CUMBRIA, United Kingdom — Bras are usually a fundamental right for some but an expensive luxury for others. Across many parts of Africa, bras continue to be a sign of wealth and prestige, giving the impression that a woman is from an affluent background. Without them, many women can become victims of sex slavery or experience horrific atrocities such as rape.
A bra can change a woman’s entire existence. Recycling bras, giving an unused bra a new lease of life and donating them to charity can restore women’s dignity, keep them safe from threats and provide them with employment opportunities to generate a stable income.
Health and Well-Being
Undergarments are also vital for the health and well-being of women and girls. Women undertake almost half of the manual labor while working as crop farmers in Africa and more than 50% in Tanzania and Malawi. Bras can alleviate back and neck pain, improve posture and stop chafing, offering comfort for those involved in strenuous daily activities.
Teenage girls in Africa often miss out on sporting opportunities because they do not have a sports bra; something so easily fixable can discourage girls from involving themselves in fitness and sport, rendering them less likely to use sport as an employment route out of poverty.
Optimistically, there are a plethora of charities in various countries raising awareness of bra inequalities, and the following organizations are tangible proof that recycling bras empower women.
ZABRA
Bras are costly in developing nations due to a lack of skilled workers and machinery to manufacture them; with food being the priority, bras are deemed luxurious. ZABRA is an initiative that began its journey in 2015 to recycle new and lightly-worn bras from financially-sound countries and send them to women who cannot access them and other organizations in need, including refugee camps.
ZABRA encourages its supporters to become “CupBearers” and dedicate some of their luggage allowances to bras if traveling to countries across Africa to reach as many women as possible. Since its establishment, ZABRA has donated more than 150,000 undergarments to 30 countries.
Free the Girls
Free the Girls is a non-profit organization that focuses on “micro-entrepreneurship” providing women with bras to sell at an affordable rate, generating financial stability for themselves and the confidence to run a small business. It has gone from strength to strength, receiving more than 20,000 bra donations monthly. Selling second-hand clothing can be a lucrative opportunity in Africa, as well as minimizing the amount of waste sent to landfill facilities.
The initiative mainly works with victims of sex trafficking, allowing them to reintegrate into society again through safe and formal employment. Selling bras also reduces interactions with men as they attempt to heal and move forward. Reports suggest that women only need to sell four bras daily to live comfortably.
Frip Ethique (Oxfam)
Oxfam is a British-founded organization that aims to eradicate poverty by fighting money-fueled inequities. It is responsible for introducing the Frip Ethique program in Senegal. The scheme provides stable employment for women living in poverty by selling bras and other articles of clothing. Employees receive a good wage as well as a pension and healthcare benefits. Furthermore, the initiative also allows women to learn new sought-after skills by mending any bras broken on arrival.
Something most of us take for granted can change the lives of women living in poverty. Recycling bras empowers women by providing safety, comfort, confidence and employment while improving their quality of life; this is why global access to bras is necessary to tackle the extreme poverty crisis.
– Yasmin Hailes
Photo: Flickr