You Pinspire Me
My Grandfather’s family, in front of the house that my Aunt stayed home from school to clean.
In my mom’s family, it was only 1 generation ago that girls were kept home from school a few days a week during middle school, and then completely after middle school in order to help take care of the family. Mind you, in that family, this generation goes all the way back to the ’30’s – but still – my Aunt Ann was denied a high school education because she was of more use to my grandparents working as a nanny than becoming a more learned person. It sounds harsh, but they were new Dutch immigrants to Canada in 1951, and you did what you had to do in order to survive in the post-WWII years.
These days, even for families who are struggling to make ends meet in Canada, there is just no way that that would be acceptable – but around the world in the poorest regions, girls are some of the most disadvantaged people in the world. According to Plan Canada’s Because I am a Girl website, girls are more likely to be denied education, denied medical attention, be malnourished, and live in poverty, simply because they are girls.
Sears Canada has joined the effort, with one percent (1%) of all sales from their Girl Confidential line going towards Because I am a Girl. Better than that, Sears collaborated with Plan Canada on a limited edition line of girls’ shirts & tote bags, of which 100% of the sales proceeds will go directly towards Because I am a Girl.
The totes are super cute & big enough to be beach bags, while the shirts are absolutely something that I’d pick up for my daughter if she was that size! Cute, entirely age-appropriate, and made in Bangledash – all of those things are win for me. [Sidetrack: I won’t go into it now, but I whole heartedly support buying clothing that has been made in third-world countries – as long as we – and the companies who sign the contracts – are being diligent about the wages & conditions that the employees work for & in.]
I always took it for granted that I’d be in school through University – it was actually expected of me. However, I do recognise what a privilege it is to have (and pay for) a university education: you will not find me eating sour grapes over my Liberal Arts education or the bill that came along with the non-government funded education.
Whether it’s through Sears Canada & the Girl Confidential line, donations to Plan Canada’s Because I am a Girl, or just teaching our children about the privileges that we have in this country & time and making them aware of the reality of children (specifically girls) in other parts of the world – I encourage you to take action. Start the conversation. Reflect on the blessings in your life, then turn around and help some girls pull their nations up out of poverty.
Disclosure: I am part of the Sears Mom Ambassador program with Mom Central Canada and I receive special perks as part of my affiliation with this group. The opinions on this blog are my own.
Jenn vanOosten
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What a great post. I really love this campaign. But, I love your family photo the most. That is awesome.
I’ve just read your post and had to leave a comment, as my family emigrated to Canada from England a year or so before yours did and my brother David was born in Brampton in 1951! I believe that we lived in a place called Norval, however we moved back to the UK not long after my brother was born so sadly I can’t really remember much of Canada.
This is a lovely post; what a great initiative. I am in the UK and raising a daughter; I hope to raise her to always be aware of just how lucky she was to have been born at this time, in this part of the world.
(incidentally, I live in an area where there are a lot of gypsies, and a lot of their young girls drop out of school early, either to get married or just because they know they’ll be married soon and there’s no point in continuing with education)
Very Inspiring post! thank you for sharing
Awesome post, ‘Girls Rule!’ has always been my motto ever since I was a kid. As President of the Student Council in our Middle school, I know how it feels like to be respected and admired with the leadership bestowed to me by the student body. We took for granted the education, skills, moral and financial support we were blissfully awarded by our parents and guardians. We never realized until later in College and University Studies that we are the lucky ones.
We are so grateful for the chance given to us living in a modern world full of great opportunities afforded to girls and boys alike. We should all make the effort to help the disadvantaged girls in poor countries.