Meika very grateful to be working at Black Sash

Meika & Alex

I have just finished my first week as an intern at the Black Sash.  After being in Cape Town for over two weeks, it was great to finally get started.  I feel like I have already learned a lot, and gotten a good feel for the organization and how it works. 

I learned about several projects that I will be working on, one of which is distributing information at a local Refugee Center about the rights of refugees and the process for applying for refugee status.  This week I had to read up about South African law regarding refugees and asylum seekers.  Though I’ve learned about the special issues of refugees in my human rights classes I think seeing it applied in real life will be a totally new experience. 

Another project involves researching the social and economic causes related to maternal health and infant mortality in a small township in Cape Town.  I am especially looking forward to this project.  On Tuesday I got a chance to speak with a woman named Lizzie who told me about the specific challenges that her community is facing related to women and childbirth.  She spoke about a local clinic that was too small and ill equipped to serve the needs of the population.  I could tell she was truly passionate about these issues, and speaking with her made the problems seem all the more real to me. 

I feel very grateful to be given the opportunity to work at an organization that is so in tune with the real human rights issues of the people.  I am so excited to get back to the Black Sash next week and to start working on both of these projects!  More updates to come.