#BringBackOurGirls. It’s been twenty-two days since hundreds of schoolgirls were kidnapped and ripped away from their families and loved ones in Chibok, Nigeria. Twenty-two days since the Boko Haram Islamic group ran off with nearly three hundred girls, and they have yet to be found. And now there are reports that nearly a dozen more were kidnapped just this past Sunday. There is nothing that I can say that hasn’t already been said in the nearly one million tweets, the thousands of Facebook posts and the numerous blogs and articles about this devastating situation. But as a mother with two of my own daughters, and as an African, I am heartbroken.
This is not a Nigerian problem. This is not an African problem. This is a humanity problem. These two hundred plus girls that are still missing are not just “their” girls but they are “our” girls too. I can’t even imagine what those parents must be going through as day after day they are left with no answers and no real hope. But why? This article does a great job at explaining why global coverage has been slow to pick up, especially here in the US. This is not small news, this is a big deal and we should start acting like it.
My God is not a god of hate or violence. What the Boko Haram has managed to do is horrific and it’s unacceptable. We have to do more than just watch and pray. We have to let these terroists and others like them, that this is unacceptable. We have to do everything we can to help bring back our girls, because they are our girls too! The children of the world today are depending on us to keep them safe. We have to be the voice for the ones who have none. And right now, our girls our voiceless.
Although it’s now been reported that the U.S. will assist Nigeria’s effort to free the schoolgirls, there’s still work to be done. So what can you do tens of thousands of miles away? Glad you asked! You can start by signing this petition on change.org, and then following the FB page by doing the following:
Please take a few minutes to watch this powerful plea from Stella Damascus. It’s up to us to put the pressure on to bring back our girls because #theyareourgirlstoo.
Will you pledge to join this movement?
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