Girls from across the North Eastern region of Maranhão, Brazil are standing together, taking on the local government, and calling for an end to gender-based violence as part of Plan International Brazil's Girl Leadership Project. Here, they share their motivations for their work and why they believe in gender equality.
Joseily
“I am an empowered girl and my voice deserves to be heard. I am here to fight for girls' rights. I am taking part in meetings, questioning our congresswoman and fighting for us all over Brazil so we can eventually be equal to men.”
Laenny
“It's important to stop violence against women and girls because we are tired of it. We have the same rights as boys and we are equal to everybody. As a girl, I am using all my time and power to fight against this type of violence and to get together with other girls and fight for their rights.”
Maria Fernanda
“We deserve to get an education and to take part in sports activities – if we’re told ‘no’ it destroys our development and we aren’t equal. Every day we face prejudice and we are excluded from society. It’s about time our voices were heard.”
Luanna
“As girls and women, we have to put an end to violence. Why? Because we are not the weaker sex and we don’t deserve to be treated as such. I am determined to fight with my friends so we can achieve gender equality across Brazil.”
Luanna Natalia
“No woman, or girl deserves to suffer violence or prejudice just because they're female. If we stand together, it proves we are not in this fight alone. We can only achieve equality if we work together to build a better world and a better society in Brazil.”
