Kurdish Women's Union

The Kurdish Women’s Union (KWU) has received the green light from the new Iraqi government for a series of activities to advance women's rights – if the members of the KWU can find the resources themselves. Help US Army Staff Sergeant Shanona Gregozek answer their call.

US Army Staff Sergeant Shanona Gregozek (third from right) is working with members of the Kurdish Women's Union to advance women's rights in Iraq.

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Providing safe harbor and skills training
Staff Sergeant Gregozek is working with the KWU to help them get the resources they need. “It’s more comfortable for Middle Eastern women to work with other women,” SSG Gregozek explains. She has seen firsthand the vital role that the KWU plays in assisting Iraqi women. “When I first met their local director, I was very impressed. Their organization, their drive, their professionalism and their cause are quite addictive.” The KWU was founded in 1952 and has established itself as a pillar of women’s rights in northern Iraq. Through a system of 81 shelters and outreach centers, the Women’s Union offers safe harbor to women who are in danger of family ‘honor killings’ and other types of violence. It also helps to educate the women it serves so that they are able to become more self-reliant and to permanently separate themselves from unsafe environments. “There was one woman who was penniless, deserted by her family and uneducated,” SSG Gregozek recalls. “The KWU took her in and educated her. The woman got a job, is doing well for herself, and now volunteers at the KWU.” The KWU’s work goes on in a wide range of areas. The 81 shelters and outreach centers continue to function as safe harbors and centers of education. Along with its traditional literacy and basic education efforts, the Union is looking to establish a driver’s education program for women. Some of the shelters and education centers lack reliable electricity and generators are needed. And, of course, the seminars and educational workshops all require funds to pay for teachers and materials. The assistance of outsiders is crucial to enabling these vital activities to continue. “Seeing what they go through on a daily basis makes me feel so blessed to be from a free country,” SSG Gregozek says. “But it also makes me want to help them where I can. I know I can’t ‘save’ them or fix it all – I think they are more than capable of doing that themselves. I know outside support not only motivates them – by showing them that someone believes in them – but it also applies additional pressure to their government, who need to look good to the world.”

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