence to the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda for its landmark Akayesu judgment holding that rape is a form of genocide, and again worked for the Rwanda Tribunal on the Media judgment holding print and radio media accountable for their role in the Rwandan genocide. More recently she directed the legal team that drafted the judgment of the Special Court for Sierra Leone convicting former Liberian President Charles Taylor of war crimes and crimes against humanity. As a guest lecturer, Jessica has taught international women’s rights at Harvard Law School. Jessica has been recognized for her work with a Susan B. Anthony Award from the New York City Chapter of the National Organization for Women, a Special Citation from the Advice Desk for Abused Women in South Africa, the Visionary Ending Violence Award from the Harvard Office of Sexual Assault Prevention and Response, and the Civic Spirit Award from the Women’s City Club. She has been named one of the Ms. Women of the Year, and one of the Power Women of the Year by New York Moves.

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ALYSON PALMER

BETH SHIPP

Artist / Activist

Executive Director of LPAC

Alyson Palmer is the artist/activist, producer/director and talent of brilliant activists and performers, including Holly bass-playing singer/songwriter best known for her ongoing Near, Cris Williamson, the Indigo Girls, Vicki Randle, Toshi three decades of work with the feminist pop/rock band, BETTY. Reagon, Sarah Bettens, Valerie June, Kate Clinton and others. On November 11, 2016, she founded 1@1, an equality project for the ongoing strengthening of rights, resources, representation and realities of women and girls. Alyson tours internationally and records with BETTY, whose music has been featured on dozens of musical collaborations, films, ads and television series, including the L Word, Ugly Betty, Weeds and at equal rights festivals all over the world. Their latest album “On The Rocks” was released in December 2016 and features the band’s rallying song, “RISE”. In 2014, the band created The BETTY Effect, a non-profit organization for the empowerment and self-advocacy of women, girls and groups striving for equal rights worldwide. As Arts and Cultural Envoys of the US Department of State, BETTY and The BETTY Effect have worked to advance social justice across Eastern Europe, India, South America, Israel and Mexico. Aly created the feminist musical revue, CHIX, which served as the closing finale set of the final eleven Michigan Womyn’s Music Festivals. The wildly popular women’s history-through-music themed CHIX shows feature the immense

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In 2017 Aly presented CHIX with Olivia Cruises, featuring activists Dolores Huerta and Billie Jean King among others in memorable musical roles. With the help of San Francisco-based Technical Director Karen Weiss, 1@1 was launched initially with a global minute of silence for women’s equality on Saturday, January 21 at 1pm ET, centered around the Women’s March on Washington. After over 500,000 people joined that conscious visualization from DC to New Zealand, 1@1 became a weekly action amplifier online, designed to sustain activism through 1-minute videos featuring feminist changemakers calling for small, simple tasks to be performed each week. 1@1 strives to create off-screen dialogues on a community level, supporting neighborhood action and leadership, and encouraging communication “beyond the bubble” to advance women’s equality worldwide. Alyson plays with guitarist and Beshert Tony Salvatore in the lounge pop duo, Tony&Aly and is endlessly captivated by her beloved children, Ruby, 13 and Lake, 10.

Beth Shipp is the first executive director of LPAC, the national political action committee that builds the political power of LGBTQ women at the local, state and national level. As a values-based PAC, LPAC supports outspoken champions of LGBTQ equality, women’s rights and social justice. Since its founding in 2012, LPAC has raised $2.1 million from more than 1,500 donors across 48 states and the District of Columbia. LPAC was the first national LGBT organization to endorse Hillary Clinton for President and has invested $1.5 million in 80 races and independent expenditure campaigns throughout the country. In addition, LPAC organizes, convenes, and networks to build LGBTQ women’s political power. A political strategist with more than 20 years of experience working for reproductive justice, as well as other progressive candidates and causes, Shipp was previously the political director for NARAL Pro-Choice America for 10 years. Before that, Shipp worked on federal and state campaigns throughout the nation. Her experience includes working on congressional, gubernatorial and U.S. Senate campaigns in Alabama, Georgia, New Jersey, North Dakota and Pennsylvania, and local and legislative campaigns in Virginia.

