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Dis 106

GROUP 1: Blue box Edits:

Add education: Studied Community Health and Development at Kenya Methodist University. Her position: Project Officer and Lead Community Anti-FGM Champion with Amref Health Africa

Early Life and Education.

When she was brought back to the village, Leng'ete made an appeal to her grandfather. She told him that she would run away forever and live on the streets rather than endure being "cut". Additionally, Leng’ete told him that her uncles should respect her wishes or else she would go to the government and turn them in. Once he heard this, he was persuaded by her determination and agreed to let her forego the traditional ritual, and also allowed her to return to school(4). Leng’ete was ostracized by the village as being a bad example and someone who shamed her family and community.[3][4] Fortunately, because she was able to avoid marrying as a child, she also became the first woman in her village to get a high school education[5]. She studied Community Health and Development at Kenya Methodist University.(3)

Early Activism.

She began to be seen in her village as an inspiration to young girls and women. Later, Leng'ete would hide young girls who asked for her help in avoiding "being cut", an action which made her an outcast in her community. Leng'ete continued to advocate for the girls and encouraged the villagers to discuss the sensitive and important issue, resulting in more girls attending schools and more people abstaining from the tradition (5). In the Maasai culture, women are not allowed to address village elders, but when Leng’ete attended a sexual health class sponsored by Amref Health Africa, she asked the village leaders to let her share with the community what she had learned. The Maasai elders allowed her to speak only to the younger men of the village, but none of the men were interested in listening to her. “No girl had been courageous enough before to challenge the status quo, to challenge men,” according to Douglas Meritei, one of those men. Leng’ete would not give up, continuing her attempts to speak to the younger men of the village until they finally listened two years later. Eventually, the elders of the village told the young men to sit with her, but only three of those men would speak to her. She began speaking about the health aspects associated with safe sex, such as condom usage and H.I.V. prevention, to ease her way into the group. Then she talked about teenage pregnancy and slowly started persuading the men to completely abandon female genital mutilation(6). After nearly four years of conversations, the Maasai elders decided to abandon cutting. "She had persuaded the men, and with them the village, that everyone would be healthier and wealthier if girls stayed in school, married later and gave birth without the complications cutting can create".[4] Because of her advocacy, Leng'ete was the first woman in her village to be given the Black Walking Stick, which signifies leadership, respect and power within her community.[3][5] After convincing her village to abandon the cut, she traveled to neighboring villages to do the same. Her journey eventually led her to becoming the first women to speak at the elders council that convenes at the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest seat of Maasai power. In 2014, she persuaded the elders council to formally abandon FGM for the 1.5 million Maasai in Kenya and Tanzania. (1) Nice’s activism dispelled rumors and beliefs about female genitalia that had persisted in Maasai culture for generations: that girls who were not circumcised would become prostitutes, infertile, and grow enlarged clitori. As a result of her efforts in Kenya, Nice has stopped over 16,000 girls from FGM. (2)

GROUP 2

Early Activism.

Leng’ete was the first girl in her village to go to high school, as well as the only girl in her village who could read or write as of 2008 [1]. As a result, she began to be seen as an inspiration to young girls and women within the local community, even after she was previously ostracized by her village for running away from “the cut” in 1999 [2]. Later, Leng'ete would hide young girls who asked for her help in avoiding "being cut", an action which made her an outcast in her community. Leng'ete continued to advocate for the girls and encouraged the villagers to discuss the sensitive and important issue. Leng'ete early activism began in 2008, when she was selected to undergo training from the AMREF Health Africa’s Nomadic Youth Reproductive Health Project to become a peer educator. The training provided insight into the dangers of female genital mutilation and early marriages, which Leng'ete was determined to share with her village. Although women are traditionally not allowed to address village elders in the Maasai culture, Leng'ete leveraged her newfound knowledge to receive blessing from the elders [3].

They allowed her to speak only to the younger men of the village, but none of the men were interested in listening to her. “No girl had been courageous enough before to challenge the status quo, to challenge men,” according to Douglas Meritei, one of those men. When the elders of the village told the young men to sit with her, but only three of those men would speak to her. However, Leng'ete did not give up and used her knowledge and personal experiences to continue and strengthen her persuasion [4]. "Gradually, more of the younger men came to talk with her, she said, and gradually the topics expanded — from H.I.V. prevention to teenage pregnancy and its health complications, to early marriage, to school attrition and, finally, to the cut.” At the same time, Leng'ete also engaged with the mothers and girls of her village to share her insight and provide them the safe space of her own home [4]. In 2011, she saved 17 girls from undergoing “the cut” and getting married off, which allowed them all to go to school instead [5]. AMREF later named her the official ambassador for anti-FGM campaigns [6].

