Four years ago, the world watched in disbelief as a hurricane ravaged the city of New Orleans. Fifteen years ago, the world finally paid attention to the worst genocide since the Holocaust. One million Rwandans were massacred while the international community largely did nothing.
In both of these communities it was women who shouldered the burdens of rebuilding both their neighborhoods and their families.
In a post-genocide environment Willa Shalit spearheaded the Path to Peace project that developed an American market for Rwandan women’s crafts.
The collection creates trade partnerships with artisans in recovering regions to bring the power of change to Africa, Indonesia and New Orleans. Most notably is the Macy’s Path to Peace “O Bracelet.”
Besides a shared history of tragedy, what do the women of New Orleans and Rwanda have in common? An usual sisterhood, in the shape of a bracelet that’s first woven by Rwandan women and then finished with intricate beading strung together by artisans in New Orleans. And in another unique partnership, two American powerhouses, Oprah and Macy’s, have teamed to make these bracelets available for purchase at Macys.com. The Macy’s Path to Peace Sister Bracelet is not the first Oprah venture featuring jewelry created by women in Rwanda.
In less than two years the project has achieved unparalleled success in bringing economic security to the women of Rwanda. Their are several items including bracelets (O Bracelet and Sister bracelet), necklaces, baskets (which are the number one export out of Rwanda under the African Growth and Opportunity Act) and bowls.
Focused on trade, not aid, the Rwanda Path to Peace project puts the power of opportunity into the hands of the women of Rwanda, providing not only income but the chance to take an active role in the shaping of their future.
You, too, can show support for the movement by purchasing the products and/or talking about it online.
Here’s a tweetworthy statement to get you going:
Beautiful products with a beautiful story. http://bit.ly/ZRfpl #path2peace
Please copy/paste and share with your Twitter friends. Thank you.
This was a guest post from 12for12k supporter Sarah Evans.
Thank you for posting, Danny. Go 12for12K!
Thanks for this post about the Path to Peace project. I'm involved with the project and appreciate that you're sharing the story. The sale of these baskets really is making a powerful difference in the lives of so many women. And the story inspires people to make a difference in their own ways… whether that be buying one of these products from Macy's or starting their own initiatives to change lives!