Were Her Dreams Lost, Or Stepped On?

In celebration of International Women’s Day, Scholars share their best stories of bold change for young women and girls across Africa. David Okinyi is a Scholar pursuing his undergraduate degree in economics and finance at Arizona State University. In his essay, David shares memories of his grandmother’s love of education, pledging to champion equality for all and for young women in particular.

“Shosho, why didn’t you go to school while grandfather did? How come you love education, but didn’t have a chance to study? What would you have loved to be, if you would have had the opportunity to go to school?”

I gathered my courage and asked these myriad questions to my Shosho, my grand mum. She took a long breath as tears rolled down her wrinkled cheeks. I could see the tiredness in her face. Her body trembled as if she was in deep pain. She held my cheeks, looked directly into my eyes and stammered, “It is a lo-o-o-ng story my grandson. The chief would not allow girl-children to be educated, and parents who violated his law would be detained.”

This was in contradiction with the zeal and zest that I saw in her for education. The passion that she had to see me succeed. I wondered: were her dreams lost, or stepped on?

Since I was four years old, these questions have criss-crossed my mind. I was curious to understand why women have been sidelined on a lot of issues like access to education, employment opportunities and reproductive health rights. I then wondered if gender inequality was only something I saw in my family. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the case.

As I interacted with classmates, I realized their families and my whole community had the same problem. My questions grew bigger and bigger; the actions and ideas perpetuated by my community did not add up. I wanted to know the engineers of all these injustices, when women were the people who supported me most in my life journey. How could society be cruel to people who were so empathetic and caring? How could inequality be normalized when it is women who feed their families, perform much of labours in the household, and struggle to pay school fees to their children?

Gender inequality is deeply problematic. I will not allow my beloved mom, Shosho, or any girl to be disadvantaged. The love I have for them has inspired me to champion equality for all and specifically to uplift women.

My Shosho has encouraged me to look at women’s rights with an open heart and deep humanity. Even though she is aging, her strong values remain deeply enshrined in me. Through me, Shosho has planted the seeds for the world she envisions, where women are given the same opportunities to develop. I want to make the gender equality dream of my grand mum come true by being outspoken and take actions to support gender equality, particularly girls’ education. Through this good will, I will ensure that Shosho’s dreams are not lost.