I need this in my life on this day.
Umoja is a self sustaining village in Africa where no men are allowed. It was started by Rebecca Lolosoli in 1990, after she herself was hospitalized due to a brutal attack from other men in her village. They attacked Rebecca cause she was speaking up against the rape of Kenyan women by British soldiers. Her husband did nothing to defend her during or after the attack.
So she left him, along with other women who were survivors of violent abuse, and started Umoja.
The women sustain themselves through the making and selling of jewelry to tourists who visit the village. They work as a community, to build and repair each other’s homes and protect one another from men looking to attack and steal the money they’ve earned.
Samburu (Northern Kenyan) women are literal property to the Samburu men. They can be killed by the men they’re married to and suffer no consequence. It’s why spaces like this are so necessary.
Watch the full story of Umoja and surrounding all-women villages its inspired below.
Update: 5/4/23
Another great video on Umoja released by Womena a few years ago.
Women raise their sons ethically in Umoja, so they can exhibit balance in their ideals towards future women in their life, before leaving the village.
