this story is like many others

but they still must be told. over and over again.

in parts of the world (and american IS indeed one of those parts) grrrls and women are worth WAYYYYYYYYYYYY less than men. their worth is based upon their age, their ability to cook, clean and have babies. that's about it. in some lands grrrl-children DO have it much harder than others.

here is the story of one 15 year old. her brothers can go to school. she cannot. her father takes medicine for high blood pressure. her mother has hypertension also. however, SHE does not take meds because they can only afford pills for ONE of them.

the life of 'the fairer sex' isn't so fair after all

A Woman's World

The Struggle for Equality Around the Globe | Special Report

'This Is the Destiny of Girls'
Across Much of South Asia, a Daughter's Life Is Circumscribed By Tradition and Poverty. But for Some, the Dreams Die Slower.
LITTLE RANN OF KUTCH, India -- In the soft light of dawn, the cracked, dry seabed stretched endlessly in every direction. Jyotsna Patadia was alone -- she is often alone -- in her family's grass hut, a speck of life in the emptiness, cooking potatoes and onions over an open fire.

From October to May, Jyotsna, 15, works here in the desolate salt pans of western India, where her parents earn a living coaxing salt from the ground. The family arrives when the summer monsoons end and the water submerging this vast plain recedes.

Her two younger brothers stay behind in their village, Kharaghoda, a chaotic mix of camels and water buffalo, schools and vegetable sellers, newborn babies and blind old men.

Though the village of 12,000 is a seven-hour walk from Jyotsna's isolated hut on the salt pans, it might as well be England, it feels so different and far away.

"It's easier to be a boy," said Jyotsna, who was forced to drop out of school at 10 to help her parents. "They get to go to school.".......