Reflections from a Kaqchikel Mayan High School Graduate: "Now I know who I was, who I am, and who I want to be."

An interview with Adela Tuy, a member of our Girls Advisory Council and a recent high school graduate of MAIA, a member of our Partner Coalition

Adela on stage with her parents on graduation day!

What does graduating mean to you?

To me, graduating means: a big achievement, that I am advancing, and it is the key that opens doors to other opportunities.

How has MAIA helped you achieve your goals?

MAIA provided me with different kinds of tools, resources to find the power of my voice and dream about a new future and world. Before MAIA I already had the dream of continuing studying and graduating from high school, but I didn't know when or how I would do it so I decided to look, and I found it in MAIA. Here there was a great team of people who helped me and showed me that there were different ways to rewrite my own story. Now I know who I was, who I am, and who I want to be, I know my roots and have a better vision of my life. In MAIA I learned that every day I can evolve, and with empowerment, I can empower other women.

“Now I know who I was, who I am, and who I want to be, I know my roots and have a better vision of my life. ”

— Adela Tuy

What are your future plans?

My future plans are to continue to university, have a formal job, and improve my English. I want to work in projects that involve volunteering or give workshops about leadership, girls´ rights to Indigenous young people. I want to be a leader in my community and to become a famous writer.

The graduating class of the MAIA Impact School poses on stage.

Is there anything else you would like to share? For example, about girls’ rights, challenges you overcame, or your program experience?

I have a project called “Up and Up”, it focuses on girl’s rights and learning to raise our voices. I created it because there are very few women who are leading projects. When I started it, a lot of girls from my community did not want to participate because they were fearful and full of insecurities, they thought they could not become leaders. Today more than 15 girls from my community are part of this project.

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Adela is a Kaqchikel Mayan woman from Guatemala. She is 18 years old and lives in Sololá, Guatemala. In 2022, she graduated from the MAIA Impact School, and now she’s a part of MAIA’s Launch Program. She’s also a part of the Communications and Fundraising team at MAIA.

In 2021, she was the winner of seed capital in the Ella Impacta Program of Vital Voices Guatemala, and she founded the Up&Up Youth Collective, a project for young women who exert influence in society. “One of the main objectives of my project is to promote the social participation of youth in my community.”

Adela is currently a member of the Girls Advisory Council at She's The First and an ambassador for Girl Rising.

Reproduce This! Art Contest By Girls, For Girls: CALL FOR ARTWORK INSPIRED BY THE THEME: MY BODY, MY CHOICE

She’s the First is a non-profit organization that teams up with grassroots leaders to make sure all girls are educated, respected, and heard. As the co-organizers of The Global Girls’ Bill of Rights®, we stand by Right #5, which states: “All girls have the right to comprehensive sexual education and access to free, quality, reproductive healthcare.” 

To uplift this right around the world and rally girls together, our Girl Activist Fellowship’s Sexual Health and Reproductive Rights Committee, a youth-led group in STF, is hosting the Reproduce This: Art Contest. The theme of this Art Contest is "Your Body, Your Choice," and we will be accepting all types of visual art mediums (sketches, watercolors, color pencils, acrylic, oils, etc). 

*The only eligibility requirements: being a girl* who is less than 22 years old!

The Reproduce This: Art Contest is an art contest hosted by girls, for girls, and will raise awareness for reproductive rights around the world in a SAFE way. All girl-centered and anti-oppressive entries to the Reproduce This: Art Contest will be showcased on our website, and if that's not enough... Selected entries will be showcased in two simultaneous GALLERY SHOWS located in New York City and Nairobi, Kenya, on International Day of the Girl, October 11, 2023. 

Create a difference, embrace your talents, and sign up today! Submit your art today!

Use this link to commit to creating artwork (deadline for submission is August 15): bit.ly/reproducethissubmit

*gender-nonconforming, genderfluid, transfeminine experiences included!

Download the flyer here.

Seré quien soy / I will be who I am

Autora: Wendy Palax, miembro del Consejo Asesor de Niñas de She's the First

Las miradas no fueron la herida, las palabras que me recorrían de arriba hacia abajo fue la nota más aguda que hubiera escuchado.

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Los rostros eran los mismos, los mismos que dicen ser "Familia". 
Los mismos que me llevaron a un gran abismo. 
Los mismos que siguen sin creer. 
Los mismos que juzgan sin saber.
Los mismos que dicen ser "Familia".

