In reaction to the UN marking Oct. 11 as the Day of the Girl, B.C. has deemed the day as Every Girl Matters Day in order to recognize the rights of females in B.C. and around the world. To honour this day, local non-profit, GirlKIND Foundation, hosted an event at The Reach Gallery Museum to empower, inspire, and educate girls.
GirlKIND’s mission is to create a better world for girls through seeking change in cultural values and customs that devalue and degrade women and girls. One of the issues they focus on raising awareness for is gendercide, a concept many are not familiar with on our side of the globe. Gendercide often takes place in India, China, and Southeast Asia. It is the act of eliminating people because of their sex, usually females, through severe malnutrition, selective abortion, medical neglect, and murders linked to dowries.
With presentations from Mayor Henry Braun, Deesh Sekhon, founder of GirlKIND, and MLA Mike de Jong, the event was mostly a time for mingling with like-minded individuals over yummy treats and swag bags. The main draw to the event was GirlKIND’s Sticky Notes Project, where participants were able to write an inspirational quote or mantra onto a sticky note and then place it on a board. Everyone was able to read the presented sticky notes and gain inspiration from them. The quotes will soon be transformed into a book set to be available in November. But for the rest of October, the board will be on display at The Reach for patrons to view.
Deesh Sekhon began her journey to advocacy several years ago after first hearing about gendercide in India. She became discouraged as she continued her research. Eventually Sekhon found hope in an orphanage in Punjab, India that was taking care of local girls who had been abandoned. Ready to take action, Sekhon launched her first campaign, “Save a Girl,” with the purpose of raising awareness on the subject as well as to collect personal care items to send to the girls at the orphanage in India.
After a successful campaign Sekhon was ready for more. She then launched GirlKIND in August 2012. Since then the foundation has hosted six thriving Every Girl Matters Day events to spread the word on gendercide and inspire girls to take action.
During the same year, the UN established the first Day of the Girl on Oct. 11. Their focus is similar to Every Girl Matters Day’s: to highlight the difficulties girls face all around the world and address these challenges while fulfilling their human rights. The UN states that every girl has the right to an educated, safe, healthy life. By fulfilling these rights for females, girls will have the potential to change the world for the better.
Even though the Day of the Girl and Every Girl Matters Day are just one time in the year, we can continue to support the females in our lives through encouragement, actions, and our ability to advocate on their behalf.
Image: John Morrow/Abbotsford News
