For the past two decades Afghan women have pioneered efforts to create a brighter future for Afghanistan, often working in partnership with the U.S. and the international community. Their work helped secure powerful and rapid advances for women’s rights and development. Their visibility in the public sphere, however, has come at a cost: many Afghan women activists and former political leaders are now well-known by the Taliban and are being specifically targeted for persecution.
With the Taliban now in control, the situation facing Afghan women is now extremely dangerous. The Taliban has decimated the fundamental human rights of women and girls to live a free and dignified existence, excluding them from almost all forms of public life and prohibiting them from going to work, attending school, or traveling alone.
This gender apartheid is being monitored and violently enforced, with non-compliance resulting in abductions, detentions, and killings. Against the backdrop of such draconian restrictions, Afghan women continue to resist the Taliban and advocate for themselves and their families.
Compounded by the world’s largest humanitarian and economic crisis, and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the resurgence of the Taliban has left Afghan women at extreme risk.
In the face of this crisis, Mina’s List has worked urgently to:
- Help evacuate women leaders left behind and at-risk in Afghanistan
- Help women leaders who have managed to escape find resettlement in the U.S. and around the world
- Amplify the voices of Afghan women who continue to advocate for the rights of women and girls
- Engage key decision makers in the U.S. government to urge them to implement the women, peace, and security (WPS) agenda
This vital work would not be possible without the generous support of our donors. Please join us in helping Afghan women escape gender apartheid and live in peace by making a donation today. Thank you.