NVN Friday: WAY OF LIFE FOR THREE YOUNG WOMEN
by Joanne Kennedy Frazer
in observance of International Women’s Day
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Elizabeth 20 years old, junior at an elite US university, majors in physics. Awarded a summer internship, she will fly to Asia, live at a Japanese university while conducting research. Gabriella tiene 20 años, completed high school, college beyond reach, worked menial village jobs until employment options dried up. She will travel a perilous journey to the US in search of new opportunities. Bahija تبلغ من العمر 20 عاما student at college on a campus now rubble, her family is no more, all slaughtered. Hunger, destruction, death are her relatives. When bombings start she runs to unsafe shelters pleading with the world, why are you not helping us?
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Author’s Note: UN International Women's Day, March 8, occurs during Women's History Month. The UN resolution declares "full enjoyment of human rights...(requires women's) active participation, equality and development..." To honor its intention, I imagine and enter into the stories of three women "internationally" to illustrate vast differences in their lived experiences. While there has been modest advancement in some parts of the world, we have a long way to go globally in realizing the UN resolution.
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Joanne Kennedy Frazer, a former justice and peace educator/director for faith based entities, enjoys spending her silvering years writing poetry and publishing in numerous anthologies, journals, and ezines. Her work is informed by social justice concerns and beauty of the natural world. She has written two chapbooks. Most recently, Seasonings (Kelsay Press) has been nominated for the Eric Hoffer Book Award. She lives in Durham, NC.