NGO Research Assignment

Suicide
I reached for the razor, and once it was in my hand, I lay back down, waiting another minute to make the first cut. (341)

It would be better to die. (340)

Tortured and beaten, Amanda decided she would take her life. She managed to talk herself out of it, but the organization Suicide would offer her assistance in overcoming her problems and finding another way as well. It offers details into signs of suicide, the effects of mental illnesses on suicide, and gives a place for people contemplating suicide to talk.

Racism
An unbelieving white foreigner was an unbelieving white foreigner. The Western world was inscrutable and immodest and ruled over by Satan. (138)
He added that because I was white I would probably have to stay hidden in a room...so that I wouldnt be harassed or kidnapped. (323-324) Amanda was kidnapped for ransom because she was white. During her time in captivity, she was discriminated against, part for being white, another part for being of different religion. Human Rights Watch would help her to be equal with those of other ethnicities so that she would receive fair treatment.

Domestic Violence
Hed broken some of her bones before. Hed hurt her badly enough to keep her in the hospital for days. (9) Amanda herself never suffered from domestic violence, however her mother was in an abusive relationship while Amanda was growing up. The organization When Georgia Smiled offers tips and services to help those that are in or have suffered from an abusive relationship to leave said abusive partner and heal from the mental wounds.

Sexism
Where is your husband? (46)

An unmarried woman who wasnt staying virtuously at home while her father negotiated her bride-price had somehow been disgraced and therefore was either a prostitute or a witch. (46)
Throughout her travels in Iraq, she was looked at oddly and often refused entry to hotels as she was a woman on her own. During her 460 days as a prisoner in Somalia, Amanda faced much sexism. As a woman, she was raped, tortured, and starved, the other captive, Nigel, suffered little to none of this. The project SHE WILL provides victims of gender based violence help to achieve their full potential. This program would help Amanda to cope with what has happened to her and continue on with her life.

Safety
The chaos here felt edgy, dangerous, as if we couldnt keep ourselves outside of it and were breathing it in. (112) Upon entering Somalia, Amanda and Nigel had become targets for ransom, and in a war torn country they required protection. Although they had been given a small amount of protection, it was proven that they were not given enough. AKE would offer protection in hostile countries, such as Somalia, and would give Amanda and Nigel the true protection they required.

Work Cited
Corbett, Sara; Lindhout, Amanda. A House in the Sky. New York: Scribner, 2013. Print.