Sierra Leone: Only a New Government Can Bring Equality for Women

It was the great 19th century American social campaigner Lucretia Mott who stated: “The world has never yet seen a truly great and virtuous nation because in the degradation of women, the very foundations ...Read More

New Appointment Raises Doubts About U.S. Commitment to Congo’s Women and Girls

Just as violence flares again in the Democratic Republic of Congo–where women and girls have borne the brunt of decades of conflict–the U.S. State Department has announced the appointment ...Read More

The Next Wangari Maathai?

“I thought about her a lot on the long truck rides from Kenya to South Africa,” says Winnie Asiti, a 25-year-old Kenyan environmental activist, of her mentor, the late Nobel Peace Prize winner ...Read More

How Will Women Fare in Morocco’s Pivotal Election?

In Morocco’s closely watched legislative elections today, polls have closed and votes are being counted. The results will prove a critical test of the new constitution, passed in July, which ...Read More

Will Tunisian Islamists Strip Women of Their Rights?

I have personal reasons for caring about what happens next in Tunisia. I was born in 1985 in France to Tunisian parents. That meant I grew up in an adopted country where women’s legal rights ...Read More

Egypt’s First Woman Candidate Begins Campaign

When post-revolution Egypt holds presidential elections next year, Bothaina Kamel is set to become the first woman in the country’s modern history to run for the highest office. Although she ...Read More

Obama Sends Troops to East Africa; Women and Girls Deserve More

Last week, the Associated Press announced that the U.S. would be “venturing into one of Africa’s bloodiest conflicts.” That’s a theatrical way of saying that Obama is sending 100 U.S. ...Read More

Police Refuse to Investigate Gang Rape Caught on Tape

“Please just kill me.” The victim begged for death several times during a brutal gang rape at a Nigerian university. The men laughed. They recorded the incident, and the tape made its ...Read More

A Ms. Conversation with Nobel Peace Prize Winner Leymah Gbowee

I had the honor of interviewing Liberian activist Leymah Roberta Gbowee just a few weeks ago, so you can imagine my excitement when she won the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize today (along with Liberian President Ellen ...Read More

Remembering Dr. Wangari Maathai: “We Must Persist”

Fearless human rights and anti-poverty crusader. Visionary environmental leader. Global women’s rights activist. Advocate for democracy. More than one phrase is required to begin to sum up the contributions ...Read More

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