Half the Sky

Half the Sky

Author	Sheryl WuDunn Nicholas Kristof
Subject	Sex trafficking, maternal mortality, sexual violence, microfinance, girls' education
Published	September 8, 2009
Pages	294 pp.
Awards	Los Angeles Times Book Prize Nominee for Current Interest (2009)
ISBN	978-0-307-26714-6
OCLC	763098931

Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide is a book by the husband-wife team of Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn published by Knopf in September 2009.^[1] The book argues that the oppression of women worldwide is "the paramount moral challenge" of the present era, much as the fight against slavery was in the past.^[2]

Overview

Half the Sky focuses on sex trafficking, maternal mortality, sexual violence, microfinance and girls' education. Carolyn See, the book critic of The Washington Post, said in her review: "'Half the Sky' is a call to arms, a call for help, a call for contributions, but also a call for volunteers. It asks us to open our eyes to this enormous humanitarian issue. It does so with exquisitely crafted prose and sensationally interesting material....I really do think this is one of the most important books I have ever reviewed."

Several nonprofit organizations mentioned in Half the Sky have produced additional events and materials in support of the book, including a live event^[3] from CARE and a reader's companion^[4] from EngenderHealth.

In October 2012, the PBS television series Independent Lens presented the documentary based on the book as a two-night special.^[5] The film follows the book's authors and celebrity advocates America Ferrera, Diane Lane, Eva Mendes, Meg Ryan, Gabrielle Union, and Olivia Wilde to ten countries: Afghanistan, Cambodia, Kenya, India, Liberia, Pakistan, Sierra Leone, Somalia, the United States, and Vietnam. In each country, the film introduces women and girls bravely fighting to rise above very difficult circumstances. Their stories expose the blight caused by sex trafficking, forced prostitution, maternal mortality, and gender-based violence as the authors propose that microfinance and female education can help.

Plots and Focuses on Women's Control of Own Body

In this documentary, based on the book, six actresses, Eva Mendes, Meg Ryan, Gabrielle Union, Diane Lane, America Ferrera, and Olivia Wilde, joined Nicholas Kristof to travel to different countries observing the mistreatment of women and their bodies and visited organizations that help to give opportunities to oppressed females. The celebrities and Nicholas Kristof travelled to Cambodia, Vietnam, Sierra Leone, Somaliland, India, and Kenya. They have met the victims of sex trafficking, child labor, sexual violence and genital mutilation. Most of these girls did not get education and were abducted from their families.

This documentary shows the serious issue of violence against women’s bodies. India has the biggest trafficking problem in the world. Because of the caste system, many women are taught to accept their fate instead of protecting their value of life. Many of the girls are sold to brothel because their parents could not afford their lives. In the films, these girls’ living conditions are dreadful. Doors are locked from the outside, and the room is small, dark and dirty. They were treated as objects, raped and sexually abused by men. Diseases were transmitted to their bodies; however, they had no say to their bodies. They get HIV and AIDS because condoms are not provided and they take several clients in a single day. They also face abortion. In the book, “Half the Sky”, Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl Wudunn expanded more on the brothel. Sex business seems legal in the society. “The police wouldn’t listen to her. The brothel owners not only threatened to kill her, they also threatened to kidnap her two young daughters and sell them to a brothel,” states in the book (8).^[6] In the film, when Nicholas Kristof and Urmi tried to rescue the victims, they were threatened and yelled by the brothel. The police were there but did not do anything to warn the brothel, instead, they asked Nicholas Kristof and Urmi to leave. Moreover, Nicholas Kristof mentioned that the international Labour Organization estimates that at any one time there are 12.3 million people engaged in forced labor of all kinds, not just sexual servitude.

One of the serious issues that was found in Somaliland is female genital mutilation. The birth attendants, in the documentary, told Kristof that once they know the practice would risk women's health and bodies, so they stop exercising it. However, they find out the truth that one of them actually cut her own daughter. Girls do not have control over their bodies. They are taught that genital mutilation is the practice for females, and when they become mothers, they do the same to their daughters.^[7]

Activism and Supporting Organization

In those nations, there are organizations to support and aid those victims. For instance, in India, many children are treated as child labor and girls are obliged to take clients at a young age. Urmi, who works with the New Light Program, encourages them to obtain education and assists them to fight for their opportunities to speak for themselves. In other case, Amie, who works with International Rescue Committee, creates the “Rainbo Center” and helps victims escape from the tragedy of rape. Moreover, John Wood, who works at “Room to Read”, helps and supports education in Vietnam. Many of these victims are fighting for their rights and freedom. With the help and encouragement from people around the world, they are more likely capable of escaping from their treacherous lives to a more hopeful future.^[8]

See also

• Half the Sky movement

References

External links

• Manji, Irshad (September 17, 2009). "Book Review 'Half the Sky: Turning Oppression Into Opportunity for Women Worldwide,' by Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn". The New York Times. Retrieved 2009-10-11. 
• Half the Sky at the Internet Movie Database