Growing up, her uncles taught her how to fight to defend herself, and now she’s inspiring other young women to do the same.
“I admired her since childhood, and I want to become like her. I want to become a senior boxer in Uganda,” says Christine, one of the women Baleke trains.
Self-defense isn’t the only life skill Baleke is teaching to young women in Katanga. She owns a tailoring business where she hires young girls, teaching them how to sew. “If you [are] on the sewing machine making something, you can make money,” she says. “You cannot box for your entire life.”
While the Covid-19 pandemic has put both boxing and sewing on hold, Baleke hopes to get her girls back into training soon. Her ultimate dream is to begin a fashion company and start her own gym.
Watch the video at the top of this page to learn more about the ways Baleke is inspiring young women in her community.
