Creating opportunities for women in New Delhi
By Karene Jones
India is a hierarchical, male-dominated society. Just by being born female, women face obstacles to health, education and wholeness. But there are committed individuals and groups working to remedy this. The Delhi Brotherhood Society (DBS)’s commitment to empowering New Delhi’s most disadvantaged people includes offering adult education and basic training for women.
We visited DBS’s Gender Resource Center, which holds classes for women who want to learn a trade for employment. The school offers tailoring and sewing as well as hair and beauty classes. Each classroom at the center (no larger than 10' x 12') held more than 30 women in each morning class and another 30-plus in the afternoon. The women were so excited to have visitors; they danced and sang for our small group.
The sewing classroom was equipped with eight portable sewing machines; the beauty classrooms each had two hair styling chairs and stations for learning face and hand painting. The school also offers a nutrition and health camp once a month, as well as weekly meetings to raise awareness of women’s legal rights. After one year of training, the students graduate, and receive help from the center in securing jobs.
Karene traveled to India in October 2011 with Presbyterian Women’s Global Exchange.
Invite the participant from your synod to your next event to share more insights from this life-changing trip.
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