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In the News
DEC // 2024
Testifying at the United Nations Defending Sexually Enslaved Kenyan...
ACLJ.org //
Jun 20, 2016
Fight to End a Culture of Forced Child Marriages in Kenya Heads to...
ACLJ.org //
Jun 09, 2016
Fighting for the Protection of Young Kenyan Girls At the United...
ACLJ.org //
May 31, 2016
Little girls should spend their days playing, dreaming and learning
Yet little girls in Samburu, a county in northern Kenya, are being robbed of their childhood and ultimately their future.
At 10 years old, or even younger, a Samburu girl is prepared for forced marriage to be the second, third, or even fourth wife to a man who is often the same age as her father or grandfather.
These young girls are often married off
in exchange for several cows.
But their slavery gets worse. On the morning of the wedding, she is forced to undergo the gruesome practice of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), an act that violates both national and international laws.
She is then handed over to her new "husband."
In July 2015, our staff in East Africa traveled to Samburu County to rescue two young girls from such a fate.
One of the girls,
Tabitha (Name Changed),
just 13 years old, had already
been married off to the area
chief, a 53-year-old man.
The second girl,
Precious (Name Changed),
was scheduled to be
married off just
four days later.
Unfortunately, Tabitha had already undergone FGM and was living with the chief. With the help of local police, we rescued this young girl. The police detained the chief, and the girl was taken to a local hospital to receive the medical care she desperately needed.
The following day, the chief was arraigned in court and charged with marrying an underage girl and aiding in the FGM of the young girl. He pleaded not guilty and the case is ongoing. We will continue to fight for the prosecution of this child abuser.
Precious was to be mutilated on the following Saturday morning. Thankfully, our team was able to rescue her the day before her intended wedding and FGM ceremony.
Precious' brave brother assisted
in her rescue by Hiding her from their father.
Both girls are now in a private and secure school where they are safe from their abusers and can begin to heal. Despite their past traumas, we pray they will now be able to dream of a future full of opportunity.
But these are just the stories of two girls
There is still much work to be done for the
many more lives who must be saved.
We stand ready to continue rescuing the girls of Samburu,
1 at a time
We will also continue to engage legally, using the judicial system to create a deterrent for forced marriages and FGM. We have joined a case at a Kenyan high court demanding that Tabitha's abuser be prosecuted as required by both Kenyan and international law. These cases will then serve as precedent as we continue our legal battle to end this atrocious practice.
The sexual enslavement of young girls
- And that's what it is -
Must end.
You can help save these girls.
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Be Heard Project is a project of the American Center for Law and Justice. American Center for Law and Justice is a d/b/a for Christian Advocates Serving Evangelism, Inc., a tax-exempt, not-for-profit, religious corporation as defined under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, specifically dedicated to the ideal that religious freedom and freedom of speech are inalienable, God-given rights. The Center's purpose is to engage legal, legislative and cultural issues by implementing an effective strategy of advocacy, education and litigation to ensure that those rights are protected under the law. The organization has participated in numerous cases before the Supreme Court, Federal Court of Appeals, Federal District Courts, and various state courts regarding freedom of religion and freedom of speech. Your gift is very much appreciated and fully deductible as a charitable contribution. A copy of our latest financial report may be obtained by writing to us at P.O. Box 90555, Washington, DC 20090-0555.