Summary

Chapter 11 and 12
Ericka
These two chapters were filled with women who had the chance to improve their family lives and they did. Faith in themselves and faith from others drove these women to better themselves and also gave them the opportunity to educate themselves and their families. As Moa said, “women hold up half the sky.” In these chapters, they not only held up the sky but soared.

Saima Muhammad

She was desperate to find ways to support her family. She had to have her daughter stay with an aunt because she couldn’t feed her. She grabbed up the chance to get a microfinance loan of $65; Saima bought cloth and beads to make beautiful embroidery to sell at the market place. The business boomed; she hired employees and her husband didn’t say much now or beat her. She was now a respected member of the community and supports her family.
Microfinances are given mostly to women because they are the ones who suffer the most poverty and danger. Women are the ones who die in droughts and famines. Older women are consider witches and killed during famines because the villages would have to feed them. The women’s mortality rate goes down when women are making money and contributing to the household. They receive more respect from the husband and his family—she is less likely to be beaten on a regular basis.

If women control the money—more is spent on children’s health and nutrition instead of instant gratification things the men spend the money on (booze, prostitutes, candy ,sugary drinks and lavish feasts). Only 2% of the household income is spent on education, even though it would eventually get the family out of poverty. 20% of the household income is spent on the expendables. The solution is simple—reallocate spending. The money needs to be put into the hands of women.

Another solution is put women in power. It may take time to get used to it but it will eventually be the norm. Rwanda had 75% women after the genocide of 800,000 people and women control over 1/3 of parliament and so does Costa Rica and Mozambique. Once women had the right to vote in the United States the mortality rate of children 1-4 plummeted 72% from 1900 to 1930. Go women power!!

Goretti

She never left the house because you needed the husband’s permission, which he never gave. She snuck out and became a CARE member in her village. Women empowered to make a difference in village and give a hand up to her fellow women. Loans, family planning, STD and AIDs are testing, running out a 2nd wife potential, education, maternal education and general empowerment to make a difference in their world.
It isn’t all one hundred percent fixed and many things can go wrong but atleast women are helping women. It is a beautiful thing.