After nearly four years of conversations, the village elders decided to abandon cutting in 2012 [3]. "She had persuaded the men, and with them the village, that everyone would be healthier and wealthier if girls stayed in school, married later and gave birth without the complications cutting can create." Because of her advocacy, Leng'ete was the first woman in her village to be given the Black Walking Stick, which signifies leadership, respect and power within her community.

GROUP 3:

Revised: 2016 Recipient of a Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders: where she was selected to represent Sub-Saharan Africa by attending a six week leadership training hosted by President Obama. Pronunciation: nɑɪs ‘nɑɪləntɛ lɛ̃ŋ’ɛtɛ Reference(number 6): (2017). "Anti-Fgm Ambassador Selected for the 2016 YALI training". Amref Health Africa. Retrieved 30 October 2018. Jialin

Revised: 2012 Speaker at TEDxAmsterdam about her passion about anti-FGM in Kenya 2015 Recipient of Inspirational Woman of the Year Award from the Kenyan Ministry of Devolution for her effort in helping woman in local Kenyan community out--providing them education opportunities and bettering their living condition.

Add Reference: (2016). “Nice Nailantei Leng’ete – TEDxAmsterdam 2012 speaker”. TEDxAmsterdam. Retrieved 4 November 2018.

Jacqueline

Revised 2018 Recognized as one of 300 global youth leaders by Women Deliver. Women Deliver’s goal is to achieve female equality, with a focus on female reproductive health. Beginning in 2010, Women Deliver has been focusing on empowerment of youth leadership in health-related fields. Remove the original source labeled as source [6] from referring to this award. 2018 Awarded Annemarie Madison Prize for her activism against FGM as a tradition in her community, as well as against early marriage, and limitations on female education. The Annemarie Madison Prize recognizes people for their contributions towards patient health and patient’s rights. Source for Women Deliver award: This source explains what the Women Deliver youth leader program is. https://womendeliver.org/our-work/ Citation: (2018). “Young Leaders Program”. Women Deliver. Retrieved 30 October 2018. Source for Annemarie-Madison Prize: http://mkenyaujerumani.de/2018/03/26/kenyan-awarded-the-annemarie-madison-prize-in-berlin/ Citation: (2018). “Kenyan Awarded the Annemarie-Madison Prize in Berlin”. Mkenya Ujerumani. Retrieved 30 October 2018. Source that includes both Women Deliver and Annemarie-Madison Prize: https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2001277602/time-magazine-fgm-names-activist-nice-nailantei-among-world-s-100-most-influential-people Citation: Okuoro, S. (2018). “Time Magazine FGM Names Activist Nice Nailantei Among World’s 100 Most Influential People”. Standard Digital. Retrieved 30 October 2018.

Michelle Pronunciation of name: nɑɪs ‘nɑɪləntɛ lɛ̃ŋ’ɛtɛ

Revised 2018 Named one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People, recognizing her struggle against FGM and her activist work in saving other young girls in the Maasai community

References Need to cite Reference #8 Need to cite Reference #9 Additional reference: Barasa, Velma. Anti-FGM activist Nice Nailantei named among Time magazine’s most influential people. Pulse Live. Retrieved 25 October 2018. Revised 2018 Awarded Annemarie Madison Prize for her commitment to stop FGM within her community and feminist activism. References Additional reference: Kenyan Awarded the Annemarie-Madison Prize in Berlin. Mkenya Ujerumani. Retrieved 25 October 2018.

GROUP 4: In 2013, Leng'ete spoke at the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) in New York about her campaign to stop FGM. She also gave a TEDx Talk in the Netherlands on sexual and reproductive health rights.[6] In 2014, the Maasai elders, who rule over 1.5 million people — declared the end of the practice of FGM. Because of Leng'ete's work, girls become women in the Massai community without undergoing FGM, continue their education, instead of marrying early and bearing children when most are still children themselves.[5] Since 2014, Leng'ete has been working as a project officer under the Amref Health Africa in Kenya Alternative Rite of Passage project (ARP), an advocacy program that travels from village to village to convince elders and community leaders to allow other young girls to forgo "the cut" and go to school.[6][7]. It can take over six months of discussion before the entire community agrees to abandon FGM and accept an alternative rite of passage.[1] Within the ARP project, Nice leads a three-day session about sex education and human rights, emphasizing the need for alternative rites of passage to signify the womanhood of African women.[2] The first couple days are spent educating the young women about sex, STDs, violence against women, the importance of higher education, and women’s rights.[1] After the session, the community celebrates the other Maasai traditions associated with womanhood, such as fine jewelry, clothing, dancing, singing, and blessing from their elders.[2] An important part of the program is also making sure that men are informed as to how they can support young women and denounce the practice of FGM.[1] In 2017, AMREF graduated their first group of boys through ARP. They received training as ARP ambassadors and as guardians against the stigmatisation of girls who choose not to undergo FGM.[4]

