Dec. 1, 2009 Opposites attract…as seen by Nicole Kidman’s awarding of CNN Top Ten Hero Betty Makoni of the Girl Child Network on Thanksgiving night. Wow. It’s World Aids Day and what better time to send a tribute to Betty Makoni for her amazing work in Zimbabwe w/healing from rape/abuse of small children via the Girl Child Network due to mythology of ‘curing AIDS through relations w/a virgin’ …
Granted, worthy Gen Y 28-year old Efran Penaflorida received the CNN #1 top honor for championing children in the slums and giving youth an alternative to gangs in the Philippines, teaching over 1500 kids to rise above circumstances via education and outreach using a pushcart, accruing over 10K members…
…But Betty Makoni and her GCN crew will still remain ‘number one’ with me as well, for I can’t fathom a better fit for World Aids Day than her mission, her vision, her inspiration, and her bravery to buck the system as an unsung hero.
Her efforts are a fitting tribute to WorldAidsDay.org internationally, along with the massive #red Twitter campaign that turns all ‘tweets’ into crimson shades in support of the HIV/AIDS blood spilled in Africa and the sexually transmitted diseases through rampant child rape epidemics in Zimbabwe and beyond.
What can you do to lend a hand? Start by informing yourself…go see Tapestries of Hope, the newly released documentary about the work of Girl Child Network’s Betty Makoni produced and directed by Shaping Youth’s own advisory board member Michealene Cristini Risley!
We’re so excited by the awareness raised and the amplified voice in the social media maelstrom, and would like to encourage any and all to ‘donate their Facebook status’ tomorrow to the similarly focused Gems-Girls.org to preclude sex trafficking and HIV/AIDS proliferation via child sexploitation, as captured in their poignant new film “Very Young Girls.”
Help us help others and join in the effort to combat AIDS/HIV on a global scale. Watch for screenings of Tapestries of Hope coming to a theatre near you, or host one of your own.
As one of our Twitter pals said, “Nobody can do everything, but everyone can do something.” Couldn’t have said it better myself.
Thanks, Betty, for showing us the way, and thanks Michealene for documenting and spreading the word for girl-child victims and media mavens to heal, send hope, and sound off for change universally!
Rock on…Betty, Michealene, the Tapestries of Hope crew and those ‘Growing Up Girl’ everywhere…
I thought it was going to be some boring old post, but it really compensated for my time. I will post a link to this page on my blog. I am sure my visitors will find that very useful.