From pariah, to pride and joy: how one girl narrowly escaped FGM
Intro:
Rescued from Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) by her mother just hours before the ceremony, Purity Oyie was forced to flee and become a pariah.
But after enduring years of separation from her family, the young Kenyan activist and role-model, is now her father’s “pride and joy,” having become the first woman in her village to graduate from college.
Ms. Oyie came to UN Headquarters to take part in the annual Commission on the Status of Women (CSW); proudly wearing her Maasai beaded necklace, spelling out the message “Stop FGM”.
She talked to Liz Scaffidi about her extraordinary life so far - avoiding both child marriage and FGM – and began by describing exactly what the violation of FGM involves.
Rescued from Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) by her mother just hours before the ceremony, Purity Oyie was forced to flee and become a pariah.
But after enduring years of separation from her family, the young Kenyan activist and role-model, is now her father’s “pride and joy,” having become the first woman in her village to graduate from college – as she told Liz Scaffidi.