Esa tarde se convirtió en un lugar lleno de preguntas sin respuestas. 
¿Dónde voy a vivir?
¿Con quién me debo casar? 
¿Debo caerles bien? 
¿Qué carrera llevar? 
¿Cumpliré con los requisitos para no fallar?

Y sobre todo, el eco de las palabras rebotaban en mi mente.
"Eres mujer no pierdas vergüenza algún día" 

Creí que no me había afectado
Creí que era ilusión mía
Creí que eran mentiras 
Creí que debía aceptarlas para encajar. 

Observé y me di cuenta que eran las mismas palabras y etiquetas, para ser aceptada en un mundo lleno de maldad y ciclos repetitivos.
Ciclos de etiquetas, requisitos, reglas. Para mantener un papel, orden y sobre todo ser aceptada. 

¿Estoy en el camino correcto? 
Me pregunté
Me observé 
Me escuché 
Me acepte
Me convertí 

El espejo de mi habitación reflejó aquel puño de inseguridades a
un enredo de flores y espinas adornando la habitación. 
Yo no quiero ser una más que dejó sus sueños anclados por la sociedad. 

Mi voz será mi aliado para llegar a cada rincón. 
No llevaré los requisitos de la sociedad. 
No llevaré las reglas para ser aceptada. 
Llevaré mis requisitos, 
llevaré mis fallas a la sociedad. 
Viviré disfrutado los días que vendrán.  

Seré un rompecabezas 
Seré la pieza faltante 
Seré voz 
Seré silencio
Seré la solución 
Seré yo. 

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Una niña con educación es imparable- pero barreras como la discriminación de género, pobreza y explotación impiden que muchas niñas se graduen. Nuestras Jóvenes Embajadoras crearon la campaña El poder de la Poesía para amplificar las voces de las niñas sobre este tema para el Mes Nacional de la Poesía y la Semana de Acción Mundial por la Educación.

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Wendy Palax, de 18 años, es una orgullosa mujer indígena maya y miembro del Consejo Asesor de Niñas de She's the First. Vive en Sololá, Guatemala. “Soy valiente y resistente y me dedico a aprender, comprender y lograr mis sueños. Quiero ser una líder en mi comunidad y en mi país. Quiero romper barreras y empoderar a otras. Soy una joven decidida. Soy una mujer indígena decidida. Romperé los estereotipos y demostraré que tenemos potencial”.

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I will be who I am 

The looks were not the wound, the words that ran up and down in me was the sharpest note that I’ve ever heard. 
The faces were the same, the same that claim to be “Family”. 
The same who took me to a large abyss. 
The same who continues without believing. 
The same who judge without knowing. 
The same who claim to be “Family”. 

This afternoon has turned into a place filled with questions without answers. 
Where will I live?
Who should I marry?
Should they like me?
What career to take?
Will I meet the requirements not to fail?

And above all, the echo of the words that bounced in my mind. 
“You are a woman, do not lose shame one day”.

I thought it had not affected me
I thought it was my illusion 
I thought that they were lies
I thought that I should accept them to fit in. 

I observed and I realized they were the same words and labels, to be accepted in a world filled with evil and repetitive cycles.
Cycles of labels, requirements, rules. To maintain a role, order, and above all be accepted.

Am I on the right path?
I asked myself
I observed myself
I listened to myself
I accepted myself
I became

The mirror in my room reflected that fist of insecurities to 
a tangle of flowers and thorns adorning the room. 
I don’t want to be one more that left her dreams anchored by society. 

My voice will be my ally to reach every corner.
I will not bear the requirements of society.
I will not carry the rules to be accepted. 
I will carry my requirements, 
I will take my faults to society. 

I will live enjoying the days to come. 
I will be a puzzle
I’ll be the missing piece 
I’ll be voice
I’ll be silence
I’ll be the solution
I will be me. 

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A girl with an education is unstoppable—but barriers like gender discrimination, poverty, and exploitation prevent many girls from reaching graduation. Our Youth Ambassadors created the Power of Poetry campaign to amplify girls' voices about this issue for Poetry Month and the the Global Action Week for Education.

