The ‘End Girl Hate’ campaign is the brain child of LeAnne Dlamini, award winning South African singer, who intrinsically is wired to empower women.
The campaign was inspired by Dlamini’s personal experiences in the entertainment industry where she would be constantly criticised across social media and fellow colleagues in the industry are frequently unsupportive toward one another. Her passion to break down this barrier where women instil negativity towards each other grew and thus the End Girl Hate campaign was born. Dlamini decided to utilise her popular and loved public status and the vast reach that social media has in order to encourage women to start being supportive and helping others rise rather than putting women down.
Women from around the country, and internationally, were soon drawn to this modest endeavour to embolden women from all walks of life. But it couldn’t simply stop at social media. ‘I really wanted to make this bigger than me because we tend to stick to our circle of friends and support one another and I knew that together, we could do so much more,’ says Dlamini.
An idea became simple acts of inspiring women and simple acts have developed into a movement. Having no idea how big this would become when LeAnne first embarked on this journey in 2015, End Girl Hate networking breakfasts with LeAnne have become one of the most anticipated events for women who have adopted the End Girl Hate culture. With the generosity of tremendous sponsors and partners, women are almost desperate to connect with one another at these coveted breakfasts, where they have the opportunity to connect with other like-minded women and of course, meet and interact with LeAnne herself. These Women 4 Women Breakfasts make the entire movement tangible. This is an opportunity for women to experience the support of other women first hand. There is a mix of women, from those nominated by friends or family to those who are already successful or recognisable and it’s crucial to bring these worlds together.
End Girl Hate has come such a long way from the very first Women 4 Women Breakfast. ‘I’m delighted because the growth means that it’s not about me, it’s got to be so much bigger.’ The ultimate vision for End Girl Hate is a bi-annual conference where girls and women can come and feed off one another, glean off a panel of experts and ultimately, develop a mentorship programme in which women can develop and grow.
With End Girl Hate already piquing the interest of groups in the USA and Canada and with LeAnne already being noted as a positive influence in the lives of women, this movement has been set on a course for greatness. ‘End Girl Hate may have been started by me,’ says LeAnne, ‘but it was created for you: the everyday woman; the woman who is climbing that corporate ladder; the girl next door and even for the famous faces out there.’
I am so excited that a campaign tackling this issue has been launched. We are very aware of bullying at school and this has received a lot of coverage but a campaign dedicated to girls and women in particular who are known to cause emotional damage is just what this country and even the world needs. Bullying comes in many shapes and forms and we have all experienced it to some degree, whether is be at school, university, at work, at home or even amongst your ‘friends’, the varying degrees of hatred has definitely been felt by all South Africans. We need to club together and lift each other up because putting others down will NEVER make you shine brighter. This topic truly means a lot to me and I cannot wait to see it flourish.
Know of a girl who deserves praise? Nominate her here and she could be spotlighted on the End Girl Hate page as well as invited to their next event.
For more information visit: www.endgirlhate.com
Photography End Girl Hate
