This woman lives in a camp with about 45 other alleged witches, scratching out an existence on the edge of a village and the very margins of human society.

So why is she smiling?

The short answer: hope.

Earlier I wrote about issue of witchcraft in northern Ghana (and other countries in West Africa). I mentioned meeting this woman and others in her situation, as well as the concerned and compassionate Ghanaians who are reaching out in love to these outcast women. For generations women like this one have had no hope other than the limited prospect of being declared no longer a witch--but even then they are not allowed to return to their homes and families. All women continue to be subject to suspicion of witchcraft, and so the cycle of fear and oppression continues.

Women bear the brunt of this abusive practice, but they are not the only ones dehumanized by it. For every woman who is sent away to eke out a living as a non-person in miserable conditions, there is someone who brought the initial accusation that got her expelled. That person is a slave to his or her own fear and ambitions. There is a family, most of whom did not want their mother, their sister, sent away, but who felt powerless to resist tradition and the word of the elders. There is a generation growing up in silent witness to this tragedy, yet most likely doomed to perpetuate it. Everybody is trapped.

But it doesn't have to be that way, and people are working to change this part of the West African cultural landscape. A friend of mine, native to Ghana and himself a victim of this practice on account of his mother's exile, is spearheading a movement to bring holistic change to not only victimized women but their communities and the whole region. By rallying village leaders, political officials, law enforcement, educators, and the alleged witches and their families, he hopes to not only slow the deadly cycle but eradicate it completely. The solution will be positive, life-giving, relationship-restoring, and uniquely suited to local culture. The result will be as beautiful as this woman's bright eyes and warm smile.

The woman in this photo now knows that people care and they are working for her. That's why she can smile again.