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Victory for Equality is re-opening projects in South Africa
Introductory Letter from Caroline Dusée
Dear friends and supporters of Victory for Equality,
My name is Caroline Dusée, and I am the founder of the Victory for Equality Foundation. I started this foundation years ago, in memory of my brother Victor, who passed away in a car accident when he was only twenty years old.
Our mission is simple but powerful: we stand up for people and communities who are being oppressed, working towards a more equal, balanced, and fair world.
Over the past twenty years, we've been involved in projects across Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa, in Ecuador, Peru, Tanzania, and South Africa.
For the past ten years, we have been active in South Africa, where I have lived and worked for an extended period (and still do), conducting research on men, (sexual) violence, and how men and women can come together in greater mutual understanding, especially in the context of gender-based violence.
After years of working closely with local people, new projects have started to grow from the ground up. We are proud to now share these projects with you.
"Creating a world where equality is not a dream, but a reality."
Gender Reconciliation Programs
Violence between men and women — physical, sexual, emotional — is devastatingly high across the world. But in South Africa, the situation is even more extreme: one woman is murdered every three hours. Violence between men is also highly visible, yet rarely met with empathy.
The Gender Reconciliation programs, run by GenderWorks in South Africa and now in partnership with Victory for Equality, bring men and women (and people of all genders) together to speak the unspeakable — and to truly listen.
Inspired by South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission after apartheid, the approach focuses on:
- Acknowledging pain on both sides
- Silent listening to each other's stories
- Truth-telling
A woman shared: "For the first time, a man listened to my story — not to fix it, not to defend himself, but just to hear me. I felt seen."
And a man said: "I had no idea how much pain women carry because of the way we're taught to 'be men.' I want to do better — for my daughter, for my partner, for myself."
The Genadendal Project
During my research, I spent many years in Genadendal, a small community in the Theewaterskloof area of South Africa's Overberg region.
Genadendal and surrounding villages are struggling with poverty, alcohol and drug abuse, domestic violence, and a lack of opportunities — especially for children and young people.
Together with the community and local transformation board, we are implementing the 'For the People, By the People' project.
Phase 1:
We are creating safe spaces where children can go after school — where they receive food and healthy nutrition, both of which are often lacking at home.
In addition:
We are contributing to the setup of a small circular economy, where local people (many of whom are unemployed) can begin selling their own products — from fruits and vegetables (guided by our local entrepreneur Marshall Rinquest) to handmade soap and other crafts.
Long-term vision:
Our goal is to make this a self-sustaining project. Eventually, participants will give a small portion of their earnings (in exchange for using the marketplace and shelters) back into the local safety and education projects for children.
What Does It Cost?
Gender Reconciliation Programs
Monthly reconciliation workshops for men and women to combat gender-based violence in the Western Cape townships
Genadendal Project
Support vulnerable children with safety and food programs & 'By the People, For the People' Local Market Project
How Can You Help?
We would love — and truly need — your help and support to make this possible.
With a warm embrace, on behalf of our team and the communities we proudly stand by,
Caroline Dusée
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Field Photos from Genadendal
Previous Updates
We will be back soon with more projects
Victory for Equality has no current projects. We aim to be back in the future. In the mean time: We keep an open eye to all developments in the world, that are close to our hearts. And we remain in contact with our former projects and people we have collaborated with.
Former projects: United Kingdom Ecuador Tanzania South Africa
United Kingdom: We have supported gender reconciliation projects held in London, the United Kingdom.
Ecuador: Before starting our new awareness programs, we have successfully led projects in Ecuador, Limones, helping women with their struggle on domestic violence and bringing awareness of this topic in the community. More than a hundred women have been helped by Victory for Equality to create a better and safer life for themselves and their children. This project is now carefully taken over by a governmental organisation.
Tanzania: Our former project is based in the Mwanza region of Tanzania, on the shores of Lake Victoria. Over the last few decades, gender based violence has gained international recognition as a grave social and human rights concern. In Tanzania, gender based violence is widespread; the most recent Tanzania Demographic and Health Survey found that 44% of ever-married women have experienced physical and/or sexual violence from an intimate partner in their lifetime.
