At Womankind Worldwide we deal daily with sad and distressing stories. In our line of work we hear and see the brutal consequences of gender inequality, including violence used against women as a weapon of war. We want to change the world, to make it a more equal place so we don't have the luxury of looking away and thinking warm fuzzy thoughts.
"This is a cheery start to an article about women and humour", you're probably thinking – but bear with me. Shortly after I became Chief Executive of Womankind I travelled to Zimbabwe to meet our partner organisations to see the work on the ground which we support.
In Harare I visited a safe house run by our partner Musasa. In the Shona language the word 'msasa' refers to an umbrella shaped tree which gives shelter. It's an apt name for an organisation that provides physical shelter for women who are fleeing violence.
It feels so wrong to meet a stranger and to have her tell you the most intimate and painful details of her life. But I'm glad Tsitsi Muzanago did, even though it was hard to listen to. At the time, Tsitsi was 40 years old and she had been in the safe house for one month. As a child she was beaten by her mother and by her siblings. At 16 she went to stay with her female cousin and one night the cousin held her down while the cousin’s husband raped her.
Tsitsi managed to escape, and walked for three days to her grandmother’s house. She reported the rape to the police and went back to her mother’s house but her mother threw her out, blaming her for the assault. Her family offered her money to withdraw the rape allegation, and when she refused they told the police she had changed her mind, and the case was dropped.
For 24 years Tsitsi has moved from place to place searching for work, for safety, for peace of mind and for justice. She cannot escape the impact of the rape. Thankfully she was eventually referred to Musasa, who have given her counselling, a safe place to stay and the chance to talk to other survivors. They've given her a chance to begin again.
“There is life after rape, they have given me hope," Tsitsi told me. "Now I know it’s not my fault I was raped. I wanted justice for what happened to me, but my case has run out of time. So please tell my story."
I left the safe house that day even more determined to lobby at the highest political levels to make violence against women unacceptable and punishable, and to make sure our partners have the resources they need to help individual women like Tsitsi.
What has this sad story got to do with humour? Well, nothing on the face of it. But when you hear stories like Tsitsi’s every day, the scale of the problems we're working to solve can seem overwhelming. Sometimes a moment of laughter is what you need to pick yourself up and face the challenges ahead. Sharing a joke can be a way of supporting your colleagues and fellow campaigners. At Womankind the whole office gets together for a tea break once a week for precisely this reason; we’re stronger when we have the chance to relax and laugh together.
And humour is infectious. The sound of laughter is far more contagious than any cough, sniffle, or sneeze. When laughter is shared, it binds people together and increases happiness and intimacy. The medics say that laughter triggers healthy physical changes in the body. It can strengthen your immune system, boost your energy, diminish pain, and protect you from the damaging effects of stress. Best of all, this priceless medicine is free and has no damaging side effects.
It is endlessly inspiring how many of our partners and the women we help are able to find humour even in the face of terrible discrimination and danger. Humour can be courageous, subversive, even radical. Some say that laughing, joking women don't 'know their place'. Well we believe a woman's place is everywhere.
That's one reason we’re so proud to be Funny Women’s chosen charity this International Women's Day. They understand the power of humour and of women's voices, which will be celebrated by inspiring women at the International Women's Day Charity Showcase on 7th March. We're committed to amplifying the voices of women in the developing world, and telling stories like Tsitsi's. But we're working towards the day when we can share their laughter too. As Wylie Sypher said: "to be able to laugh at evil and error means we have surmounted them."
Jackie is the Chief Executive of Womankind Worldwide. Jackie is the former Director General of the RSPCA and a former Lib Dem MP.
Pictured: Jackie Ballard, Grace and her son who are staying at the Musasa safe house
