Dear fraycollege friends and partners,
Women’s Month always invites reflection, but this year the theme Rights. Justice. Action. feels especially urgent.
Around the world, we are witnessing both progress and painful regression in women’s rights. Just recently, a new penal code in Afghanistan that allows husbands to physically punish their wives so long as it does not result in broken bones or visible wounds. At the same time, new technologies are creating different forms of harm. The AI chatbot Grok on the platform X drew global backlash after users discovered it could be used to digitally remove women’s clothing and generate sexualised images of them without their consent. Most of the targets were women and girls, and thousands of such images were reportedly being created every hour as the tool was tested by users online.
Moments like these remind us that the dignity, safety and autonomy of women continue to be contested in new ways, and that defending women’s rights requires constant vigilance.
At fraycollege, feminism is not an abstract idea. It is a value that shapes how we work and what we prioritise. We are proud to be a women-owned and women-led organisation, and we work intentionally to create spaces where women can grow, lead and thrive. In our programmes, we prioritise the participation and leadership of women because equity requires deliberate action.
This Women’s Month, we are launching a special series featuring reflections from women leaders across media, communications and public institutions. Through their stories and insights, we hope to move the conversation beyond representation toward practical action for gender justice.
Every Thursday throughout women’s month, we will be sharing these reflections with you. As you read them, I invite you to pause and ask yourself a simple question: How am I, and how is my organisation, practically advocating for gender justice?
Alongside this series, fraycollege, UN Women South Africa and the Embassy of Ireland in South Africa, will also be hosting a special convening focused on advancing gender equality in South African workplaces. The event will explore practical strategies for strengthening legal protections for women at work, closing gender pay gaps, creating safe and harassment-free workplaces, and addressing the structural barriers that limit women’s economic participation and leadership. If you or members of your organisation would like to attend or learn more, please feel free to contact us at admin@fraycollege.com.
Justice for women must show up in equal pay, safe workplaces, gender sensitive cultures, and real opportunities for women to lead.
The future we want for women and girls will be built not by intention alone, but by the actions we choose to take together.
Yours truly,
Mamaponya Motsai
