Joan Kembabazi is a 25-year-old feminist activist who champions an end to child marriage and girls' education in Uganda. Joan is the Founder and Team leader of Gufasha Girls Foundation and is currently a fellow in She’s the First’s Girl-Centered Incubator.
The latest edition of The Girl Gazette is here! This edition features a powerful poem about girls' leadership, an important essay about a patriarchal community, and artwork that encourages girls to end period stigma and feel good about their bodies.
The Girl Gazette shares girls' voices from around the world who work with our Partner Coalition organizations. Girls from She’s the First’s Partner Coalition express themselves through art, poetry, and essays about their experiences.
Safiya Speaks Up!, the impactful children's book developed by five She’s the First Girl Activist Fellows, is making significant strides in Southeast Asia through the efforts of two of its passionate authors and advocates, Anya Legarda and Allison Choong. It was created to educate young girls about combatting sexual violence and using their voices. Since its digital publication last fall, mentors and parents have shared Safiya’s story with more than 3,000 girls across the globe.
Check out the newest issue of The Girl Gazette: Volume 5, Issue 1 for Winter 2024! The Girl Gazette amplifies the voices of girls globally and empowers them through art, poetry, and more. We highlight girls around the globe who are a part of our Partner Coalition organizations.
Youth Ambassador Gladys Njeri shares her experience participating in the Girls First Summit, She’s the First’s annual event that brings together organizations for knowledge-sharing and targeted training, with local and global insights on best practices for supporting girls’ rights.
The latest edition of The Girl Gazette is here! This edition features a powerful poem about girls' leadership, an important essay about a patriarchal community, and artwork that encourages girls to end period stigma and feel good about their bodies.
The Girl Gazette shares girls' voices from around the world who work with our Partner Coalition organizations. Girls from She’s the First’s Partner Coalition express themselves through art, poetry, and essays about their experiences.
By Yassin Jarju, 15, a student in The Gambia with our partner Starfish International
In a world where choices are made,
my body, my voice will never fade.
For I am a girl, strong and true,
menstruation is a part of me too.
It's a natural cycle, a sign of life,
bringing strength and power
I embrace it with love, for it's a gift,
a reminder of the beauty that my body uplifts,
So let's celebrate the freedom we possess,
to make choices that honor our happiness.
for my body is mine, and I have a voice,
to stand up, to be heard, to make my own choice.
To all the girls out there, remember, you have the power,
to embrace your body, to accept yourself and to love yourself.
Together, we stand, strong and true,
supporting each other, me and you.
With respect and love, we'll always rejoice,
for our bodies are ours, and we have a choice.
In this journey of life, you're in control,
with every decision, let your spirit unfold.
No one else can define who I am,
my body is mine, a precious gem,
I embrace my body, and make all the choices
choices about me, choices about who I am.
I stand tall, with confidence and pride,
in my body, my sanctuary, where I reside.
I make the choices that feel right for me.
for my body is mine, and I am free.
A quote from Yassin’s poem was also published in the September 2024 edition of The Girl Gazette, a biannual publication of artwork, poetry, and essays by girls in the She’s the First partner coalition.
She’s the First is a non-profit organization that teams up with grassroots leaders to make sure all girls are educated, respected, and heard. As the co-organizers of The Global Girls’ Bill of Rights®, we stand by Right #5, which states: “All girls have the right to comprehensive sexual education and access to free, quality, reproductive healthcare.”
To uplift this right around the world and rally girls together, our Girl Activist Fellowship’s Sexual Health and Reproductive Rights Committee, a youth-led group in STF, is hosting the Reproduce This: Art Contest. The theme of this Art Contest is "Your Body, Your Choice," and we will be accepting all types of visual art mediums (sketches, watercolors, color pencils, acrylic, oils, etc).
*The only eligibility requirements: being a girl* who is less than 22 years old!
The Reproduce This: Art Contest is an art contest hosted by girls, for girls, and will raise awareness for reproductive rights around the world in a SAFE way. All girl-centered and anti-oppressive entries to the Reproduce This: Art Contest will be showcased on our website, and if that's not enough... Selected entries will be showcased in two simultaneous GALLERY SHOWS located in New York City and Nairobi, Kenya, on International Day of the Girl, October 11, 2023.
Create a difference, embrace your talents, and sign up today! Submit your art today!
Use this link to commit to creating artwork (deadline for submission is August 15): bit.ly/reproducethissubmit
*gender-nonconforming, genderfluid, transfeminine experiences included!
Download the flyer here.
She’s the First has always funded local organizations and trusted their expertise, but we have made significant adaptations to shift more power to them. In 2017, we moved away from our traditional scholarship (or sponsorship) fundraising model, in which donors were matched 1:1 with a girl they supported.
