stop with the daily charities. you are diluting what could be a powerful message! pick one a week or even one a month and then EXPLAIN why it's important.
just linking to some other site is having a small impact

aw. im donating.

Thank you for posting this! Awareness is almost as important and financial donation. There is an amazing documentary called "Walk To Beautiful" about these women. The girl in the pic is in it and amazing. !Que Viva Perez!

i'm glad that you are interesting in this kinds of charities , i used to like u now I love you a lot!

i will !

She looks like the mother of one of Angelina's 'orphans'

LAME!
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HOW ABOUT WE SEND THEM BIRTH CONTROL INSTEAD?
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first!

There's a show on PBS called "A Road to Beautiful" about fistulas and an hospital in Africa that treats women wounded in childbirth. It's so sad. We should be thankful not to be a tiny teen bride in Africa suffering through a week long labor and dangerous delivery.

actually watched a documentary on PBS about this place last week. It's devastating.

thank you Perez for exposing this cause that most Americans know nothing about.

Thank you, thank you for bringing this to everyone's attention.

Does anyone check out all these charities thoroughly to make sure none are a scam? That website was pretty misleading about fistulas and all their causes. I'm sure people are dying from them, but I'm a "normal" 28 year old white woman with one child who had an exceptional doctor and still developed fistulas on 4 different occasions.

IF they are starving and so poor why are they banging all the time??

Thanks for posting this.

for those idiots making ignorant comments about "the U.S not being a cash cow..and why don't their own governments help them"…..

recognize that African countries and African people have been plundered, Raped and economically devasted by the Actions (read your history book) of European countries as well as the United States. The United States historically has played a part in their suffereing, and poverty.

So if we in the U.S have the means to help them…Then We should.

this has been in the news a lot lately - and there is a documentary about it too, called A Walk To Beautiful.
thanks for picking up on this story!

like others said, this was a pbs documentary a few days ago, and the girl in the picture was one of the people they followed around. and for those who keep making rude comments….let's see you go through childbirth for 5-10 days, end up with a stillborn fetus, and then have incontinence for the rest of your life…….when you ask for a procedure to fix it, i'll make sure to give you the same response as you gave them!

i had heard of it, but as a result of the gang rapes which are common in war stricken parts of Africa. Only one woman in the documentary had a fistula from a gang rape, she had double though. Either way this documentary was completely moving, the girl in the image couldn't stop herself from crying nearly every time she was interviewed.

Thank you so much for posting about this! Everyone should check out the documentary "Walk to Beautiful" too.

Skeptic: The Fistula Foundation is hardly a scam at all. I've done a lot of research on the topic and the foundation as well as others funded by UNFPA and Mercy Ships. It is a great foundation.

Re: mmm – Educate yourself! This is not about having children at will. These are girls as young a 8 forced to have sex and many having babies too young. Their bodies can not handle the trama and for the rest of their lives not only do they leak urine but feses. They are forced to live the rest of their lives in small room built away from the family home. These girls are not out there having a good time and getting pregnant they are being abducted alot of times and forced to have sex. We are all women and we have to look out for the children.

Thank you thank you thank you for calling peoples attention to this. I am in school studying medicine in hopes of being in Ethiopia helping women at the hospital. This is such a worthy cause and something that deserves everyones support

I learned about this on Oprah years ago. And I saw the documentary on PBS. I wish I could do more, I already have my charities but I do plan to add this one to my list.

Just as an aside, if you are considering donating to this charity, I would check it out first. Always better to err on the side of caution and anybody can put up little labels that say they are accredited.

Re: Educate yourself –

So kill the pig men.

PEREZ!!! How do you not know what a fistula is?? I thought you were a fan of Oprah, she did several shows on this and the Dr. who opened a clinic to help them. Get with the program honey!! Still love you!

This condition should really be happening to those dumb whores who engage in double penetration for the money! Yeah, they are the ones who deserve Fistola! Poor young girls in poor countries, they are suffering. Thank god I have the good fortune of being an american. I feel horrible for them. god help them.

Re: mmm –

My dear, you're the reason birth control was invented.

C'mon. What about all the fucking problems we have in this country. No wonder the rest of the globe thinks we're full of shit.

Re: john –
Your point is?

"just linking to some other site is having a small impact"

And this is bad, how? Your words, not mine.

I am a nurse. There are lots of fistulas stateside too. Can I just say that this cracked me up? Why did you choose fistula?

Sucks to be a woman.

also check out www.trampledrose.org they support women waiting to have the surgery to repair fistula

Re: GOD –

stupid causes?? So many of you go on about perez being a 'fame whore' or whatever- so, he has FAME. a bazillion people look at this website EVERY MINUTE. I think it's AWESOME that Perez uses his fame and popularity to bring up issues that most of us don't know about at ALL!

This is why I really dislike America, nomatter what happens, SO many people have a problem with it- EVEN charity!!!! how could you criticize someone who is promoting CHARITY?????????? !!! charity!!! what the hell guys!!!!!

Dear God, people are so ignorant. These women/girls are married off as young as 9 years old and have barely started their menustration and are getting pregnant and in some cases being in labor for days which is what causes the fistula. Then their families austrosize them and shun them and some are sent away and left for dead. You should be thanking god that you live in a country where it doesn't happen as often. Condoms are not the answer. Please educating themselves and not sounding as ignorant as you people do and helping this woman is the answer. This is a worthy cause. And I hope and pray nothing bad ever happens to you becuase I wouldn't send money to any of your organizations you selfish ignorant fucks. And Thank You Perez for bringing attention to this horrible medical problem.

Big up for women's health!

I saw that on Nova last week! It was heartbreaking…

Re: Smith – Thank you for sharing this. I, too, have Crohn's Disease and have had 2 perianal fistulas that I've had surgically repaired (1) and the second one I knew what it was and treated it early. They are horrible and incredibly painful. I thank goodness that I had access to proper treatment as well. Thank you to Perez for raising awareness about this horribly painful condition.

minimum wage, economy in the shitter, rising food expenses, rising GAS PRICES!! *head explodes* no, really this is very sad thing for these women, i feel bad for them, but i can barely stay afloat myself. the best thing is to raise awareness.

Re: I WONT DONATE –

I'm sure violent rape and exploitation is God's will. I don't understand why people who are born into privilege seem to think that the desolation and degradation of others who are born into helpless situations somehow deserve it? This is atrocious and the farthest thing from what anyone's will is, human or God. Have people forgotten that this nation was built by occupation and exploitation as well? These people are not stupid or ignorant, they are aware of their own situations but have assault rifles aimed at them giving them the choice of torture or death. Arguably, people who are disadvantaged want nothing more than a fair chance to lead a peaceful and healthy life; they don't want your fucking laptops, purses, and high heels. You would be donating to better someone's physical existence, not to decorate their villages.

So tell me, when was the last time you had an AK in your face "BITCH"?

I have a fistula too from my Crohns disease but it has not connection to the vagina or the bladder…its connected to my intestine the sphincter muscle and it can not be operated on..i will live with it for the rest of my life.