Teach High School Students to Stop Sexual Violence

Our survivor-leadership model centers the dreams of survivors for a violence-free world! We believe that survivors are the liberators that will lead us in ending sexual violence. Their stories of courage, healing, and transformation inspire and heal communities. 

We realize that to achieve these dreams, survivors need safe spaces and a supportive community to facilitate their healing. In October, we hosted a retreat with our scholars where we used our Butterfly Effect Curriculum to explore two topics: The Beauty of Transformation and Healed to Heal. We talked about how experiencing inner growth and embracing our beauty and transformation moves us to do wonderful things that bring change around us. 

One of the powerful tools that we use to facilitate healing is art. The scholars used tiles and t-shirts to create representations of their beauty and transformation. We are so grateful for your support that empowers these high school girls to make the changes that they desire in their communities.

Most of the girls in our community have grown up seeing relationship patterns that are unhealthy, toxic, and disempowering. They have been inoculated into these patterns and have very minimal exposure to what healthy relationships look like.

One of the key things that strengthen their advocacy against sexual violence is helping them to understand and begin to nurture healthy relationships. This past month we hosted a Jitambue (Swahili for Know Yourself) workshop with our high school scholars where we held space for them to identify their values, convictions, hopes, and dreams and to learn ways in which they can nurture healthy relationships with like-minded people that support their journeys of transformation and growth.

As they build healthy relationships, they will have a community of support that will anchor their advocacy work in ending sexual violence and we're eternally grateful for your support in making this possible!

Our scholars are on the longest school holiday since they resumed their studies post COVID. This period has allowed us to connect with them, celebrate their growth, listen to their challenges and provide them with the support they need to continue pursuing their dreams.

As teenagers, one of their biggest challenges is navigating relationships and all the challenges that come with that. This sensitive stage of development also makes them vulnerable to abuse and unsafe decisions. Last month we facilitated a training called Jitambue which is Swahili for 'Know Yourself' for them. This curriculum was developed by one of our alumni to help teenagers know who they are, understand their sexuality, and equip them with the skills to form healthy relationships.

Our hope is that the conversations that we're having with them now will anchor them through this and future seasons, allowing them to know their worth and helping them form values that will guide them through life. Your donation makes it possible for us to provide this much-needed support and we are grateful!

As the COVID-19 Pandemic continues to morph, it continues to present different challenges for everyone around the world. Girls continue to be disproportionately affected by most of these challenges including higher exposure to sexual abuse. Yet not even COVID can take away the will of girls across the world to fight for their rights and dream of a better world.

During this year's International Day of the Girl Child, we brought together 50 girls from Kibera, Africa's largest slum, to celebrate their advocacy efforts. These girls are using their talents of singing, poetry, writing to raise their voices in digital spaces against gender inequalities. Listening to their stories of courage and hope was extremely inspiring and challenging.

It is such an honor, privilege, and high responsibility to support in different ways, their dream of a more just world. We thank all our donors for playing their part to support this dream through their generous giving. And as we get into the holiday season, may we all be inspired to play our part in building the beautiful world that these girls dream of and deserve!

The reduced interactions and opportunities for connection occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic have left many children and young people without the much-needed support and guidance that they previously received from religious institutions, CBOs, and organizations like Freely in Hope. Parents and guardians have their hands full with putting food on the table and few are able to notice and respond to the emotional, psychological, and physical needs of their children.

In response to this need, we continue to modify our programming to address different emerging issues in the community we serve. In July, we held our first in-person workshop with two high school girls. We discussed different issues that they have been navigating including their identity, sexuality, relationships, and academic dreams. 

The young people in our communities need to be constantly reminded that they are beautiful, they are enough and they can overcome barriers to achieve their dreams. We are grateful for the small and big opportunities we have to keep doing that and we appreciate our donors' invaluable role in making that possible.