South Africa: The Gender Reconciliation projects we we did support are projects that work on the root causes rather than on the symptoms of gender inequality. The premise of the Gender Reconciliation work, is that it builds on the gender reconciliation process, initiated in South Africa, after apartheid. Based upon the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in Post- Apartheid South Africa. So the Gender Reconciliation work, applies the same principals of truth telling and reconciliation, to the gender divide within humanity.
Book appearence
In addition to this, Victory for Equality's Director, Caroline Dusée, is writing a book, based upon years of research. The book explores the pain on the men's side and a road for change and reconciliation. She has interviewed men all around the planet and the root of this work has started in South Africa. The book will appear in 2020. At Publishing House (Uitgeverij) Nieuw Amsterdam in The Netherlands.
South Africa Gender Violence.
Over the last decade South Africa in particular has been overwhelmed with violence rates against women, that has recently harmed the country upon to a point it had hardly ever done before. Rapes and murder rates against women and children have risen to a number that have never been higher than the last year. Violence not only in townships but also amongst university students shocked the country. The gender reconciliation programs are therefore more needed than ever before. The gender reconciliation programs are created to bring women and men from all backgrounds together to openly speak and listen to each other. Trying to understand, heal and forgive the harm men and women have been causing each other for centuries. And opening a door for reconciliation.
The #METOO discussion in South Africa more relevant than ever!
The intense #MeToo discussion in the world did not miss our African continent. It's call was widely heard and picked up by women and men in our townships as well. Mostly shared by our Gender Reconciliation community was this video by actress Jody Foster who was calling for exactly what we do in our Gender and Reconciliation programs.
Grail Centre in Kleinmond
New Programs have taken place with participants from all different countries in South Africa's Grail Centre in Kleinmond. Twenty-eight women and men from seven countries – Tanzania, Indonesia, India, Sudan, Nigeria, Zimbabwe and South Africa – have gathered for a four-day introductory Gender Reconciliation Program from 5-8 February 2018 at the Grail Centre in Kleinmond, South Africa. Through the Gender Reconciliation process, participants are invited to speak truth to their lived experiences as women and men, and hold witness to each other in a sacredly-held space. They share about mutual violence and pain between women and men, possible solutions and harsh community realities. Next to this international program, all our local community programs in the townships and prisons continue to take place.
Multimedia Project
Victory for Equality started in collaboration with Photographer Leonard Faustle, a multimedia project, by taking photos and sound recordings of the participants. Both men and women, living in the Genadendal area, Theewaterskloof in The Western Cape. This region, tortured by poverty, drug abuse, domestic violence and inequality, located in the leap of its predominantly white and rich neighbour village Greyton, became the scenery of a several years research area for Victory for Equality's Director Caroline Dusée. The people from Genadendal are telling about their daily lives and struggle. We have now started to record and visualize their lives and stories. We are looking for resources to complete our project. For more information on the content, please email us at: info@victoryforequality.org or through our contact page Thank you for reading, If you liked this article please subscribe to our newsletter! -> If you feel like supporting us for this project, please have a look at our donation possibilities
Our Christmas Wishes
A Heart-warming Christmas and a positive New Year from all of us at Victory for Equality! May we join together again in 2018 to work towards a more Equal and Merry Christmas for everyone around the globe.
Looking back
Looking back at Victory for Equality's history we have always been working with suppressed and neglected groups since its inception in 2006. It began with our first project for indigenous people and education in the Andes in Peru. Afterwards it was followed by a rapid development with our other first big South American project in Ecuador: a program ran and developed by the local people, against domestic violence on the island of Limones. Always established by a comprehensive research prior. With incredible results, improving more than over hundreds of women's lives. After moving to Tanzania, the foundation's work started switching from solely women support- and empowerment projects to the implementation of projects for both women and men. After years of fundamental research in the Lake Area of the Victoria region, we started working closely together with the local Tanzanian youth to implement our first projects in that region. Not only to support girls and women, but also to involve boys and men equally in the projects. We began outreach programs in local schools in Tanzania. These programs brought boys and girls together in groups to discuss and have a dialogue regarding gender related topics. The results and evaluations of the programs by the youth themselves were proven so positive that they started to expand on their own. To move forward and further develop on this topic, we were looking for new cornerstones, and found those in South Africa. There we built strong collaborations with several institutions and local partners that are actively specializing in this field. A new perspective and support- model for the Foundation was born. New programs have been set up: Gender Reconciliation Programs.