Leng’ete continues work with Amref Health Africa to educate young people about sexual and reproductive health and rights. Furthermore, she shows how working with communities to empower women and girls can lead to positive change that results in greater equality for them.[3]"Even though Kenya outlawed the cut in 2011 and the Maasai people abandoned it in 2014, the law is difficult to enforce, especially in rural communities. Leng’ete’s work is critical to spreading the message about FGM. She assists AMREF in targeting influential groups within the Maasai in order to uproot the cultural entrenchment of FGM. These groups include Maasai elders, morans, and traditional birth attendants -- who usually act as female circumcisers.[4] “We need to reach more political leaders, more elders, more women, more men, more boys, more girls, more circumcisers,” Leng’ete says. “We need to reach more people through community dialogue and working together.”[5]  Between 2009 and 2015, Amref Health Africa graduated over 10,500 girls into womanhood through ARP initiative in Kenya and Tanzania.[3]  Currently, the goal of Amref Health Africa is working towards eradicating female genital mutilation in countries where it works by 2030.[3] Leng'ete has been the recipient of numerous awards since 2015 for the work she is doing to stop FGM. Time Magazine named Leng'ete one of the 100 Most Influential People of 2018 for her work with Maasai communities in Kenya to end the practice of FGM.[3][4] [9]

Between 2009 and 2015, Amref Health Africa graduated over 10,500 girls into womanhood through ARP initiative in Kenya and Tanzania.[3] Currently, the goal of Amref Health Africa is working towards eradicating female genital mutilation in countries where it works by 2030.[3]

GROUP 5.

Nice Nailantei Leng’ete was born in 1991 in the village of Kimana and the community Noomayianat, located in the Maasai country in Kenya. She was orphaned at the age of seven and spent her early years moving from house to house within her village. When she was eight years old, Nice was sent to boarding school, where she learned that, contrary to her cultural beliefs, the practice of female genital mutilation (FGM) *add hyperlink to the FGM wikipedia page* was not required.[2]

To this day, the cultural practice of FGM, or “the cut” as it is called in Kenya, is believed to symbolize womanhood, honor, sexual restraint, and fertility and is encouraged by Kenyan communities.[10][11] As a result, many parents willingly subject their daughters to this practice with good intentions. However, contrary to the belief that FGM improves fertility, women who undergo “the cut” commonly experience complications including hemorrhage, tetanus, increased risk of infection, ulceration of the vagina, and difficulty giving birth.[10][12]
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When Leng’ete’s time came to undergo “the cut,” she decided to run away from her village and persuaded her sister to come with her. The next morning, they hid in a tree until sunrise and walked 70 kilometers thru through the bush to their aunt’s house.[3] A week later, a group of men from the village, including Leng’ete’s uncle, found them.[3] They beat and threatened the girls, exclaiming that the “the cut” was a necessary ritual for womanhood and that they must return home[4]. Shortly after their return, Leng’ete' ran away on her own, as she was unable to persuade her sister to join her this time.[3] When she was brought back to the village again, Leng'ete made an appeal to her grandfather. She told him that she would rather continue to run away forever and live on the streets than have to endure “the cut.” Her grandfather relented, agreeing to let her forego the traditional ritual and allowing her to, instead, return to school. As a result of her refusal to undergo “the cut,” Leng’ete was ostracized by the village for bringing shame to both her family and community.[3][4]

Growing up, I used to attend these circumcision ceremonies and I could see a lot of pain. All the girls from my own village, after they were circumcised, they had to drop out of school, and be married to old men—people who were not even of their choice. These are 10-year-old or 12-year-old girls. They're still children. They're considered women because they have undergone circumcision. But again, these are just still children. After seeing all that pain, I think that's what made me realize that this was something I didn't want to do. I knew that I would not be able to go back to boarding school [about an hour away]. I would be married, and that would just be the end of me.[3]