Girls of Hope

A documentary, Fighting for Education in Turkey

Filmed in Van Eastern Turkey by Ayşegül Selenga Taşkent, the documentary portrays a few girls who struggle for their education and, despite all the difficulties, try to hold on to their hope for a better future. In the Eastern and Southeastern regions of Turkey, the illiteracy rate among women is near 45 percent. For years, the government, NGOs and individual effort have worked to improve the situation. However, economic hardship and strict traditions still prevent many girls from access to education.

The book Thanks to My Mother, by Delizia Flaccavento, is full of testimonies consisting of letters, presented in their original untouched form, that the girls wrote to ask for a scholarship. They are portrayed in their homes, together with the strongest supporters of their emancipation through education: their mothers.