Who is Mindy Budgor? Only the first ever female Maasai warrior. Yeah, that's right, Mindy has taken a gender exclusive cultural tradition and has broken it, setting the pathway for generations of Maasai women to come.
Read the story, as told by her here.
Mindy is obviously noteworthy here, but I'd like to draw special attention to other people in her story as well. Any good leader knows that their success heavily relies on their followers. We see this with anything, without the follower's support, the leader is nothing. Well, so is the idea. On this occasion, Mindy's idea was simple: Why can't a woman be a warrior? But this was a difficult barrier to break. A hundreds of years old tradition is not easily budged. For example, when Mindy approached her friend, Winston, about following through with the process, he would not have it. However, she found people who supported her in the journey. Her teacher and his fellow warriors who volunteered to work with Mindy in the month to come were what allowed her to destroy this preconceived gender stereotype. If everyone had acted as Winston or the man who threatened her did, then Mindy would not have become a warrior. Mindy's determination equally paired with those willing to see her perspective and commit their time to her cause are what now allow the other tribal women to do the same as she.
This teaches us a lesson; Any idea, even the ones that seem the hardest to convince, can become customary with enough people on your side. This has it's pros and cons, of course... We've seen leaders understand and abuse this power throughout humanity's history. However, in our case, I think it's time we use this knowledge of human behavior for good. Let's take this idea that Shanzay and I are fighting for (that women can be influential, intelligent & confident and not have to be maimed for it) and make this a social norm. Let's get so accustomed to the idea that we change the way the generations below us think. Let's empower women and create a better place for women, as Mindy has done for the women of the Maasai tribe.
It's also good to note that although Mindy did open the door for these tribal women and many men were on board, many other men (and even some women) will not be and that this can cause for some new issues to arise, such as criticism and maybe even physical/social abuse to the women who are training to become warriors. It is important to remember, however, that there will always be someone who does not agree. As Mindy's mentor Lanet told her, "You're never going to have 100 percent approval. You have to learn to let that go."
(Picture from http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2013/sep/06/kenya-first-female-maasai-warrior)
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Alexis Ajluni
Read the story, as told by her here.
Mindy is obviously noteworthy here, but I'd like to draw special attention to other people in her story as well. Any good leader knows that their success heavily relies on their followers. We see this with anything, without the follower's support, the leader is nothing. Well, so is the idea. On this occasion, Mindy's idea was simple: Why can't a woman be a warrior? But this was a difficult barrier to break. A hundreds of years old tradition is not easily budged. For example, when Mindy approached her friend, Winston, about following through with the process, he would not have it. However, she found people who supported her in the journey. Her teacher and his fellow warriors who volunteered to work with Mindy in the month to come were what allowed her to destroy this preconceived gender stereotype. If everyone had acted as Winston or the man who threatened her did, then Mindy would not have become a warrior. Mindy's determination equally paired with those willing to see her perspective and commit their time to her cause are what now allow the other tribal women to do the same as she.
This teaches us a lesson; Any idea, even the ones that seem the hardest to convince, can become customary with enough people on your side. This has it's pros and cons, of course... We've seen leaders understand and abuse this power throughout humanity's history. However, in our case, I think it's time we use this knowledge of human behavior for good. Let's take this idea that Shanzay and I are fighting for (that women can be influential, intelligent & confident and not have to be maimed for it) and make this a social norm. Let's get so accustomed to the idea that we change the way the generations below us think. Let's empower women and create a better place for women, as Mindy has done for the women of the Maasai tribe.
It's also good to note that although Mindy did open the door for these tribal women and many men were on board, many other men (and even some women) will not be and that this can cause for some new issues to arise, such as criticism and maybe even physical/social abuse to the women who are training to become warriors. It is important to remember, however, that there will always be someone who does not agree. As Mindy's mentor Lanet told her, "You're never going to have 100 percent approval. You have to learn to let that go."
(Picture from http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2013/sep/06/kenya-first-female-maasai-warrior)
---
Alexis Ajluni