A Breeze of Hope
A Breeze of Hope (Spanish: Una Brisa de Esperanza) is a Bolivian nonprofit 501(c)(3) charitable organization that provides free legal, social, and psychological support to victims of sexual violence.[1] The charitable organization is globally partnered with Equality Now. Over the course of 14 years, the organization's legal team has prosecuted 500 abuse cases.[2]
History[edit]
Brisa de Ángulo, an advocate and survivor of sexual abuse, founded A Breeze of Hope in 2004 to address the urgent need for support and justice for sexually abused children in Bolivia.[3] She experienced repeated rape by a family member at 16, and her decision to report the abuse was met with intimidation and blame from her community, extended family, and the authorities.[4]
Work[edit]
In 2013, A Breeze of Hope's advocacy before the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights successfully pressured the Bolivian government to repeal the Rape-Marriage law, a law that pardoned sexual aggressors of their crimes if they married their victims.[5] The first school-based study on the scope of sexual violence against children and adolescents in Bolivia was undertaken in 2009 by the A Breeze of Hope Foundation in collaboration with the Bolivian Ministry of Education and Towson University.[6] They discovered that 1 in 3 girls said they had experienced sexual assault before turning 18.[citation needed]
References[edit]
- ^ Moloney, Anastasia (16 April 2020). "In lockdown Bolivia, calls from abused girls flood hotline". Reuters.
- ^ Collyns, Dan (28 December 2018). "The woman breaking Bolivia's culture of silence on rape". The Guardian.
- ^ Rueckert, Phineas (22 March 2018). "Meet The Woman Battling Bolivia's Sexual Abuse Crisis". Global Citizen.
- ^ "Inspired by Alumna, Rutgers Law–Camden Team Triumphant in Abolishing Rape-Marriage Law in Bolivia. : Rutgers-Camden Campus News". news.camden.rutgers.edu.
- ^ Wright, Emily (26 June 2017). "Bolivia: Home to Latin America's Highest Rates of Sexual Violence". The New Humanitarian.
- ^ "A BREEZE OF HOPE FOUNDATION - TOGETHER WOMEN RISE". Together Women Rise. August 2016.