Empower Congo Women

05/20/2020

ECW is currently raising funds to stop the spread of COVID-19 in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Donations will be used to make and distribute masks, provide essential food items in rural areas where food shortages exist due to shutting down of borders, create educational pamphlets about good hygiene practices, and produce and distribute health kits containing various soaps and masks. All donations can be made to Action Kivu, a 501(c)3 charity based in the US and sponsoring the projects of Amani Matabaro.

Please donate now!

01/05/2019

Rep. Deb Haaland, one of the first Native American women elected to Congress, posted an inspiring message to "girls of color" on her Instagram. She was sworn in today wearing a traditional Pueblo dress. https://cbsn.ws/2CLgSVK

06/25/2016

Empower Congo Women helps traumatized women and girl r**e victims heal and rebuild their lives in eastern DRC. We are planning a trip to bring child therapy to Kavumu, the city featured in the article below. American journalist, Lauren Wolfe, just wrote this article that forced the Congolese government to take action against a military group that has been ra**ng small girls in the Kavumu area for 3 years. This is a first, and Ms Wolfe receives the highest cudos!!! This is a fascinating story in itself.
https://foreignpolicy.com/2016/06/23/how-i-got-an-alleged-mass-rapist-and-67-militiamen-arrested-in-congo/

The government wouldn't stop a powerful politician from allegedly gang-ra**ng 50 young girls -- until it got a little bad press.

05/28/2016

Last week, I had the honor of viewing MERCI CONGO, a recent documentary about the continuing strife and tragic treatment of women in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, where r**e is used to demoralize and destroy communities so rebel groups, primarily from Rwanda, can plunder and prosper from Congo's abundant conflict minerals--tin, coltan, tantalum, tungsten, and gold.
Empower Congo Women is dedicated to helping these women heal and rebuild there lives. We highly recommend this movie and hope you will take a stand to stop violence against women in Congo.

In solidarity for just and kind treatment of women worldwide,

Victoria Bentley

A New Documentary Film By Paul Freedman

11/30/2015

This beautiful building was envisioned by Empower Congo Women, then designed and built by Amani Matabaro Tom in 2013. Furnished by Rotary Club of Montecito, it is the Mumosho Community Center in eastern DRC. It operates full time, providing classes in literacy, sewing, and family planning to 10 teen mothers who live there and the community at large. It is the hub of community life offering hope for the future and inspiration for peace in Congo.

11/04/2015

These are the peer counselors and teachers who are participataing in the newly founded Congo Healing Program. Amani Matabaro, co-founder, is at far left. The center will be housed in the literacy building of the Mumosho Community Center and open to anyone who needs help. After 7 years, this center has finally come together thanks to our generous donors.

08/18/2015

http://www.gofundme.com/congotraumatherapy

EMPOWER CONGO WOMEN TO OPEN TRAUMA CENTER

Hello, I’m Dr. Victoria Bentley, a clinical psychologist from the San Francisco area. I am also a philanthropist and activist. For 7 years now, I have been helping Congolese women and girl r**e survivors heal and rebuild their lives. I wasn’t always an activist. Most of my adult life, I was singl...

08/16/2015

http://healingtraumaindrcongo.blogspot.com

These girls are teen mothers who are being trained to be seamstresses in Mumosho Community Center, eastern DRC. Without learning how to sew, they would have little chance of being able to care for their children, or themselves. R**e continues to be epidemic in Congo, with young girls being most highly targeted. They are happy because they have a future now.

08/13/2015

The young women you see above in the header have been living at the Mumosho Safe House for Teen Mothers where they are learning to sew and bake, as well as being educated in literacy, women's rights, and maternal/child health. This project was made possible by Empower Congo Women, Rotary International, Action Kivu, and Jewish World Watch.

06/21/2012