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Wendy Palax, 18, is a proud Indigenous Maya woman and a member of the She’s the First Girls Advisory Council. She lives in Sololá, Guatemala. “I am brave and resilient and dedicated to learning, understanding, and achieving my dreams. I want to be a leader in my community and in my country. I want to break barriers and empower others. I am a determined young woman. I am a determined Indigenous woman. I will break stereotypes and prove we have potential.”

How the Girls' Bill of Rights Lives On -- One Year Later

Author: Vishaka Agrawal
Contributors: Faith Nwando, Genevieve (Jenny) Niwenambaza, & Claris Nadini

Around the world, having explicit documentation of major policies and laws help ensure consent and set expectations. So having the Global Girls’ Bill of Rights officially documented makes us feel more empowered than ever.

The bill, which was passed at the United Nations HQ and with UN Women in October 2019 on the International Day of the Girl, was co-organized by She’s the First, Akili Dada in Kenya, and MAIA Impact in Guatemala, and it can be used as a reference by any girl around the world to demand their rights. 

One year later, we still have a long way to go in terms of the implementations of the rights featured within smaller communities, but we feel extremely fortunate that we could take this very crucial step towards a fairer, more inclusive world. Throughout the experience, we met really inspiring girl advocates and had the opportunity to represent the voice of girls from more than 30 countries. Helping draft the bill and sharing ideas with panelists from 15 different communities (and across timezones) was a proud experience. 

“The bill reaching governments of all countries will mean impact across more local communities where the majority of discrimination happens.”

The Global Girls’ Bill of Rights is the first step to ensure that girls are not denied their basic rights, and it is also a step towards achieving the potentially less obvious rights like the right to pursue STEM and representation in leadership roles. The bill reaching governments of all countries will mean impact across more local communities where the majority of discrimination happens.

We also request social media followers and influencers, global leaders, and students to help us widen our reach and amplify the impact of the bill, because it is easy to take for granted these rights when we are privileged and do not see the social problems that exist even in our own institutions. 

Vishakha (left) and Faith (right) at the UN

Alongside myself, fellow girl activists Faith, Claris and Jenny were also part of the panel that worked on the wording of the bill and finalized the final ten rights. Faith and I were two of six girls to present the bill to the Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations. Later that day, we had an interview with NPR. The two of us also spoke at the annual She’s the First Summit, where I talked about inclusion in STEM (being a girl in computer science myself) and Faith introduced one of our guest speakers Isha Sesay who reported about the missing girls in Nigeria (especially with the issue being very close to Faith’s heart). 

Since launching the bill, it has impacted our own engagement across our campuses. I came back to India after the event and started the first Women in Computing chapter of my college which now has more than 300 active members. This paper in Nature, a top-tier science journal shows that women are only rarely featured as the first or last author in leading journals, so now I organize research-themed events to facilitate discussions between faculty researchers and female students to expose them to the research community. 

The right to education was the most important part of the bill for Faith. Where she lives in Maine, there is a large population of immigrants from Salmi and most kids are non-English speakers. Today, she regularly takes part in touring local high school students around, since the teachers face difficulties supporting the needs of all the students. 

Moving forward, we want to make sure that every girl is aware that the Girls’ Bill of Rights was passed at a global level, in a way that supports their rights, so that they can demand it without any hesitation. No one should be denied these basic rights. Striving tirelessly towards a better, more inclusive world is a responsibility of every citizen. 

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About the author: Vishakha Agrawal is a Computer Science undergrad from India. She is passionate about empowering girls pursuing STEM, especially research in Computer Science. You can hear more from Vishakha on Twitter (vishakha__a) and on her LinkedIn (vishakha-a).

About the contributors:

• Faith Nwando, originally from Nigeria, is a high school senior in NYC. She is an active member of her college communities and a fierce advocate of girls’ rights. 

• Genevieve (Jenny) Niwenambaza lives in Kigali, Rwanda. She is in her last year of university at Davis college, Akilah campus. She is 21 years old and a proud feminist. You can find her on Twitter (nizagenevieve) and on Instagram (jennygeniale).

• Claris Nadini is a Mechanical Engineering student at Ashesi University. She is the Chair of Badili Zone Organization that upholds education in Mukuru Community in Kenya. Claris is passionate about extending educational opportunities and bringing positive change to political leadership in Kenya. Find her on Twitter (ClarisNadini) and on Instagram (clarisnadini).