Atlanta, Georgia (Monday, October 2, 2023) — Today, ahead of International Day of the Girl, CARE – the leading humanitarian organization dedicated to saving lives, defeating poverty, and achieving social justice by empowering women and girls – launched #TakeTheMic, a multi-day digital campaign to elevate girls’ voices worldwide.
#TaketheMic is centered on creating a online storytelling vehicle for audiences to think more deeply about girls’ experiences and how harmful gender norms can impact a girl’s life. As part of the campaign, CARE will co-produce and share stories for social media in partnership with girls.
In advance of the campaign, two in-person workshops in Rwanda and Los Angeles were hosted by CARE and led by education activist, filmmaker and CARE Global Advisory Council member Zuriel Oduwole. The workshops leveraged the power of girls’ voices and provided storytelling and filmmaking techniques and training – in addition to confidence building exercises – to help teenage girls tell their own stories, in their own way. To kick off the campaign, CARE released a one-minute inspirational flagship video featuring girls who participated in the workshops with a voiceover from Canadian native and award-winning actress Anna Cathcart.
“Today, we are witnessing girls taking a stand against gender inequality globally – challenging every obstacle to achieving their fullest potential,” said Michelle Nunn, President and CEO of CARE USA. “Every day, CARE works around the world to support girls through quality education, leadership programs, and gender equity initiatives, and this year’s #TakeTheMic campaign recognizes that girls need to be free to speak their minds, build their own narratives, and manifest their dreams on their own terms.”
“I’m thrilled to be supporting CARE’s International Day of the Girl campaign this year,” said Anna Cathcart. “CARE’s approach is not simply to support girls, but also to uplift their voices to influence change – for themselves, in their communities. Supporting girls’ voices and their leadership worldwide is incredibly important, and the #TakeTheMic campaign positions a new generation of girls to speak up and be heard.”
CARE’s #TakeTheMic campaign is also welcoming Little Amal, the 12-foot puppet of a 10-year old Syrian refugee who has become a global symbol of hope and human rights, to Atlanta, Georgia on Sunday, October 8th. CARE staff, supporters, and youth volunteers will accompany Little Amal during her “walk” and conduct live interviews with participating girls in order to capture empowering messages of hope for girls around the world, in addition to delivering a large-sized CARE Package® to Little Amal filled with welcome messages to refugees settling in the United States.
Finally, on October 11th in celebration of International Day of the Girl, select landmarks and cities around the US will light up in CARE’s campaign colors – orange and pink – to bring greater awareness to the global commemoration of girl’s empowerment, including:
- One World Trade Center (New York, NY)
- One Bryant Park (New York, NY)
- SVEN (New York, NY)
- One Five One (New York, NY)
- Niagara Falls (Niagara Falls, NY)
- Peace Bridge (Buffalo, NY)
- Eiffel Tower (Paris, TX)
- I-35W St. Anthony Falls Bridge (Minneapolis, MN)
- Capella Tower (Minneapolis, MN)
- Lowry Avenue Bridge (Minneapolis, MN)
- Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (Cleveland, OH)
- Junction Bridge (Little Rock, AR)
- Memorial Bridge (Portsmouth, NH)
- Eloy Water Tower (Eloy, AZ)
- Centered Sculpture (Orlando, FL)
- Tower of Light Sculpture (Orlando, FL)
- Take Flight Sculpture (Orlando, FL)
- Amway Center Spire (Orlando, FL)
- Astrogenesis II Sculpture (Orlando, FL)
- Cedar of Lebanon Sculpture (Orlando, FL)
- Lake Eola Fountain (Orlando, FL)
- City Hall Fountain (Orlando, FL)
P&G, maker of Always, Pantene, and Secret, is a proud presenting partner for CARE’s International Day of the Girl campaign. Together, CARE and P&G work towards creating a more gender equal world which fosters educational and economic opportunities for women and girls as well as improves access to clean drinking water and proper hygiene.
Viewers can watch the #TakeTheMic video as well as the video stories made in the workshops in Rwanda and Los Angeles across CARE’s social channels including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok.
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About CARE
Founded in 1945 with the creation of the CARE Package ®, CARE is a leading humanitarian organization fighting global poverty. CARE places special focus on working alongside women and girls. Equipped with the proper resources, women and girls have the power to lift whole families and entire communities out of poverty. This year, CARE and partners worked in 111 countries implementing 1,600 poverty-fighting development and humanitarian aid projects and initiatives that reached 174,000,000 people. To learn more, visit www.care.org.
About International Day of the Girl
On December 19, 2011, United Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 66/170 to declare October 11 as the International Day of the Girl Child, to recognize girls’ rights and the unique challenges girls face around the world.
The International Day of the Girl Child focuses attention on the need to address the challenges girls face and to promote girls’ empowerment and the fulfillment of their human rights.