For Ohio University students, $300 could cover books for a year, but for women in poor countries it can buy the chance of a normal life.
The Latino Student Union, Advocates for Health Care Reform and the Women's Studies Feminist Undergraduate Network are sponsoring a Green Pink Party tonight at the OU Women's Center. The groups will be accepting donations to help correct and prevent obstetric fistula, a childbirth injury that often affects women in poor regions of Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia.
The injury is caused by pressure created by obstructed labor without a caesarean section. This causes a fistula, a hole between the mother's vagina and rectum that causes chronic incontinence. According to endfistula.org, women with this condition often are shunned by society. More than 2 million women remain untreated for this condition, and at least 50,000 to 100,000 new cases occur each year.
Fistula repair surgery costs about $300, and the three groups hope to collect enough donations for one woman to have the procedure, said Velma Lopez, president of the Latino Student Union.
Green Pink parties are the result of a national collaboration between The Sierra Club, represented by the color green, and the non-profit organization One by One, represented by pink. The organizations distribute free Green Pink kits to groups that want to host parties. The kits can be ordered online at www.sierraclub.org.
The groups will show videos at the party to educate guests about obstetric fistula, serve refreshments, and hold a raffle and discussion. The party is open to everyone.
When we learn
we can be proactive and create change Lopez said. I think students need to realize that we live in a bigger world and come to be a part of something bigger then Athens and OU.
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Anna Sudar
