Summer camp can be a defining experience for girls. At least it was in my memory. From the ages of seven to fifteen I had almost every camp experience possible. From horseback riding to photography courses and writing workshops to fishing off the piers of my hometown, I thought I had done it all.
But last month I visited a very different summer camp. At a rural, low-income school in India, I saw the work of a unique community organization, VOICE4Girls, in action. This year, VOICE ran seven summer camps for girls across the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telengana in India. At the camp I visited in Thoguta village, some 300 girls (ages 11-16) from low-income families participated in “VOICE Camp,” where the girls were exposed to an original, progressive, and empowering curriculum. VOICE also places a high emphasis on English immersion during camp, with most lessons conducted in English and supplemented in the girls’ native language. The curriculum covered topics that many in the West would consider par for the course during a girl’s camp (interpersonal skills, puberty, menstrual hygiene, etc.) Yet, these issues can be considered taboo in a rural and often patriarchal context in India. VOICE tackles head-on the unique challenges girls are likely to face in their communities and families, such as domestic violence, dropping out of school, and child marriage.
I was struck by the relevancy of the lessons. As I listened to the marvelous camp counselors present the VOICE curriculum, I couldn’t help thinking how great it would have been to hear similar messages when I was 11 or 12. The topics covered were complex, but also deeply personal. The kind of questions every girl thinks about but will rarely voice aloud, let alone to an authority figure like a camp counselor. How to handle a crush, how to advocate for yourself, how to plan a career, how to physically defend yourself, and how to become a leader – all of these are key messages girls in India and across the world need reinforced on a regular basis. By providing much-needed clarity in a world full of mixed messages for young women, VOICE4Girls is helping ensure that their campers learn how to become proactive leaders in their society, look out for one another, and most importantly advocate for their own future that will be determined by their own choices.
It was a wonderful experience and honor to have seen VOICE and the VOICE campers in action this year. I hope to visit again in the future and see the seeds of this unique community organization grow. For more information on VOICE4Girls, visit www.voiceforgirls.org
