In the heart of Kenya, lies a village unlike any other. It is a place of peace, a circle of huts where the sound of women's laughter fills the air, and where no man is allowed to set foot. This is Umoja, which means 'unity.'
The story of Umoja began with a woman named Rebecca. Years ago, Rebecca's life was filled with fear. Like many women in her community, she was beaten and told she was worth less than a man. She saw young girls forced to marry old men and made to suffer painful, ancient customs. When she asked for help, no one listened. The suffering of women was seen as normal.
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One day, Rebecca decided she had endured enough. She gathered fourteen other women who shared her pain. "We don’t need men to live," she told them. "We can protect each other." People laughed. They said the women were weak and would never survive alone. But the laughter only made them stronger.
They walked away from their old lives and settled on an empty piece of land. It was just dry earth and sky, but to them, it was freedom. With their own hands, they built simple homes from mud and wood. They started a small business, creating beautiful, colourful jewellery to sell to passing tourists. They built a school for their children. They called their new home Umoja.
The most important rule in Umoja is simple: no men. The village is a sanctuary, a safe haven for women escaping violence, forced marriage, or rejection from their families. Here, they can breathe easily. They work together, make decisions together, and raise their children without fear.
But this safety comes with a difficult rule for the boys they love. Any son born or brought to Umoja is allowed to stay only until his 18th birthday. When a boy becomes a man, he must leave the village. For the mothers, this is a heartbreaking but necessary price for the peace and safety of their community. They raise their sons with love, teaching them to respect women, hoping they will become different kinds of men in the outside world.
At first, the men from nearby villages were angry. They tried to scare the women away and steal their tourists. But the women of Umoja stood firm. They were so successful that they eventually earned enough money to buy the land the angry men were using against them.
Today, Umoja is a thriving village of women and their young children. It is a living proof of a powerful idea: that women, when given a chance, can build a world of their own. They have created a society where support and kindness are the law.
The story of Umoja makes us wonder: why should such a village need to exist? It shows us that in many places, the world is still not safe for women. It is a reminder that we must all work towards a future where every village, every town and every home is a place where women can live in peace and dignity, without having to build walls to keep danger out.
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