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EMER TIMMONS

STACEY TISDALE

Chief Marketing Officer and President of Strategic Sales, Brightstar Corp. (subsidiary of SoftBank)

Financial Journalist, Author and President and CEO of Mind Money Media, Inc.

Emer is the Chief Marketing Officer and President of Strategic Sales for Brightstar and was appointed in July 2016. Brightstar is the leading global mobile services company, and the largest subsidiary of SoftBank Group. It has a reach extending across 100 countries and 6 continents, serving 200 mobile network operators, 40,000 retailers and 15,000 enterprise customers. She leads all aspects of marketing, from branding through to customer execution and sustaining the Brightstar brand, by spearheading the company’s global marketing organization. Her remit also includes leading the Customer-First Programme, implementing business critical sales strategies and deals with carrier, retail and enterprise customers and prospects. In the time she has been there, she has created a new purpose for the whole organisation, designed and implemented a simplified product portfolio, reorganised the global marketing team, refreshed the brand, transformed internal communications, as well as creating three culture change programmes for different segments of the business. Emer was the first female president within British Telecom’s 175 history, having joined the group in 2006. She successfully ran the turnaround of BT’s $5bn Global Services (GS) UK business from August 2010 for 6 years, which required significant change to restore it to market leader and profitable. Emer’s role was to bring together a disparate group of people, with a complex matrix of systems, into one seamless organisation which was focused on the customer. Added to this successful transition, from July 2015 she also took on responsibility for strategic corporate deals for BT globally, from £50m to £1bn, and for the strategic engagement 14 | 21 LEADERS FOR THE 21ST CENTURY

with key customers and partners. In her last role in BT and now at Brightstar she has been instrumental in bringing marketing and sales together to create a seamless experience for the customer. This has resulted in significant savings for the business, breaking down silos, creating strong teams as well as aligning more closely with the business objectives of the company. This in turn has changed the perception of marketing to being an asset rather than an overhead. On leaving BT, she remained as the BT Group Ambassador and this is in addition to being an ambassador the Royal Marines Business Liaison Group. Emer has been a member of the Women’s Business Council (WBC) since 2013. This group was set up in 2012 to advise the UK Government on how women’s contribution to growth of the UK economy could be maximised. The WBC reports to the Minister for Women and Equalities, Justine Greening and their work is supported by the Government Equalities Office. Last year Emer was appointed to chair the Men as Change Agents (MACA) board for the WBC. MACA seeks to harness influential men to act as sponsors and promote cultural change to foster equality. Emer has also been appointed as a member of the International Women’s Forum, focused on cultivating women leaders for today and tomorrow. She is a STEM champion, encouraging girls to follow careers in these disciplines and she is an advocate of technology apprenticeship and graduate programmes. Emer regularly gives speeches on this topic and in 2016, she represented the UK at the Annual Women’s Commission on the Status of Women at the United Nations in New York.

A financial expert on NBC’s Today Show, Ms. Tisdale is also On air financial journalist Stacey Tisdale has reported on business and financial issues for more than 20 years, reporting and a blogger for the Huffington Post – Black Voices platform. From contributing for some of the largest and most prestigious news 2002 to 2004, she filed business and consumer reports for all of organizations in the world. Ms. Tisdale, president and CEO of the CNN networks, including, CNN, CNNI and Headline News, financial media and education content provider Mind Money Media Inc., also authored a book titled The True Cost of Happiness: The Real Story Behind Managing Your Money. (Publisher: John Wiley & Sons). In addition, Stacey has created a financial literacy curriculum called Winning Play$ for elementary – college-aged students in conjunction with NFL Hall of Famer Ronnie Lott’s All Stars Helping Kids Foundation. Winning Play$ was awarded the U.S. Department of Education’s Excellence in Economic Education award for 2010 and in 2011, The National Association of Black Journalists also awarded Stacey its 2011 Community Service Award for the program. Stacey served as a Business Correspondent for Al Jazeera America from 2013 to 2014. Before joining Al Jazeera, she reported for PBS national newsmagazine show Need to Know, and PBS Newshour Weekend.

and reported for “Inside Africa,” a weekly news magazine show on CNN International. Ms. Tisdale has appeared on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” as a financial expert and in O magazine. During the 1990’s Ms. Tisdale was a business correspondent for CBS News, CBS MarketWatch, The Early Show, CBS Evening News, and CBS Radio. In addition, she was Senior Editor of personal finance at Black Enterprise, developing and reporting content across TV, magazine, and digital platforms in 2015 and 2016. Ms. Tisdale has also created a personal finance curriculum for college students on behalf of the White House, and conducted research for the United States Congress on the financial behavior of professional athletes. A board member and advisor for Operation Hope, Ms. Tisdale is also on the advisory committee for The Gloria Steinem Endowed for Media, Culture, and Feminist studies at Rutgers University.

