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Special Focus

AWID is an international, feminist, membership organisation committed to achieving gender equality, sustainable development and women’s human rights

Protection of the Family

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The Issue

Over the past few years, a troubling new trend at the international human rights level is being observed, where discourses on ‘protecting the family’ are being employed to defend violations committed against family members, to bolster and justify impunity, and to restrict equal rights within and to family life.

The campaign to "Protect the Family" is driven by ultra-conservative efforts to impose "traditional" and patriarchal interpretations of the family, and to move rights out of the hands of family members and into the institution of ‘the family’.

“Protection of the Family” efforts stem from:

  • rising traditionalism,
  • rising cultural, social and religious conservatism and
  • sentiment hostile to women’s human rights, sexual rights, child rights and the rights of persons with non-normative gender identities and sexual orientations.

Since 2014, a group of states have been operating as a bloc in human rights spaces under the name “Group of Friends of the Family”, and resolutions on “Protection of the Family” have been successfully passed every year since 2014.

This agenda has spread beyond the Human Rights Council. We have seen regressive language on “the family” being introduced at the Commission on the Status of Women, and attempts made to introduce it in negotiations on the Sustainable Development Goals.

Our Approach

AWID works with partners and allies to jointly resist “Protection of the Family” and other regressive agendas, and to uphold the universality of human rights.

In response to the increased influence of regressive actors in human rights spaces, AWID joined allies to form the Observatory on the Universality of Rights (OURs).  OURs is a collaborative project that monitors, analyzes, and shares information on anti-rights initiatives like  “Protection of the Family”.

Rights at Risk, the first OURs report, charts a map of the actors making up the global anti-rights lobby, identifies their key discourses and strategies, and the effect they are having on our human rights.   

The report outlines “Protection of the Family” as an agenda that has fostered collaboration across a broad range of regressive actors at the UN.  It describes it as: “a strategic framework that houses “multiple patriarchal and anti-rights positions, where the framework, in turn, aims to justify and institutionalize these positions.”

 

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Membership why page - Angelina Mootoo quote

En rejoignant l’AWID, j’espère pouvoir contribuer à la mobilisation du mouvement féministe. Pas seulement pour les femmes privilégiées, mais pour TOUTES les femmes et activistes féministes..- Angelina Mootoo, féministe intersectionnelle et caribéenne, Guyane/USA

Janet Benshoof

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Civil & Political Rights
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Janet Benshoof was a human rights lawyer from the United States and an advocate for women’s equality, sexual and reproductive rights.

She campaigned to broaden access to contraceptives and abortions across the world, and battled anti-abortion rulings and in the American territory of Guam. She was arrested in 1990 for opposing her country’s most restrictive abortion law, but won an injunction at the local court in Guam that blocked the law and eventually won at the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, striking down the law for good.

“The women in Guam are in a very tragic situation. I never intend to be quiet about that.” - Janet Benshoof for People Magazine

Janet established landmark legal precedents including the US Food and Drug Administrations’ approval of emergency contraception, as well as the application of international law to ensure the rights of rape victims in the Iraqi High Tribunal’s prosecution of Saddam-era war crimes. 

Janet was President and founder of the Global Justice Center, as well as founder of the Center for Reproductive Rights, the world’s first international human rights organization focused on reproductive choice and equality. She served 15 years as Director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s Reproductive Rights Project, where she spearheaded litigation shaping US constitutional law on gender equality, free speech, and reproductive rights.

“Janet was known for her brilliant legal mind, her sharp sense of humor, and for her courage in the face of injustice.” - Anthony D. Romero

Named one of the “100 Most Influential Lawyers in America” by the National Law Journal, Janet was the recipient of numerous awards and honors. 

She was born in May 1947 and passed away in December 2017. 

متى ستكون نتائج الاستطلاع جاهزة؟

سنقوم بتحليل الردود على الاستطلاع للوصول للاستنتاجات الأساسية والنتائج خلال المنتدى العالمي ل AWID في بانكوك، وعن طريق الانترنت في ديسمبر (كانون الأول) 2024. الرجاء التسجيل هنا لحضور المنتدى.

Snippet FEA Principles of Work S4 (EN)

Four hands holding each other.

HORIZONTALITY

Je voudrais travailler pour les droits des femmes. Par où commencer ?

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“Where is the Money for Women’s Rights?" AWID’s WITM Toolkit (landing page intro)

A new edition of the Where is the Money?  research is underway.

Learn more.

A Do-it-Yourself Research Methodology

AWID offers the WITM Toolkit to support individuals and organizations who want to conduct their own research on funding trends for a particular region, issue or population by adapting AWID’s research methodology.

AWID’s WITM Toolkit builds on 10 years research experience. AWID’s WITM research and WITM Toolkit is a political and practical demonstration of the resources and steps it takes to conduct solid action-research.

