LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KTHV) - "I was confused, I was upset. I was sad," Kristy Ifeoma-Inez Ikanih explained.
The self-proclaimed leader of Boko Haram, an Islamic terror group kidnapped more than 200 young school girls last month. Most of the girls are believed to be between 16 and 18 years old, attending a school in Northeast Nigeria. Only a few managed to escape.
Elizabeth Akama-Makia says, "The mothers, that's the thing I can't get out of my head. The mothers that were sitting there crying, begging for their government to do something." Now, several nations are joining forces to find the abducted girls. Akama-Makia continues, "I saw the hashtag go out. I saw the celebrities hashtagging it and I was like wow, this is becoming bigger."
Notable figures like first lady Michelle Obama holds a sign with the hashtag, "Bring back our girls." The international outcry is putting a new focus on protecting young women from human trafficking, which is not only a problem in Africa, but here in Arkansas as well. "So the more aware people are of this problem, I think solutions will come about," Ifeoma-Inez says.
Kristy Ikanih and Elizabeth Akama-Makia are planning a "Bring Back Our Girls" rally to be held on the steps of the State Capitol in Little Rock on May 31, 2014 at 11 am.
Akama-Makia says, "We're coming together to show that Arkansas cares, that's really what it is."
If you would like to contact rally organizers, you can email them at: BRINGBACKOURGIRLSARK@gmail.com
