Statement commemorating International Working Women's Day – 8M
We urge the women of Latin America and the Caribbean to continue the mobilizations
Once again, March 8th calls us to commemorate the struggle of women for decent working conditions. They were killed in the arson attack on a factory, perpetrated by the owners and by men. Much has happened since then, and many achievements have been made. However, the problems generated by patriarchal inequality persist, along with new manifestations of old issues that express themselves in different dimensions and spheres, revealing a field of dispute and confrontation between different models of society and their corresponding meanings.
The struggle of all women vindicates our capacity to decide, to be free, to have the same job opportunities and pay as men, but also the right to share childcare and household chores, and above all, the right not to die from causes related to motherhood or our sex. In short, this is a struggle for everyone, for a better society that recognizes and respects difference, eradicating inequalities in all aspects of life. Therefore, the struggle of those who came before us continues in the present.
The violence and alarming increase in the deaths of women of diverse gender identities is the clearest indicator of the enduring power of patriarchy. The current situation in Latin America and the Caribbean presents a bleak scenario regarding the demands for the rights of women and the LGBTQ+ population, as the rightward shift of current governments has allowed for the rise of patriarchal and anti-gender discourses that demonstrate a setback in the progress achieved at the continental level; a context in which violence has been re-normalized and femicides have intensified. Today we remember the many women who have been victims of patriarchal violence, and especially Cindy Julieth Morales Salguero of Colombia, murdered on February 28, 2020, and Ingrid Escamilla of Mexico, murdered on February 16 of this year.
Therefore, this date invites us to personal and collective reflection, to strengthen existing forms of organization and to build new ones that allow us to confront inequality, discrimination, and the emergence of new vulnerabilities and risks rooted in a political model based on neoliberal capitalism. These are the reasons why we join and support the women's strike called for March 8th and 9th, as a political strategy for a life free from violence.
From the CLACSO Working Group Anti-patriarchal struggles, families, genders, diversities, citizenshipsWe urge the women of Latin America and the Caribbean to continue with the mobilizations, but also to enable the meeting between academia and social organizations to promote debate, mobilization and the construction of actions aimed at change on a personal and collective level.
March 8 2020
CLACSO Working Group
Anti-patriarchal struggles, families, genders, diversities, citizenships