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CELESTE WARREN

CAROLE ZIMMER

Vice President, Human Resources & Global Diversity and Inclusion Center of Excellence, Merck

Award-winning journalist and host of “Now What?”

Celeste Warren is Vice President, Human Resources & Global Diversity and Inclusion Center of Excellence. In this dual role,

she has responsibility for the strategic and operational Human Resources support of Merck’s Global Legal, Compliance, Communications, Population Health, Patient Health and Global Public Policy Organizations. As the leader for Merck’s Global Diversity and Inclusion Center of Excellence, she is responsible for working with Merck’s global leaders to advance and embed diversity and inclusion as a strategic approach to maximize business performance and create a competitive advantage. Ms. Warren joined Merck in 1997 and has held numerous positions of increasing responsibility within its Human Resources organization. Most recently, she was the Vice President, Human Resources for Merck’s Manufacturing Division and Global Labor Relations and US Employee Relations Center of Excellence. From 2009 to 2011, she was Human Resources Leader for Merck’s Vaccines organizations. In this role, she led efforts to forge alliances and end to end processes between the Vaccine Research, Vaccine Manufacturing and Vaccine Commercial organizations. She worked directly with the leaders to manage the critical linkages between basic research, late-stage development and manufacturing to expand Merck’s vaccine offerings throughout the world.

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During her tenure at Merck, Ms. Warren has supported various different businesses and corporate staff functions and has held positions of increasing responsibility. Prior to joining Merck in 1997, Celeste worked for nine years in Human Resources at Kraft Foods, Inc. and General Foods and held several positions of increasing responsibility including such roles as Training & Development Leader, Diversity leader, Labor Relations Director and Human Resources Leader for several organizations within Kraft and General Foods. She is a member of Board of Directors for Grandview Health, the CEB Diversity & Inclusion Working Council as well as a member of Simmons College School of Management’s Business Advisory Council. She has been honored with many awards, including the Black Achievers in Industry award, the Tribute to Women in Industry Award” (TWIN award), Merck’s Most Amazing Women Award and named one of the National Diversity Council’s “Most Powerful and Influential Women of Pennsylvania” Celeste attended the University of Kentucky where she earned her B.S. degree. She received her Masters Degree from Carnegie Mellon University. She is the wife of John Warren and the mother of two children, Christina-Celeste (15) and John Steven, Jr. (13).

Carole Zimmer is the host of the award-winning podcast “Now brandt. Her mouth full of pins, she would eye ball every inch of What?” about inspiration and big life decisions. During her 15 the sale dresses she bought me at Alexander’s Department store years at Bloomberg News, she produced the Inside series for Bloomberg Television, creating specials about some of the most innovative companies in the U.S. including Pixar and Whole Foods. She has covered the White House, the United Nations and reported from Pakistan following the World Trade Center attacks. She has also reported on women’s issues, business and the economy. Before joining Bloomberg, Ms. Zimmer was a reporter at the NBC and CBS Radio networks and National Public Radio. She is the recipient of numerous awards including a Gracie award for the “Now What?” episode of “At Home with Gloria Steinem” and the Edward R. Murrow Award for her documentary “Stalking a Silent Killer.” She has been a contributor to the Washington Post and New York Magazine. This excerpt is adapted from a story she wrote for the New York Times, a tribute to her mother, who taught her how to shop for the biggest bargains and how to sew. “When there was anything to hem, my mother would take out her sewing box; a former cookie tin crammed with snaps and pieces of elastic left over from fixing old bras. A dented thimble and some orphan buttons clinked around on the bottom. My mother was a free-form hemmer with the eye of a Rem-

