Three Indian Americans selected as ‘Girl Up’ advisers for UN Women Empowerment Summit

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Three Indian American teens: Anusha Tandon, Ina Bhoopalam and Kavita Rai, have been selected as “Girl Up” advisers and will be heading to Washington, D.C., for the upcoming United Nations Women Empowerment Summit which is being held from July 8 to 11.

Tandon, 17, is a senior at Acton-Boxborough Regional High School in Acton, Massachusetts and she first joined Girl Up in sixth grade because she wanted to use her voice to help people around the world, according to the Girl Up website.

“I was enticed by Girl Up’s unique format that allows girls to be at the forefront of change, because I had never seen a campaign that was basically run by girls. I helped found a club in my middle and high school, and have taken leadership roles ever since. I feel like I have grown so much over the years and I’ve loved seeing the amazing women in my club grow up along with me,” Tandon stated on the website.

Bhoopalam is a student at both East High School in Cornhusker State, Nebraska and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

“My experience with Girl Up starts a little over a year ago, when I made a promise to myself that I would no longer stay silent in the face of so many problems. It was around that time when I heard about Girl Up from a friend and was immediately hooked,” Bhoopalam stated on the website.

Rai is a senior at Newbury Park High School in California and she started a Girl Up chapter at her school, two years ago.

“My advocacy for women’s rights has been a passion of mine for years now,” she stated on the Girl Up website.

Rai is involved in YMCA Youth & Government where has discussions on prison reform, gun control and women’s reproductive rights.

According to their website, since its launch in 2010, Girl Up has been partnering with the United Nations to support comprehensive programs that give adolescent girls in six developing countries including India, an equal chance for education, health, social and economic opportunities, and a life free from violence.