Learn more about the context around the WITM research methodology

The Resourcing Feminist Movements team also offers technical and political support before and during the research process. Review the toolkit and contact us at fundher@awid.org if you need more information.

Juli Dugdale

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Category
Derechos económicos, sociales y culturales
Region
El Pacifico
Date of death / disappearance
Cause of death / disappearance

Natural

Juli Dugdale fue una feminista australiana que practicaba un liderazgo intergeneracional arraigado en los principios del feminismo, la inclusión y la igualdad. Fue líder, colega y mentora para muchas mujeres, especialmente, para las mujeres jóvenes de todo el mundo.

Juli fue una integrante comprometida del equipo del movimiento Young Women's Christian Association [Asociación Cristiana de Mujeres Jóvenes] (YWCA, por su siglas en inglés), una voluntaria y una ferviente defensora del liderazgo de las mujeres jóvenes por más de 30 años.

Se convirtió en un vínculo fuerte entre el movimiento australiano y la Oficina de la YWCA Mundial. Su confianza en la capacidad de liderazgo de las mujeres jóvenes llevó a establecer una asociación de varios años con el Departamento de Asuntos Exteriores y Comercio de Australia y a la creación del manual Rise Up (Rebélate), una guía global para el liderazgo transformador de las mujeres jóvenes, lanzada en 2018.

Juli falleció en Ginebra el 12 de agosto de 2019.

Tributos:

"Para quienes llegaron a trabajar con Juli, fue un privilegio.  Quienes no lo hicieron,  pueden tener la certeza de que su legado continúa en el trabajo que hacemos cada día y en la misión del movimiento de la YWCA". - YWCA Australia

"Juli Dugdale siempre ocupará un lugar profundo en el corazón de muchas personas en el movimiento de la YWCA, especialmente aquí, en Aotearoa, y a través del Pacífico. Juli tenía una relación especial con el Pacífico y fue un apoyo increíble para las mujeres jóvenes de allí. Ella era humilde, amable, cariñosa, dedicada, apasionada y tenía un corazón generoso. Ella encarnó la visión de la YWCA de "liderazgo transformador" con una extraordinaria visión y previsión de futuro, y ayudó a empoderar a generaciones de mujeres jóvenes líderes de todo el mundo". - YWCA Nueva Zelanda

Membership why page - Paz Romero

Cette communauté est un endroit de connexions, où l’on comprend nos combats individuels comme faisant partie de luttes mondiales, et où l’on peut même parfois danser ! Il n’existe aucun endroit de la sorte en ligne, où être en contact avec des activistes de terrain, qui viennent du monde entier, et forger de la solidarité et de la sororité..- Paz Romero, Argentina

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¡No hay economías feministas sin sindicatos feministas!

A través de la organización laboral y sindical, Sopo, Sabrina y Linda no solo luchan por los derechos de lxs mujeres, lxs trabajadorxs esenciales, lxs trabajadorxs migrantes y lxs trabajadores sexuales, sino por los derechos de todxs lxs trabajadorxs.

La lucha para acabar con la explotación de lxs trabajadores es una lucha feminista, y nos muestra que no hay economías feministas sin sindicatos feministas.

2002: Discussions on the Financing for Development agenda begin

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The Monterrey Conference on Financing for Development marked the beginning of discussions on the Financing for Development agenda.

  • The Monterrey Consensus was adopted at this first international conference on Financing for Development. It was the first United Nations hosted summit-level meeting to address key financial and related issues on global development.
  • The Conference and its preparatory process saw unprecedented cooperation between the United Nations and the World Bank (WB), the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Trade Organization (WTO) as part of efforts to promote greater coherence and consistency among the international monetary, trade and financial systems and institutions.
  • Monterrey also marked the first time that financing for development debates took place between governments, representatives of civil society and the business sector. These actors moved the discussion beyond a ‘technical’ focus, to look at how to mobilize and channel financial resources to fulfill the internationally agreed development goals of previous UN conferences and summits of the 1990s, including the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
  • The Women’s Caucus noted the historical significance of the conference stating that it had the potential to address structural challenges that continue to hamper development but also raised concern over the effects of increased militarisation and fundamentalism on women, despite the fact that the Monterrey Consensus assumed that the global economic and financial system worked for all.
  • Learn more about the six Monterrey themes and the conference follow up mechanisms: Gender Issues and Concerns in Financing for Development by Maria Floro, Nilufer Çagatay, John Willoughby and Korkut Ertürk (INSTRAW, 2004) 

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Sarah Maldoror

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Category
Droits civils et politiques
Region
Europe
Date of birth
Date of death / disappearance
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Naturelle

“Je n’adhère pas au concept de ‘tiers-monde’. Je fais des films pour que les gens puissent les comprendre indépendamment de leur race ou de leur couleur. Pour moi, il n’y a que des exploiteurs et des exploités, c’est tout. Faire un film, c’est prendre position.” - Sarah Maldoror 

Sarah Maldoror, cinéaste française d’origine antillaise, fut une pionnière du cinéma panafricain. Elle plaça ses préoccupations politiques et son engagement de longue date dans les mouvements de décolonisation au coeur de son oeuvre.

