The story of INEZA WE-ACTx (www.we-actx.org) is one of strength, courage and community. Rather than focusing on the horrors of the Rwandan genocide and its aftermath, the women of WE-ACTx are speaking to the power of their communities and working towards a better future for themselves, their family and their nation. It is this spirit that draws us to the women of INEZA and this language of hope that is spoken through the contemporary interpretation of traditional African fabrics seen in their beautiful products.

WE-ACTx (Women's Equity in Access to Care and Treatment) is an international initiative that was launched in the fall 2003 by frontline AIDS physicians, activists and researchers in response to the AIDS crisis in Rwanda. Headquartered in Kigali, WE-ACTx is dedicated to increasing women's and children's access to HIV/AIDS testing, care, treatment, support and education. WE-ACTx began working in Rwanda in early 2004 providing HIV/AIDS care to genocidal rape survivors in active partnership with the Rwandan government and five local NGO partners. They focus on empowering HIV-positive women and girls to take charge of their lives and become leaders in the fight against AIDS.

In 2006, WE-ACTx started a sewing collective comprised of 25 women infected with HIV/AIDS who were among the first to be treated. Between 2004 and 2006, these women received supplemental nutrition support from the World Food Program of the United Nations. When the UN program ended, the women were left with no way to feed themselves or their children. WE-ACTx established a sewing collective as a means to earn minimal income as well as a place to continue to heal the physical and emotional wounds wrought in the genocide. However, with little outside support, the collective found itself faltering financially and otherwise. With the help of Margot Moinester during her summer of 2007 internship, the collective designed a line of personal accessories that the women entitled INEZA -"lending a helping hand to those who are most vulnerable." INEZA was successfully launched at the New York International Gift Fair in August 2007. Manos de Madres aims to empower the women of INEZA with the skills and resources to develop into a self-sufficient and sustainable cooperative.