On Saturday 12th October, we celebrated #Dayofthegirl2019 and simultaneously spotlighted #Lupus through @Sheblossoms. Lupus and many auto-immune diseases primarily affect women of color between the ages of 15 and 44. 
@Sheblossoms Our all female line-up consisted of Shae Gibenzi and Shikkiey with a special appearance by GJ the Trap Queen. Our audience consisted of a female dance troupe from Korogocho, courtesy of Nuru Afrika who are a key partner in our Peace Builders Program.
@Sheblossoms The following images are from the last She Blossoms 2019, courtesy of @OnkeoRonny who is our Peace Builders Program photographer. The 2019 theme for International Day of the Girl was Girl-Force: Unscripted and Unstoppable.
@Sheblossoms @OnkeoRonny The aim of She Blossoms especially on a day like International Day of the Girl, is to empower young women of color with insightful knowledge about auto-immune diseases. This is in line with SGD 3: Good Health and Well Being, as well as SDG 4: Quality Education.
@Sheblossoms @OnkeoRonny She Blossoms 2019 kicked off with lunch, before the ladies were given a tour of our museum by our Peace Builders Facilitator.
@Sheblossoms @OnkeoRonny We then delved deep into the 1st session, where we dissected the 2019 #Dayofthegirl theme Girl Force: Unscripted and Unstoppable. In an intimate setting, the ladies who are mostly in the arts spoke about scripted paths and deliberate roadblocks in the arts industry.
@Sheblossoms @OnkeoRonny Some of the issues that came to the fore were: unequal pay in regards to performances, subtle sexism when picking line-ups, blunt misogyny when pertinent issues are raised, not having a seat at the negotiating table, patriarchal opinions about women's bodies in entertainment.
@Sheblossoms @OnkeoRonny In being unscripted and unstoppable, ideas such as consciously rejecting false narratives, choosing your own path and working towards it, working as a unified force and amassing information were floated and supported.
@Sheblossoms @OnkeoRonny The ladies also watched our August 7th Documentary to learn more about our space, and how one can rebuild after tragedy and the resounding message of resilience.
@Sheblossoms @OnkeoRonny In our 2nd session, we discussed Lupus, its suspected causes, symptoms, management journey and the theories shared about why auto-immune diseases like Lupus primarily affect women of colour between ages 15- 44.
@Sheblossoms @OnkeoRonny The discussions also spotlighted the fact that most of the attendees had never heard of Lupus, ans that the media needed to shed light on such issues so more of the populace is aware especially women.
@Sheblossoms @OnkeoRonny Ngunu of People Like Us was instrumental in sharing more knowledge about Lupus, and what he has learned as part of the She Blossoms core team.
@Sheblossoms @OnkeoRonny She blossoms (the concert) being an arts advocacy event curated by @LahaniKE, the day was punctuated with poetry and prose by @faithshikki (Shikkiey), whose pieces elicited reactions ranging from sass, sunshine smiles to stunned silence. She was accompanied by @Nick_Agesa
@Sheblossoms @OnkeoRonny @LahaniKE @faithshikki @Nick_Agesa Also accompanied by Nick Agesa, Shae Gibenzi's voice and musicality mesmerized everyone in attendance. Her stories are beautiful works of art, deftly narrated through song. She was our second performer of the day.
@Sheblossoms @OnkeoRonny @LahaniKE @faithshikki @Nick_Agesa Our 1st surprise act of the day was Naomi from Nuru Afrika, who felt compelled to share one of her spoken word pieces also accompanied by Nick Agesa.
@Sheblossoms @OnkeoRonny @LahaniKE @faithshikki @Nick_Agesa Our second surprise act of the day was GJ the Trap Queen who performed courtesy of Nuru Afrika and Boom Arts. She has an on-the-spot impromptu performance with Shikkiey, in line with the 2019 theme Girl Force: Unscripted and Unstoppable.
@Sheblossoms @OnkeoRonny @LahaniKE @faithshikki @Nick_Agesa Lastly we had Njoki Anyango, from the Lupus Support Group who gave the closing remarks by reiterating facts about Lupus and how it was important for the ladies to educate themselves about diseases that affect women, and advocating in their own spheres of influence.
@Sheblossoms @OnkeoRonny @LahaniKE @faithshikki @Nick_Agesa All in all She Blossoms 2019 attained its objectives and we as the Memorial Park are happy to continue being a space where conversations in line with SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being are had (SDG 3), and insightful information shared in line with SDG 4: Quality Education.
@Sheblossoms @OnkeoRonny @LahaniKE @faithshikki @Nick_Agesa Such activities no matter how diverse, as courtesy of our Peace Builders program, which is also founded on SDGS 3 (Good Health and Well Being), SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDGs 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions), as well as 17 (Partnership for the Goals).
@Sheblossoms @OnkeoRonny @LahaniKE @faithshikki @Nick_Agesa Our Peace Builders Program ethos is that peace is multi-faceted not monolithic. It is communal, emotional, environmental, psychological, relational as well as spiritual Thus our myriad activities emphasis this ethos and mantra.
