To coincide with International Day of the Girl, Gucci launched the second issue of the CHIME zine this month, which features contributions from activists, artists and writers around the world. Edited by community organizer and writer Adam Eli, and art directed by Italian visual artist MP5, the zine—which is free and available at the Gucci Garden in Florence, the Gucci Wooster Bookstore, and select bookstores, or can be viewed digitally here—focuses on the importance of gender equality.
"The message of the zine is simple; we have the power to create a world with complete gender equality, where every form of gender expression is treated equally, but we can’t do it alone. The first step in achieving this vision is to give a global platform to our worlds most marginalized voices. A place where they can tell their stories and provide solutions to the issues they are facing," Eli told MarieClaire.com in a statement.
The zine includes Child Marriage Explained, a feature produced in collaboration with Girls Not Brides and Equality Now that breaks down the issue, and provides solutions and ways for readers to get involved in the fight to end child marriage and help the 12 million girls around the world who are married off as child brides every year.
Additionally, Gucci’s CHIME FOR CHANGE partnered with Academy Award-winning director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy on her new animated short film, SITARA, about Pari, a young girl whose dream of being a pilot is crushed when she is forced into child marriage.
"Young girls everywhere still face considerable hurdles in achieving their dreams. Sitara embodies that struggle, it is a story of Pari, a young girl who dreams of becoming a pilot and is robbed of it," Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy said in a statement. "It is a story about the burdens of family and the impact a patriarchal culture has on them. For me, Sitara is more than a film, It is a movement that we want to start across the world, that encourages parents to invest in their girls’ dreams, encouraging them to free their girls from the burdens of early marriage."
To accompany the film, Gucci and CHIME FOR CHANGE have launched the Let Girls Dream campaign, which encourages individuals to share their dreams and to call on the global community to help break down the barriers that keep so many girls and women from pursuing theirs.
Learn more at LetGirlsDream.org.
