Arzu Rugs: An Investment in Hope
May 28, 2008
Dallas, Texas (WiredPRNews.com) — For five abusive, terror-filled years, the Taliban regime kept the Afghani people suppressed, scared and living in poverty. Televisions worldwide portrayed images of solomn faces trying desperately to overcome an instituted policy of gender discrimination and overall oppression. Voices were muted and the individual became lost in a sea of hopeless citizens slowly losing their grip on their own lives.
One of the most significant forms of gender discrimination set in place by the Taliban was the mandatory house arrest of all Afghan women. Under this archaic policy, women were ultimately stripped of all human rights and being forced to turn their eyes to reality, silence their voices and become prisoners of their own homes.
After the Taliban’s well-documented defeat, the liberation movement began in Afghanistan allowing women and girls to again reclaim their lost identities, but this freedom came with an unfortunate price. The generation of women finding the sunlight again were victims of little to no education, no health care and no community bond. In fact, the illiteracy rate for women over the age of 15 is a grim 86%. Two decades of hostility in war left a miserable legacy for future generations.
“Arzu, meaning hope in Dari, is a 501 (c)(3) not-for-profit organization that provides sustainable income to Afghan women by sourcing and selling the rugs they weave. Arzu helps weavers and their families break the cycle of poverty by providing them above market compensation and access to education and health care.”
The Arzu organization aims to empower the community, the family and the woman as an individual to overcome the economic and social gap they faced and reinforce their empowerment. By creating a fruitful opportunity for Afghan women to bring in income for their households, Arzu also provides lucrative education and literacy classes as well as health care services to infants and children as well. The Arzu website states, “Meeting these three interdependent needs sets a foundation of stability for the women, who can then assist their families and participate more fully in their communities.”
An investment in a handmade Arzu rug is an investment in hope and a promise for the future for women and children in Afghanistan. To learn more about this organization or to purchase an Arzu rug, visit http://www.arzurugs.org.