in The Bronx. Always two sizes too big, she assured me that eventually I would grow into all those Dacron garments. Standing on a kitchen chair, I would turn slowly as my mother folded under the voluminous fabric to the right length, sticking in straight pins as she went along. Then she would reach for her yellow plastic carousel stacked with spools of thread in a riot of colors — purple, royal blue, deep black, cloudy gray — searching for just the right shade. Licking one end of the thread, she would hold the needle up to the light of the Greek statue lamp on the table, coaxing it through the implement’s small metal eye. My mother wasn’t a baster. She had no patience for sewing the same hem twice; she went right for the finished look, picking up a few threads from the underside of the hem, so the stitch itself remained nearly invisible on the side that would show. When I’d wear the dress to school, no one would even suspect that just the day before the pink sailor outfit, with the collar that went halfway down my back had been swimming on me. And they wouldn’t know that the price tag was still there, chafing my neck. I can still hear my mother’s voice: “You buy something new, live with it for a while. You never know. You could change your mind and decide to return it.”

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‘EXECUTIVE WOMEN FOR HER’ CO-CHAIRS A coalition of leaders working together to ensure the election of progressive Congressional and State candidates in upcoming elections.

JENNIFER ALLYN

RACHEL CHEEKS-GIVAN

CAROL EVANS

SHERRYE HENRY

BETTY SPENCE

Managing Director in the Office of Diversity, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

Global Director, Diversity and Inclusion, Pfizer

President Emeritus, Working Mother Media

Former Director of the SBA’s Office of Women’s Business Ownership

President, National Association of Female Executives-NAFE

Executive Women for Her (formerly Executive Women for Hillary) is a national coalition of women leaders who actively supported and advocated for Hillary Clinton in her bid to become the first woman President of the United States. Now, faced with repressive measures emanating from the current administration, with power and purpose our alliance has redirected its mission to rally and engage professional women for the election of progressive Congressional and State candidates in the 2018 mid-term elections who support women’s rights and equality. We will then be taking up the mantle for women who will run for President in 2020. Members of EW4Her include business leaders in 50 states: corporate and nonprofit executives, small business owners, academics, professionals, office holders, and other women engaged in moving our economy forward. We collaborate with national and state Democratic leaders, as well as sister organizations to promote positive change through our Get Out the Vote work in key elections nationwide. An important part of our mission is to train and motivate women to get out of their offices and become personally involved in politics. Our WHAM training (Winning Hearts and Minds) was given at hundreds of salons across the country to reframe how professional women thought about political action and the enormous impact they can have on our country. We will be out with our ABC training (A Blue Congress) in 2018 to drive women’s political action for the midterms. Join them! Go to ExecutiveWomenforHer.com and click on JOIN on the home page. Input your identification, and welcome! They need your energy and enthusiasm to turn more states blue by putting progressive Democrats who support women’s rights into office at the national, state and local level.

18 | 21 LEADERS FOR THE 21ST CENTURY

Congratulations to JESSICA NEUWIRTH, on a well-deserved honor for your tireless efforts and great accomplishments in promoting human rights throughout the world. You are an inspiration to all!

Your proud family, Mom, Susan, Laura, Michael, Deena, Alex, Maddy, and Madelyn, Ethan, James, Sarah, Bennett, Juliette and Charlotte

Congratulations to all honorees at 21 Leaders for the 21st Century With over 50,000+ carrier, retail and enterprise customers across 100 countries, Brightstar simplifies the wireless world, making mobile technology accessible to everyone. brightstar.com

WOMEN’S ENEWS | 19

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Opportunity Trumps Politics for Girl Performers at Inauguration By Mahika Halepete GAGE SKIDMORE ON FLICKR, UNDER CREATIVE COMMONS

