She Changed My Life

Apr 13, 2016 | Education, Terrorism

She Changed My Life

Nothing really prepares you for that moment when, with moral clarity, you know unequivocally that you are the answer to her unspoken prayer. There are just those moments when you know you have to be the change you want to see in the world.

Hi, my name is Emmanuel and I am sharing about my first encounter with an escaped Chibok girl..

First, you need to understand what life for a young girl in northern Nigeria is like. It’s what I call four degrees of subjugation or invisibility. First, a Muslim man is superior to a Muslim woman. Then the Muslim woman is superior to a Christian man, and finally, a Christian woman is beneath them all. When you think about schoolgirls, they almost don’t register on the scale – they rank after the boys..

So to see a teen girl who jumped out of a moving truck although terrorists’ guns were trained on them, brave the fearsome forest and crawl on her tummy because she injured her legs when she landed, was infinitely moving. She too had her own moment of personal clarity when she said ‘no’ to being invisible – a “nobody”, if you will..

Since then I have been moved to say, “yes!” We will help you be you, help you dream big, reach for the stars and exceed them even..

I am proud of Danai for being part of the “Yeses” and sponsoring one girl’s flight to the US. “Dorcas,” whose flight Danai sponsored, is now doing very well after she moved to a new school last year. She is now on the honor roll in her class..

May the tribe of the Danai’s and the “Yeses” increase..

Bringing back our girls,

Emmanuel Ogebe is an international human rights lawyer specializing on Africa. The youngest law graduate in his home country of Nigeria, he was exiled to the United States after becoming a political detainee during the brutal years of General Abacha’s military dictatorship and has played a role in shaping US congressional and foreign policy in Nigeria’s quest for a stable democracy. He also doubles as special counsel for the Justice for Jos Project, which documents and focuses international attention on horrific crimes against humanity faced by northern Nigeria’s minority Christian population. Ogebe has testified before the US Congress’ Africa subcommittee and was instrumental to the International Criminal Court’s decision to examine Boko Haram for crimes against humanity. He serves as Nigeria expert and chief fact-finder for the Washington Working Group on Nigeria. Ogebe is a recipient of the US President’s award for his volunteer work helping NGOs in northern Nigeria.

Click here to learn how you can help the Chibok girls
Learn more about EMCI: www.emcinitiative.org

I want to bring awareness to the injustices women and girls face around the world.

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