Dear JOhn,

It’s been an eventful month. Life is changing but our collective commitment to protecting and promoting the rights of women and girls through the law remains. See what our team of human rights lawyers and advocates have been working on around the world in May to #MakeEqualityReality for women and girls. Thank you for making this work possible.

Dismantling Racism Must Be Part of Our Fight

Read a statement of solidarity from our Global Executive Director, Yasmeen Hassan.

Equality Now joins Kenyan Civil Society to Demand Concrete Action to Protect Women & Girls During COVID-19

Equality Now joined Kenyan organizations including the Centre for Rights Education and Awareness (CREAW), FIDA – Kenya, Coalition on Violence Against Women (COVAW), GROOTS Kenya, SDGs Forum Kenya and Kenya Female Advisory Organization (KEFEADO) to call for action to protect women and girls in Kenya from gender-based violence during this crisis. Read the co-signed letter and see our recommendations to the Kenyan government.

Equality Now Goes Virtual with Webinars

Today’s technology affords us opportunities to not only connect in this difficult time but also to continue to take action. We’ve held several webinars in the past few months about different areas in which we protect the rights of women and girls.

Global Campaign for Equality in Family Law

FGM/C: A Call For A Global Response

Two webinars covering the rise in Online Sexual Exploitation

On The Record documentary: Addressing the Complex Relationship Between Race, Sexual Violence & #MeToo

At Equality Now, we know that the road to justice for any survivor of sexual violence is not an easy one, and that marginalized and oppressed populations--like Black women in America--face added barriers in accessing justice. So we were incredibly honored to be a non-profit partner of the documentary On the Record, (now available on HBO Max) that examines the complex relationship between race, sexual violence, and the #MeToo movement and the challenges that Black survivors have faced in being heard and believed. Together with Black Women’s Blueprint, Jamia Wilson of the Feminist Press, and journalist Jimmie Briggs, Equality Now created the Discussion Guide that accompanies the film, which is designed to assist viewers in unpacking the complex issues raised by the film. 

#MakeEqualityReality Today

✅ Call on Kuwait to stop allowing rapists to escape justice

Coming up next

Day of the African Child is coming up on 16 June, and we’ll be taking this opportunity to highlight the serious issues of child marriage and female genital mutilation (FGM) still affecting so many girls across the continent, and exacerbated by the current pandemic. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram so you can help us spread the word.

Equality Now in the News

📰The increase in domestic violence due to COVID-19 remains largely unaddressed by governments in the Middle East and North Africa. Equality Now’s Suad Abu-Dayyeh weighs the different governments’ responses.

📰The US Department of Education’s new rules on sexual assault, narrowly define the definition and increase protections for those accused. Equality Now’s Divya Srinivasan comments on the impact these news rules will have on victims reporting and accessing justice at their institutions.

📰Equality Now’s Faiza Mohamed speaks to the Thomson Reuters Foundation about Sudan’s recent decision to criminalize FGM and calls for next steps in ensuring and end to the practice.

COVID Conversations

The COVID-19 pandemic is exposing and exacerbating gender inequalities around the world. Each week, we are sharing insights from experts about how women’s and girls’ lives are being affected by the pandemic and what can be done to address the challenges. Last week, we spoke with our partner Caleb C. Ng’ombo, the Executive Director of People Serving Girls at Risk (PSGR), about how COVID-19 is putting women and girls in Malawi at greater risk of sexual exploitation and sex trafficking.

Thank you for being a huge part of our work, which would not be possible without your constant support and activism.

In solidarity,

Bryna Subherwal
Advocacy Campaign Manager