Pretty In Pink - Child Brides and Child Marriages

She's pretty in pink as she stands among the trees and bushes, getting her picture taken. With a open smile that lights up her eyes and a soft pink scarf swirling around her, she seems to embody the carefree spirit of an 11-year-old girl dancing at the edge of childhood.

But in the next photo, she is subdued with her hands held together, standing behind a group of seated men and boys. And in the final photo, with the pink scarf wrapped around her looking more like a burial shroud, fear has frozen the features of her face.

Looking sideways at a much older man seated next to her, at age 11 she is a child bride.

Ghulam Haider of Damarda Village in Afghanistan is just one of the many young girls featured in the video The Bride Price by award-winning photojournalist Stephanie Sinclair. Traveling through Afghanistan, Ethiopia and Nepal, she captured images that are often difficult to witness, such as the 15-year-old girl who broke the family's TV and - fearing her husband's reaction - set herself on fire.

Here in the U.S., many of us were unsettled by the recent story of the Texas polygamy sect and its child brides. Most disturbing was our inability to help these girls. But we can help in the movement to end child marriage outside the U.S. The International Center for Research on Women explains how:

These child brides often live in extreme poverty with little recourse to education or basic rights, and remain invisible to the international development agenda.

By watching the 6-minute video The Bride Price and adding it as a favorite, people can help ICRW and its partners raise awareness among members of the U.S. Congress and media that ending child marriage – which is linked to persistent poverty, girls’ poor nutrition, and high infant and mortality rates – should be a global priority....

A congressional briefing is scheduled May 19 to discuss child marriage and its consequences....Current legislation before both the House (H.R. 3175) and Senate (S. 1998) would help support efforts to reduce child marriage and improve U.S. development aid effectiveness, but action is still pending.

...[S]pread the word about the devastating social, economic and health consequences of child marriage on girls and their communities. Over the next decade, more than 25,000 girls are expected to marry each day. Working together in partnership with advocates and organizations fighting to end child marriage around the globe, we will be able to put an end to this harmful traditional practice and give millions of girls brighter opportunities in life.

The ICRW has a web page outlining specific actions you can take to help end child marriage.

Related article: Ten Facts About Child Brides and Child Marriage