Last month, we brought you inside a gathering of nearly 1,000 women in Nairobi, feminists, activists, and providers devoting themselves to building societies that don’t control women’s lives.
This month, we’ll focus on just one.
Sixteen-year-old Nita Bhil lives in a small village in Kutch, a region in the farthest west reaches of India. Her parents are bricklayers and the family struggles to get by. When Nita was just 14, her parents decided to marry her off, a decision based on financial and cultural imperatives.
But Nita—the youngest of eight sisters—knew this tradition needed to end with her.
She had dreams of her own: an education, a job, a spouse that she, not her parents, chose. AJWS partner SETU Abhiyan works across Kutch helping girls like Nita realize their dreams. It has spearheaded a program called the Balika Panchayat—village councils made up exclusively of adolescent girls and young women, where they gather, learn leadership skills, and effect real change in their communities.
“When I’m at home, I’m a daughter. When I get married, I’m a wife. But when do I get to live for myself?” Nita says. “That’s what the Balika Panchayat gives us: a place to be ourselves. To feel that freedom, and the strength that comes with it.”
Nita’s story is linked below, but we’ll give you a spoiler: Today, Nita is not married. Rather, she is the leader of her Balika Panchayat. She secured funding for a van to drive girls to school, preventing many from dropping out, and is hard at work changing what it means to grow up as a girl in her village.
AJWS stories that give us hope come in all shapes and sizes. Some recount major legal victories and massive social movements. And others, like Nita’s, reflect the Talmudic teaching that saving one life—in Nita’s case, from an unwanted marriage—is like saving the entire world.
After refusing to marry at age 14, this Indian teen is bringing other young women with her.
More Stories of Hope
- Seynabou Male Cissé has been at the forefront of the movement for peace in Casamance, Senegal—a region embroiled in armed conflict for decades. Her work as a teacher, mediator, and movement leader has led her to become an award-winning activist. We caught up with Seynabou from her home in Senegal, and her words are powerful. Hear from this iconic peacemaker.
- AJWS supports nearly 500 grassroots organizations in more than a dozen countries. It’s a lot of work, and can be hard to boil down in a few words—especially when you want to tell your friends and family. That’s why we created “AJWS in Two Minutes: How Change Happens.” Check out this new video, and share it with anyone who is ready to see the world change for the better.
- In late 2025, the AJWS Action Network helped pass the Haiti Criminal Collusion Transparency Act, which combats corruption, gang violence, and drug trafficking in Haiti. But our work to protect Haitians is being undone in the wake of the recent Supreme Court ruling and subsequent federal court rulings that terminated Temporary Protected Status for hundreds of thousands of migrants from Haiti and other vulnerable communities. Learn more over on our Instagram page and share this important explainer—and read on to see how else you can push our lawmakers to stand up for human rights.
Speak up with the AJWS Action Network
We’re calling on the whole AJWS Action Network (that’s you!) right now to deliver a critical message to Secretary of State Marco Rubio: No one is above the law.
The Trump administration is challenging this fundamental notion by attacking the International Criminal Court and the countries that honor the court’s vision for global justice. The Court exists to ensure that those who perpetrate atrocities, including genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes, are held accountable.
By supporting AJWS, you are part of a movement that is changing lives around the world. Sometimes thousands. Sometimes just one at a time. Thank you, sincerely, for your role in the inspiring stories we bring you each month.
In solidarity,
Your friends at AJWS
