Hope Beyond the Bruises

This is not a nice story because it is a story of violence. It talks about how Kenyan woman is discriminated against right from home. It talks about how police gangs up with rich husbands to terrorize wives if they run away from them. It is about how police go ahead and lock up women in police stations in order to "teach them a lesson." It talks about how police raids bartered women shelters and how they harass those women who operate them. It shows how Kenyan police rape women even when they are dressed in full uniform in the cause of their duty. It is about how women are treated as properties by their husbands who pays money to buy them "dowry." It is also my story. It is a true story. It is not a story circulated to get revenge; it is published to teach. It talks about what happened to me and it teaches that if your story is similar, even to the extent of one bruise, what you can and should do. The story is not all negative; it shows the value of supportive family, friends, and organizations, which are determined to help victims have a voice and access to freedom. If there is one message in this story, it comes in two parts: part one says there is hope and part two says that women and children's rights are human rights. If this book will help one woman and one child get out of an abusive relationship, I will be happy. If it will help many, I will be very happy.