Help #BreakTheBias for women and girls in Uganda, Rwanda and Liberia

 February 01, 2022

In Sub-Saharan Africa, the threat of COVID-19, a soaring rate of out-of-school girls, and an escalating rise in female unemployment, have made the need for life-skills more essential than ever.

Imagine a world where women’s voices are silenced 

Many girls and young women in Sub-Saharan Africa communities continue to face unacceptable discrimination, driven by deeply entrenched gender inequality. Propelled by stigma and misconceptions, girls often don’t feel worthy or capable of fulfilling their potential. For girls, the simple joy of playing music is often ridiculed.

In many countries across Sub-Saharan Africa, women and girls don’t learn and compete equally with their male counterparts. Many girls and young women across Sub-Saharan Africa don’t feel empowered to become role models within their communities. Very few leadership positions are made available to women across Uganda, Rwanda and Liberia. Children and young people grow up in extremely vulnerable situations: they are orphans or living in a household headed by another child; they are homeless and living on the street or girls who have become mothers before they have had a chance to grow up. More women in Africa are subject to lifetime partner violence than women anywhere in the world. Factors such as low levels of education, religion, and socioeconomic status all are relevant when looking at the causes of domestic violence in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Brass for Africa aims to #BreakTheBias

What drives you the pursuit of a new goal - pushing yourself to your limit? A joint challenge with your colleagues, friends or family?

To support International Women's Day 2022 and the #BreakTheBias theme, Brass for Africa is raising awareness about supporting and recognizing women's equality and invites participation in their annual Race for Equality challenge, together with hundreds of people across the world.

Support girls and young women across Uganda, Rwanda and Liberia

The goal is to bring equality to 250 extremely disadvantaged girls and young women across Uganda, Rwanda, and Liberia. You can help them gain access to life-changing music and life skills education for an entire year. You can help #BreakTheBias.

Ready to get started?

Choose an activity that you love. Sign up as an individual or as a team, with your friends, colleagues or family. Set your fundraising goal. For example, if you raise GBP 350, you'll empower one girl with nusic and like skills education for an entire year.

Overall, together, Brass for Africa aims to double last year's target and cover 15,000 kilometers - the distance from the UK to Uganda, then on to Rwanda, and across to Liberia. It doesn't matter where you are, or who you are, or however you race. You can walk, run, swim, hop – you name it! As an individual or as a team. Your way, your distance, your fundraising target. From anywhere in the world You race for equality!

Who iare Brass for Africa?

Brass for Africa supports over 1,000 children and young people in Uganda, Liberia and Rwanda every week through brass music education and life-skills training.

The charity also provides employment opportunities and training for more than 40 African national staff.

Using music as a tool to empower and transform the lives of disadvantaged children and young people, Brass for Africa has identified and measures a number of key attributes associated with learning music, such as self confidence, resilience, grit and perseverance. These attributes are integrated into each music lesson, resulting in transferable life-skills, which can be applied to the participants’ everyday lives.

 Alison Balsom OBE is one of the charity's patron's. Alison is a Gramophone Artist of the Year, three time winner at the Classic BRITs, and also three time winner at the Echo Klassik Awards. Alison has cemented an international reputation as one of classical music’s great ambassadors and is ranked amongst the most distinctive and ground-breaking musicians on the international circuit today.

Will you join the team and help #BreaktheBias this March?

Together, we can provide 250 girls in Sub-Saharan Africa with Music & Life-Skills Education for an entire year.

Learn more: https://t.co/OAD3lQjJuP pic.twitter.com/DHFmBEdzMK

— Brass for Africa (@BrassforAfrica)