Women in Rural China have one of the highest suicide rates in the
world - a fact often attributed to difficulties they face in a world in which
they have little control over their lives. no rights to protect themselves.
Lihua Xie believes women's rights are human rights.
She has created centers in large cities to re-educate women about their
rights, that they are citizens of China, and to teach them how to succeed
in modern China. She created a magazine that helps women organize,
tell their stories, and learn from each other.
Through micro-lending relationships, Lihua Xie hopes to empower
women to take control of their own futures and de-couple themselves
from stifling dependency on men.
Using grass-roots, bottom-up methods, Lihua Xie's influence is
spreading across China and now includes a literacy project to teach
women how to read and write, something that rural women cited as
one of their most important needs. In the end, Lihua Xie hopes for
equality between men and women in a country where women have
traditionally had little say over their lives.
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