Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation has launched a special campaign petition on Change.org to the U.S. Department of Education. The organization which advocates on behalf of women and girls against female genital mutilation has set a goal to collect at least 200,000 signatures; this is in its plight to get the U.S. Department of Education to include at least one lesson in its curriculum on female genital mutilation (FGM) in the elementary and middle schools.
The organization believes that educating the children from an early age, most especially the popular age range of seven through thirteen about the practice of FGM is crucial. The sooner the children are aware of the practice, the more likely thousands of girls in the U.S. can be spared from undergoing female genital mutilation.
“It is our hope that people will sign this petition as they receive the request for signatures,” said a Board member of the organization. “We are optimistic that the Department of Education will consider our request, especially when they see how many people are in favor of the education angle of ending this practice.”
Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation named Ms. Mariam Bojang earlier this year as its spokes- person on female genital mutilation. Mariam, a Gambian native recently completed her undergraduate studies at a university in Tyler, Texas. Having undergone FGM at an early age, she is now an activist against the practice of it. She will be entering graduate school in the fall, and aspires to pursue an International Law Degree in the future. Mariam is the face people will see on the petition on Change.org, as she appeals to the public to sign the petition.
To watch and listen to the video with Mariam and read the petition, please click the link below and take the time to sign before you leave the page.
US Department of Education: Include one lesson on female genital mutilation in US elementary schools
By signing this petition, you are making your voice heard. You are joining the thousands of concerned citizens, not only of the United States but of the world to say that the practice of female genital mutilation must be stopped. You are saying that there is no longer a place in the world for atrocities and violence against woman. It is a tradition that is older than five centuries but it is tradition that plays no positive role in a girl’s life; instead it can hinder her ability to bear children, and produces a lifetime of both physical and psychological pain.
Won’t you tell the little girls that you care what happens to them by signing this petition? Thank you.