Advocating for the Rights of Girls on International Day of the Girl

Today is International Day of the Girl -- a day for the world to pause and recognize the importance of girls in society. This year, with so many girls deprived of an education, we're declaring a state of emergency. We've got a long way to go to help hundreds of millions of girls realize their potential. It's critical that world leaders begin prioritizing the education of girls, particularly in fragile countries. Gayle Smith, CEO of The ONE Campaign

The world’s 1.1 billion girls are a source of power, energy, and creativity – and the millions of girls in emergencies are no exception. This year’s International Day of the Girl (IDG) on October 11 marks the beginning of a year-long effort to spur global attention and action to the challenges and opportunities girls face before, during, and after crises.  -United Nations

Every year, on October 11, the United Nations commemorates the International Day of the Girl. In some countries, the commemoration is known as the International Day of the Girl Child. To mark the occasion, Gayle Smith , CEO of ONE, wrote an opinion piece for CNN Online, stressing the need to ensure that all girls are able to get  an education. According to Smith, more than 130 million girls around the world didn't go to school today. Millions more braved long distances and dangerous conditions to get to classrooms whose teacher never arrived, or where there were no textbooks or other materials to help them learn. ONE has launched a campaign to promote education of girls around the world. Read report entitled The Toughest Places for a Girl to Get an Education.

Gayatri Patel, senior policy advocate at CARE, in Washington, D.C., makes the same argument. "I'll never forget my visit to the Mirpur slum in Bangladesh this year. There, I met a group of girls, some just 5 years old, who had never spent a single day in school because they were forced to work as child laborers," said Patel.

According to Patel, the lack of access to education is just one of the challenges that girls around the world have to face. "Women and girls suffer disproportionately in urban slums. Many go to bed hungry night after night. They become stricken with measles due to the lack of access to basic immunizations. They face beatings and other gender-based violence that gets overlooked. Many are forced into child marriages and experience early pregnancies that cause life-threatening injuries," said Patel.

"We cannot teach our girls to be ashamed, or afraid, or to make their dreams smaller in order to fit into the world. We must teach our girls that they deserve the same fundamental rights to freedom, autonomy and equality. They deserve a world as big and expansive as their dreams," said Patel.
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While placing a priority on empowering girls living in poverty, this day is also about opening doors for girls of all socioeconomic circumstances. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation has put together great montage of videos under the hashtag #GirlsChangetheWorld

 The London-based newspaper The Telegraph provides 16 Great Quotes from Famous Women to mark the International Day of the Girl.  Among those quoted are  U.S. activist Gloria Steinem,  British author R.K. Rowling, Pakistani education advocate Malala Youzafi, Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, New Zealand film director Jane Campion and others.