This is the first in my (resurrected) African Postman series. Yes, I did promise to revive it and I hope to do a weekly feature. I posted thirty stories in the series initially, and plan to continue on a more regular basis (if you search for “African Postman” you will find my earlier stories). You will not find stories of civil war atrocities, starvation, environmental destruction, political corruption and military takeovers here – or if you do, the stories will focus on solutions – and perspectives that may be relevant to Jamaica, also. As this one does – from beautiful Kenya, which has just suffered a terrible tragedy in the massacre of young people at Garissa University. Let us keep Kenyans and their country in our thoughts, this Easter holiday weekend; and especially these young people, the teachers and the families.
Rape is a scourge in many societies. In developed and developing countries, the “rape culture” has taken hold (and this is not a new term, by the way, but unfortunately still relevant). This normalization of rape encourages male aggression and violence against women. Sex and violence get wrapped up together in an enticing package and of course, much of our media reflects this. Boys learn to believe that the expression of violence, including sexual violence, gives them power and prestige. The effects of all this on many societies is devastating.
In Nairobi, Kenya, one in four adolescent girls has reported being raped. Government data shows more than half of married women have been physically abused by their husbands. 53 percent of women believe men should have the right to beat their wives. There have been terrible incidents of public sexual harassment and assault of women and girls. But now there is a program that not only empowers girls, but also helps boys to understand (and to practice) non-violence.
So now, what is No Means No Worldwide? And how is it making a difference to the lives of Kenya’s young people? Founded by a San Francisco-based pediatrician Dr. Jake Sinclair and his writer/activist wife Lee, this is a non-profit organization that has devised a school-based violence prevention program (IMpower). No Means No has been working through the Kenyan organization Ujamaa since 2009. Ujamaa began as a micro-enterprise organization seeking to promote security and independence for women and vulnerable children (with an emphasis, now, on security). It is administered and staffed by Kenyans. No Means No Kenya includes Girls’ Empowerment and Boys’ Transformation components, and it seems to be doing just that – empowering and transforming. The program has been carefully evaluated, and the results so far have been impressive.
Half of the schoolgirls trained to date in the Girls’ Empowerment Program (over 500 students, 11 – 19 years old) used their new-found, specific verbal and physical skills to prevent or stop a rapist within the first year of training. The IMpower training helps them to recognize and push back against every form of sexual harassment and assault, through learning self-defense techniques and developing a complete change of attitude. If you watch any of the videos, you see the girls’ faces light up as they punch the air and shout, “Don’t touch my body … Respect my body.”
The boys’ program has reaped considerable success. Before the training, more than 80 percent of boys said girls in miniskirts were an invitation to have sex. Afterwards, Ujamaa reports, this number dropped to 30 percent. Many of the boys saw their elders beating and abusing women and thought it was acceptable to pursue, harass and attack young girls. Often boys give in to the dominant culture – as girls do, too. The boys know the abuse of young girls is wrong, but they are afraid to stand up and say so. The boys’ program, called “Your Moment of Truth,” teaches them to know their own mind – and to take action based on what they know is right.
Now, one aspect of the “rape culture” that is so pervasive and insidious is the “victim-blaming” that so often occurs. The person who is raped is ridiculed, dismissed, scorned. She was “asking for it” (girls in Kenya have often been verbally and physically attacked for wearing miniskirts). This training shifts the blame from the victim to the perpetrator, the aggressor.
Now the good news is that the British government (DIFID) has stepped in with funding to enable all of Nairobi’s 130,000 secondary school students to complete the program by the end of 2017.
“We believe the best response to the global epidemic of violence and sexual assault is to provide our male and female students with an awareness of the causes and effects of gender based violence and the skills to interpret, intervene and prevent it,” No Means No Worldwide sums up on their website. I have a feeling that something like this could be translated into the Jamaican context rather effectively.
Maryanne Wangui, a Kenyan woman who spoke with the girls, observed that once they know what to do, they are fine, because they are “all powerful inside.” Similarly, the boys have the courage to intervene in potentially violent and abusive situations, or simply to declare that they do not approve of the old, abusive attitudes.
This seems to be a model program, which has already resulted in a 20 percent reduction in the rape of girls by male friends or boyfriends and a 42 percent reduction in rapes overall.
Perhaps, a model for the Caribbean. For Jamaica?
Learn more about No Means No Worldwide here: http://nomeansnoworldwide.org
Ujamaa “promotes health, personal safety and economic empowerment for vulnerable women and children.” You can find them at http://ujamaa-africa.org
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