SAN JOSE, Calif. (WOMENSENEWS)—When Colleen Graham,

a senior at Palmetto Ridge High School in Naples, Florida, discovered that her band director had cancelled the band’s previous upcoming performance, she was told there were “bigger opportunities” ahead. “We knew it would be big, but we weren’t expecting something this big,” she said. Graham is just one of the many teenage girls who will be among the 8,000 performers at the Presidential Inaugural Parade as the United States marks the transition into the term of its 45th president, Donald Trump. For an opportunity like this, Graham, and many other girls who have been invited to perform, are willing to put personal politics aside. This year’s proceedings garnered significant controversies 20 | 21 LEADERS FOR THE 21ST CENTURY

surrounding the performances. Many of the women invited, including those from the Rockettes and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, have declined based on ideological differences with the new president. This conflict against performing comes not only from participants, but also from alumni and community members who believe the bands’ performances condone disrespect and violence towards women and others who have been affected by the president-elect’s statements. Across the country, there has been push back through petitions and social media advocacy. But for the teen girls interviewed for this story, participation in the inaugural proceedings means recognition on a national stage, and many have separated themselves from the politics of the soon-to-be president. Supporters of Trump or not, these

girls felt honored to represent their schools and states at a monFreeman’s daughter Paige, 16, who marches with the clarinet umental event. in the Rebel Band, agreed that the performance is “upholding the Graham took to Twitter to express her thoughts on the upcom- nation and not the man.” ing performance after her band faced backlash for performing. She Taylor Mount, 17, a junior at Columbus North High School, said in a Twitter message in early January that the Marching Pride whose Sound of North Band will perform today, also expressed is “extremely humbled to have been selected for this inauguration.” excitement about the parade. “This performance is different than Within the band are “many people of color, LGBTQ+ teens and any other because it’s on the world stage,” she said. She added that just about every other type of minority,” she wrote. “Perhaps my the band is “not making any kind of political statement or supfavorite thing about this band is porting either political party simply how diverse it is.” by going to the parade.” At Palmetto Ridge High School, which is located in “In my opinion the president-elect of the United ALUMNI PUSH BACK Miami-Dade County, an area Some bands are getting push States of America should be held to the horrible and that voted for Hillary Clinton back from alumni though. disrespectful things that he said...and therefore in a two-thirds majority, GraWhen Jennifer Hoffman should not be supported by the presence of talented ham wrote, all of the students heard Marist College in New volunteered to perform. She York was invited to attend, the young people.” said it was an apolitical group, former marching band memhowever. ber and 2003 graduate started We will never be a program a petition for Marist College to that represents, supports or embodies hate,” she said. “Our pro- decline the invitation. She collected over 3,000 signatures. gram represents for nothing but excellence in both musicianship “To young women who have an invitation to perform in the and character.” inauguration, I [encourage] them to educate themselves on why other women have spoken out against participating,” Hoffman IDEOLOGICAL DISAGREEMENT told Teen Voices. This doesn’t mean that all performers agree with the new president Marist College is still set to perform, and its president, Billy though. Hawkins, released a statement earlier this month about the perfor“There are definitely members from the community and from mance: “As many of those who chose to participate in the parade the band who don’t agree with Trump’s ideology, but as far as sup- have said, we feel the inauguration of a new president is not a poporting the nation and what we’re going to do, there’s been a pretty litical event but a civil ceremony celebrating the transfer of power.” good consensus,” said West Monroe’s Rebel Band member Sami An alumni of Talladega College in Alabama, whose marching Beekman, age 17. band will be performing, Nikky Finney voiced concern to Teen In the Ouachita Parish in Louisiana, where the school is located, Voices over the applications of teen girls performing in the paTrump won 61 percent of the popular vote. However, within the rade. The college’s band will be marching in the parade, although West Monroe community, it appears the separation of politics and a petition discouraging the performance has acquired thousands performance is well-defined. of signatures from concerned students and alumni. For Beekman and many of the other girls who will be perform“In my opinion the president-elect of the United States of Amering, the parade is an opportunity to be civically engaged despite ica should be held to the horrible and disrespectful things that he being unable to vote. said...and therefore should not be supported by the presence of “We’ll be part of our nation and how we work,” she said. talented young people,” she said. The students “are very excited to represent our school, our reFinney understands how young women may be excited by the gion and our state in an historic event on a national stage,” said the honor of performing at such an event but still disagrees with it. Rebel Band’s director, Robert Freeman. Freeman said in an email “I know that being invited to a Presidential Inauguration sounds interview that both his female and male students “recognize that very exciting and perhaps is exciting, but I simply and truly believe they are marching and performing in honor and celebration of the there are more important and long-term life lessons at stake when office and the process, not the individual occupying it.” we ignore hubris and hate.”

