The Violet Ricky Foundation is a charity organization aimed at building two schools for the underprivileged children especially girls and safe houses for victims of domestic abuse and intersex abused persons in East Africa. They have had the curse of low expectations and unequal opportunities
If you thought laws and policy would positively impact girls’ education in heavily patriarchal Maasai cul
ture in East Africa, then you need to think again. In countries like Kenya & Tanzania culture and traditions heavily impact girls’ ability to enroll and complete schooling and transition to college. To improve girls’ education we need to engage the custodians of tradition and culture: elders, community and spiritual leaders, elected leaders, youth, and warriors. They are the primary decision makers and wield the power, influence, and authority to control the quest for girls’ education. Although the introduction of free primary school in Kenya in 2003 led to an increase in school attendance across the country, enrollment rates in marginalized areas remain much lower. Of those who enroll in the first year of school, barely one in five make it to their eighth year—with dropouts attributed to early marriage, female ge***al mutilation (FGM), poverty, and other factors. In Narok County, a predominantly Maasai area, only one in 15 girls enrolled in primary school proceeded to secondary school. Girls’ transition rates to university are even less common: 2.4 percent in Trans Mara West and 1 percent in Narok North. Despite a strong political commitment to education, access is still lopsided. Maasai traditions play a big role in the education challenge; coupled with poverty, ignorance, and preference for boys, these factors all conspire to disadvantage girls’ education. In addition, there is a strong correlation between parents’ education status and mediating socio-cultural issues. WHERE A GIRL IS WORTH A COW: THE ECONOMIC VALUE OF GIRLS IN MAASAI CULTURE
Maasai girls and women are never seen as permanent members of their families. Instead, they pass between households and clans when they are married. Marriage is an important part of Maasai culture and young women and men have little say in who they will marry. Early and forced marriages are still common in rural areas and bride wealth is a big deal. In the Maasai community, a girl is worth the value of a cow or two, a herd of sheep and goats, or both. In other words, girls often have little use except as a conduit to bring bride wealth to their families. Such practices have ensured that less than 20 percent of Maasai girls enroll in school, few finish primary school, and even less transition to secondary school and universities. FEMALE GE***AL MUTILATION AND EARLY MARRIAGE
FGM, a long-standing socio-cultural practice deeply rooted in tradition, has a prevalence of nearly 89 percent throughout Maasai land. While FGM is outlawed in Kenya, a large number of parents still force their girls to undergo FGM to avoid teenage pregnancies and increase their marriageability. Typically, Maasai girls are circumcised between ages 11-13 and then soon married to a man chosen by her father in exchange for cattle. The consequences of FGM and early marriage on girls are grave. Evidence, together with my own findings from working with survivors of FGM, shows that not only does FGM harm girls personally, physically, and psychologically, it also heavily impacts economic development. Girls who marry early are often forced to leave school and terminate their education. They will likely never return to school after marriage because of household chores, frequent pregnancies, child-rearing, and other restrictions. Besides, many pastoralists’ parents do not see the immediate benefits of an education. Consequently, many are not willing to wait for nearly 20 years to see returns on their education investments, when girls bring immediate returns in the form of dowry. The schools that The Violet Ricky Foundation is building are important because they will change the trajectory of these girls' lives and will brighten the future of all women in East Africa. We want to establish a Leadership Academy to provide educational and leadership opportunities for academically gifted children from impoverished backgrounds in East Africa (Tanzania & Kenya) who exhibit leadership qualities for making a difference in the world. We want to help girls and boys who are "economically disadvantaged, but not poor in mind or spirit". INTERSEX CHILDREN IN EAST AFRICA
The Violet Ricky Foundation will also promote and advocate for the recognition and respect of the rights of the intersex persons in every respect of their lives including but not limited to their fundamental rights to life, education, healthcare, employment etc. Intersex people often face stigma in Kenya and Tanzania as the condition is not understood. Local media referred to it as a “curse” for one nine-year-old child who was raised as a boy and dropped out of school because other students followed him to the toilet to see how he urinated. They suffer rejection, discrimination, isolation and stigmatization.
