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Whether she\u2019s fighting for women\u2019s sexual and reproductive rights or access to education, Beverly Mumbo (LL.M. \u201820) is a passionate and determined advocate for change. \u201cThis is the issue that really touched me, what I felt I needed to make an impact on, what I really needed to change. It\u2019s what keeps me up at night,\u201d Beverly said. \u201cIf reproductive rights are not protected, then a woman cannot possibly enjoy any other right that she should aspire to.\u201d<\/p>\n
Beverly leads a reproductive health program at the Forum for African Women Educationalists Regional Secretariat (FAWE Africa), a Pan-African, women-led organization supporting women\u2019s education in 34 different African countries. From her perch as Programme Officer, Beverly advocates for adolescents and young women\u2019s access to reproductive health and education.<\/p>\n
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From Kenya to the U.S.<\/strong><\/p>\n Beverly started her human rights journey as an undergraduate, where she studied law and earned her undergraduate degree at the Moi University School of Law in Kenya.\u00a0 She went on to successfully pursue her post-graduate diploma at the Kenya School of Law, which saw her being admitted to the Kenyan bar on March 30, 2016. In her law practice, she specialized in family law and women\u2019s rights.\u00a0 While working for a non-governmental organization, Beverly said, \u201cI gained a keen interest in sexual and reproductive health rights. I tried as much as possible to work on issues of menstrual health, access to contraceptives, and maternal health.\u201d<\/p>\n With new conviction regarding her career path, Beverly came to Georgetown laser-focused. \u201cMy course selection was extremely targeted,\u201d she said. \u201cI took sexual and reproductive rights classes and classes in advocacy because I\u2019d already been working in the human rights space and I just wanted to carve my niche as a sexual and reproductive health rights expert.\u201d<\/p>\n She credits Professors Jill Morrison and Sheila Fleischhacker for their incredible influence on her throughout her time at Georgetown. \u201cI was just able to be exposed to so many great women who are working in the reproductive health rights space that made me know for sure that this is what I wanted to do,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n At Georgetown, Beverly was able to hone the skills vital for successful human rights advocacy. \u201cMy time at Georgetown definitely sharpened my critical thinking,\u201d she said, a skill she identifies as important in her area of expertise. \u201cWe work in a very dynamic field, and you need to be able to respond to things very fast. You may be working on something and things just change in an instant. You really need to be very proactive and know how you\u2019re going to be able to solve a problem.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI also gained a lot of confidence,\u201d Beverly said of her education at Georgetown. \u201cI think that\u2019s just generally the American culture, being able to speak out and question things. I\u2019m more vocal now than I was.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n A Responsive Advocate<\/strong><\/p>\n Beverly\u2019s work requires engaging with changing culture and beliefs, not an easy task. \u201cChanging perceptions is very difficult,\u201d she said about her work in African reproductive health rights. \u201cAfrican culture is very conservative, and the traditions and religious beliefs influence a lot of our policies and perceptions.\u201d<\/p>\n When working in individual villages and communities, Beverly explained that practices such as female genital mutilation or child marriage have deep cultural roots. Introducing the idea that these practices are harmful to women goes against generations of tradition.<\/p>\n \u201cWe try to respect culture and religion but also tell them that this is a basic human right,\u201d Beverly said. \u201cIt should not be seen as a privilege; it is her right. You just need to be able to create an environment where she can enjoy it. It can be difficult.\u201d<\/p>\n Beverly worked as a summer intern at the Center for Reproductive Rights during her time in the States. She realized during that work that \u201creproductive rights needs you to be very sensitive to culture and religion, no matter where you are.\u201d<\/p>\n This experience underscored for her how important strong communication and analytical skills are in human rights advocacy and law. \u201cYou need to be able to understand your audience,\u201d she said. \u201cIf I\u2019m talking to the elderly or the youth, the approach and the language is very different\u2026 so that you\u2019re passing the right message in the right way.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou need to know when to talk about what, where to talk about what,\u201d Beverly added. \u201cYou need to be very sensitive and be able to analyze how to say it, how it would come across to a certain group of people, even timing.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite the challenges, Beverly loves her job, both the theoretical and the practical aspects. \u201cReproductive health rights is something I think about it all the time,\u201d she said. \u201cI enjoy reading it, I could read it as if I\u2019m reading a novel.\u201d<\/p>\n For Beverly, helping people is easily the most rewarding part of working in the field of human rights. \u201cWhen you\u2019re advocating for change, whether it\u2019s policy change, or change at the community level,\u201d she said, \u201cand the policy gets changed or adopted or implemented, you\u2019re changing somebody\u2019s life for the better. That is the most satisfying thing, knowing that you\u2019ve improved the quality of somebody\u2019s life.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n A Bright Future<\/strong><\/p>\n Beverly\u2019s advice for current students is simple: intern as much as possible, find opportunities to get involved, and build a large, supportive network of peers and mentors. \u201cIt helps you understand the field,\u201d she said. \u201cIt helps you understand what you might be interested in.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThey say \u2018your network is your net worth\u2019 and people think it\u2019s clich\u00e9. It\u2019s reality,\u201d Beverly said. \u201cThe position that I currently hold is because of my network.\u201d<\/p>\n Beverly is enthusiastic about the future generation of human rights advocates, those who will continue to chip away at the structural and societal barriers to rights that she dedicates her life to changing.<\/p>\n \u201cIt needs a lot of patience because change is not immediate,\u201d Mumbo said. \u201cI will be working now, but those who come behind me, like 10 years later, may be the ones who actualize the change.\u201d<\/p>\n She encourages current students to follow their hearts when picking their career path. \u201cDefinitely listen to your inner voice,\u201d she said. \u201cThat thing that keeps you up at night or sparks excitement, that is it.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Beverly Mumbo Whether she\u2019s fighting for women\u2019s sexual and reproductive rights or access to education, Beverly Mumbo (LL.M. \u201820) is a passionate and determined advocate for change. \u201cThis is the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":77,"featured_media":0,"parent":1615,"menu_order":21,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_price":"","_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_header":"","_tribe_default_ticket_provider":"","_tribe_ticket_capacity":"0","_ticket_start_date":"","_ticket_end_date":"","_tribe_ticket_show_description":"","_tribe_ticket_show_not_going":false,"_tribe_ticket_use_global_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_global_stock_level":"","_global_stock_mode":"","_global_stock_cap":"","_tribe_rsvp_for_event":"","_tribe_ticket_going_count":"","_tribe_ticket_not_going_count":"","_tribe_tickets_list":"[]","_tribe_ticket_has_attendee_info_fields":false,"footnotes":"","_tec_slr_enabled":"","_tec_slr_layout":""},"class_list":["post-3512","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"ticketed":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.law.georgetown.edu\/human-rights-institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3512","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.law.georgetown.edu\/human-rights-institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.law.georgetown.edu\/human-rights-institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.law.georgetown.edu\/human-rights-institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/77"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.law.georgetown.edu\/human-rights-institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3512"}],"version-history":[{"count":30,"href":"https:\/\/www.law.georgetown.edu\/human-rights-institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3512\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5652,"href":"https:\/\/www.law.georgetown.edu\/human-rights-institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3512\/revisions\/5652"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.law.georgetown.edu\/human-rights-institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1615"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.law.georgetown.edu\/human-rights-institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3512"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}