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Refugee Girls Often Left Behind Without Education By Ashley Shah ELIZABETH ALBERT ON FLICKR, UNDER CREATIVE COMMONS

EDISON, N.J. (WOMENSENEWS) — When Noor left her home means there are nearly 6.1 million girls who have been torn away in Damascus, Syria, last May, the 16-year-old abandoned many valuable things to start her new life at a refugee camp in Jordan. Though she left behind her friends, her house and her favorite bracelet, the thing Noor misses most is school. Noor is one the 8.7 million girl refugees worldwide, including 4.9 million refugees from Syria, 2.7 million from Afghanistan and 1.1 million from Somalia. Only 30 percent of these girls are in school, according to the Women’s Refugee Commission, which

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from their homes and aren’t getting an education. Diya Abdo, founder of Every Campus a Refuge and an English professor at Guilford College in Greensboro, North Carolina, said refugee girls already face a host of obstacles when trying to successfully resettle into new countries. Denying them an education creates a further gulf between natives and refugees. Noor, one of six children, left Damascus after her town was bombarded by rebel groups for multiple nights. She told Teen

Voices that as they left, the soldiers aimlessly shot at her family through the smoke and rubble. Upon arriving in Jordan, Noor spent two months in a refugee camp with her family where she waited to hear from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees as to whether she would be allowed to travel to the United States.

is GirlForward, which has offices in Atlanta and Chicago and provides refugee girls with opportunities for leadership and participation in educational programs.

NEW OBSTACLES

While education is one of the reasons Noor’s family came to the U.S., according to her mother there are still obstacles Noor LIMITED EDUCATION faces in her new home in New Providence, New Jersey. Since During that time Noor and her siblings received limited educa- she can’t speak English, Noor was placed in lower level classtion. While Noor was welcome and safe at the refugee camp, she es, rather than the equivalent of her grade level in Syria, and was not completely accepted spent portions of her day in into school. According to her ESL. Despite being brilliantly younger sister Joy, Noor, “could “Whether a girl finds herself in Jordan [or] Damascus, adept at math and receiving not go to school with the Jordathe highest grades in her their education will be impacted in some way or nian kids and had to wait until current class, she is unable to another. Ultimately, every refugee girl will find herself after the Jordanian kids were advance because she cannot done to attend school” with facing a very unique and complicated set of challenges understand what the teacher some teachers who were kind is saying. in finding good education.” enough to stay longer. Since Refugee families often only a few teachers stayed behave to start from scratch hind and there were hundreds since many arrive with nothof kids, all of different ages and calibers, most students weren’t ing. So beyond the problem of attending school, Melchor said, able to receive the appropriate level of education. “This generation of refugee children may need more time to Moving is difficult for any young person, but often much mo- complete their education, not just because they may not have reso for girls leaving a war torn country. access to a new language in their new homes. They may have “Whether a girl finds herself in Jordan [or] Damascus, their to work instead of study full time to support their families, or education will be impacted in some way or another,” said Maria have to redo years of school that are not recognized in places Melchor, president of the Yale Refugee Project. “Ultimately, every outside of their former homes.” refugee girl will find herself facing a very unique and complicated As young refugees learn English their families tend to deset of challenges in finding good education.” pend on them to communicate with the outside world. That’s The Yale Refugee Project has resettled countless families and why it’s important to use “the aid of replacement agencies to worked with plenty of young girls to find homes for refugee fam- place them in communities that they are comfortable in to ilies where there are already similar families to give the girls a facilitate their assimilation,” Melchor said. feeling of community and acceptance. It’s just one of the many organizations dedicated to facilitating the journey of refugees This story was made possible by a generous grant from Say it Forand helping them rebuild their lives in a new country. Another ward in support of our teen journalists.

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Viral Video Exposes Cultural Response to Rape in Tunisia By Tharwa Boulifi

Tunisian women and activists organized several marches confronting the government, which had promised to review the 227 law but hasn’t done so yet.

A DIFFERENT REACTION

TUNIS, Tunisia (WOMENSENEWS) — Rania Bel Haj, a teen actor

in Tunisia, didn’t consider women’s rights high on her list of priorities until she played a teen girl who was raped and forced to marry the older man who assaulted her in a high school video. “I wasn’t truly a feminist before I interpreted this role,” Bel Haj said. She plays an unnamed lead character, based on a recent case in Tunisia that made headlines. “While rehearsing for the role, I felt close to the victim,” said Bel Haj, who, at 16, is close to same age and the same nationality as the minor in the case. The only difference, Bel Haj said, is that the other girl was “unlucky enough to be raped.”

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Bel Haj imagined herself in this teen’s shoes, living out her fears and her insecurities after the awful experience. “That’s how I felt this connection with her.” This is the same reaction many young girls in Tunisia had to the piece when they saw it on Facebook, where the three minute video went viral and garnered more than 670,000 views. The case the play is based on first made headlines last December when courts approved the marriage of a 13-year-old girl to her 20-year-old rapist, who was a relative of hers. While having sex with someone under 15 is punishable by up to six years in prison, according to article 277 of Tunisia’s criminal code, an alleged rapist can halt his prosecution by marrying his victim.

“I think it’s time for the Tunisian society to understand that a shotgun marriage will never be the solution for rape,” said Kamoun, who lives in a chic area near the National Engineering School of Tunis. She is a member of the “HeForShe” club in her school. “When are we going to understand that rape is a crime? I think that is the aim of ‘Give me a doll and don’t make me a bride,’ to show that shotgun marriages are just stopgaps measures that affect the victim’s psychology,” she said.

The civic education club of LycÈe Pilote de l’Ariana, where Bel Haj is a student, chose another way to react to the court’s decision. Together with their teacher, they wrote a play, “Aatini aroussa ou matrodnnich aroussa” or “Give me a doll and don’t make me a bride.” “Aroussa” in Tunisian has the double meaning of a doll and a bride. FEELINGS OVERLOOKED The video focuses on a Similarly, Salwa Boulaares, 16, young rape victim lament- “When you’re raped here in Tunisia, society will look who is passionate about psying the loss of her childhood chology and sociology, said at your abused body but never consider your feelings. that society pays more attenwhile her abuser caresses her. “Where are my toys, mothThe most important thing [now] is virginity, then come tion to the victim’s body than er? Your milk is still in my feelings. We must look at rape differently. I think that’s her feelings. mouth,” says the lead charac“When you’re raped here the purpose of the ‘Give me a doll and don’t make me a ter in the play. “Where is my in Tunisia, society will look at schoolbag? Mother? I want to bride’ piece. It aims to raise awareness about rape as your abused body but never color with my pencils.” consider your feelings,” said a crime that destroys the victim psychologically.” Watching the character be Boulaares. “The most importdoubly victimized, first by the ant thing [now] is virginity, abuser and then by culture, then come feelings. We must moved Eya Toumi, 14, who, look at rape differently. I think like the other girls interviewed for this story, first saw the vid- that’s the purpose of the ‘Give me a doll and don’t make me a eo in her Facebook feed. bride’ piece. It aims to raise awareness about rape as a crime that “This wonderful piece shows that raped girls in Tunisia are destroys the victim psychologically.” not only the abuser’s victims,” said Toumi, a student from the Yasmine Toubal, 16, responded to the activism in the student trendy Ariana neighborhood in the capital city of Tunis. “They production. are the victims of society’s judgments and the justices, too. That’s “This law allows the abuser to get away with his crime, by what we see in ‘Give me a doll and don’t make me a bride’ play marrying his victim who will remain a victim, her whole life,” when the victim says: ‘Who will I complain to, mother? Who she said. “It’s a real threat for us, Tunisian girls, to know that in will protect me?’” case we’re raped, our fate is in the hands of our abuser.” For Sarra Kamoun, 15, who watched the video immediIt’s this call to action that resonates with Sandra Belhiba, 15, ately after reading about it in HuffPost Maghreb, the protests who lives in Ariana. “For me, this piece’s message is clear: we, surrounding the case were the first step in acknowledging that teens, won’t remain silent on the rape issue in Tunisia. And if Tunisian society’s attitude toward rape must change. adults and politicians failed to deal with it, we will,” she said.

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