Son film révolutionnaire Sambizanga (1972), avec son “image révolutionnaire”, retrace la lutte de libération anticoloniale des activistes angolais et retranscrit le point de vue d’une femme qui se trouve dans ce moment historique.   

“Pour beaucoup de cinéastes africains, le cinéma est un outil de la révolution, une éducation politique pour transformer les consciences. Il s’inscrivait dans l’émergence d’un cinéma du Tiers-Monde cherchant à décoloniser la pensée pour favoriser des changements radicaux dans la société.” - Sarah Maldoror

Au cours de sa carrière, Sarah a fondé, aux côtés d’un certain nombre d’artistes africain·e·s et caribéen·ne·s, la première compagnie de théâtre noire en France (1956). Elle a réalisé une quarantaine de films, y compris d’importants documentaires qui mettent en valeur les vies et l’oeuvre d’artistes noir·e·s, notamment celles de son ami et poète Aimé Césaire qui lui écrivit ceci: 

“À Sarah Maldoror qui, caméra au poing, 
combat l’oppression, l’aliénation 
et défie la connerie humaine”. 

Sarah a également voulu permettre aux femmes africaines de s'approprier davantage le processus de réalisation des films. Dans une interview, elle faisait remarquer : 

"La femme africaine doit être partout. Elle doit être à l'image, derrière la caméra, au montage, à toutes les étapes de la fabrication d'un film. C'est elle qui doit parler de ses problèmes…”  

Sarah a laissé un héritage incroyablement puissant qui doit être transmis. 

Née le 19 juillet 1929, Sarah est décédée le 13 avril 2020 des suites de complications liées au coronavirus.

Regardez Sambizanga et lisez la critique de film parue dans le New York Times en 1973 (seulement en anglais)

Snippet - Intro CSW69_ES

#CongelarFascismos

#FreezeFascisms

A 30 años de la adopción de la Declaración y Plataforma de Acción de Beijing, existe una ola creciente de fascismos que ejercen gran poder e influencia en los espacios multilaterales, todo un retroceso para las conquistas de igualdad de género y la protección de los derechos humanos en el mundo entero.

En torno a la CSW69, estamos organizando, en conjunto y de forma horizontal, una serie de valientes espacios sobre el terreno y en línea a fin de compartir estrategias y forjar un poder feminista más allá de Beijing +30. Nuestra presencia colectiva trastorna las prácticas institucionales de exclusión en dichos espacios y, a la vez, apoya los procesos de organización de los movimientos en torno a las alternativas feministas a los sistemas de opresión.

Súmate a las conversaciones desde el 10 al 21 de marzo de 2025, mientras transformamos de forma colectiva la CSW69 en espacios para y sobre la resistencia y la solidaridad.

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Nous vivons dans un monde où la destruction de la Nature alimente notre économie mondiale actuelle.

2009: la ONU celebra una Conferencia sobre el impacto de la crisis económica

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Conferencia de la ONU sobre la crisis financiera y económica mundial y sus efectos sobre el desarrollo

  • Esta conferencia de 2009 fue un producto de la Conferencia de Doha realizada en 2008. La Declaración de Doha le había encargado a la ONU que el Presidente de su Asamblea General organizara una conferencia sobre la crisis financiera y económica mundial y su impacto sobre el desarrollo.
  • En esta conferencia los grupos de mujeres, a través del WWG, destacaron el impacto de la crisis financiera mundial sobre los grupos en situación de vulnerabilidad. En su declaración ante los Estados Miembros, el WWG les propuso acciones que consideraba necesarias para remediar los efectos de la crisis sobre las mujeres. También observó que otros grupos sociales afectados por la crisis son clave para una respuesta que esté en consonancia con los estándares y compromisos internacionales en materia de igualdad de género, derechos de las mujeres, derechos humanos y empoderamiento.

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< illustration : « Mouvement féministe », Karina Tungari

Gloria Chicaiza

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Category
Environment
Region
Latin America
Date of death / disappearance
Cause of death / disappearance

Disease

Gloria Chicaiza, an Ecuadorian social and environmental activist, was a fervent defender of land and water. She defied the status quo, fighting against a model of development based on extraction and worked tirelessly for ecological justice and the rights of communities affected by mining.  

In diverse areas of Ecuador, Gloria was part of resistance actions in favour of protecting the ecosystem. With passion and dedication, Gloria supported the indigenous and environmental movement, its communities and organizations who oppose mining projects and protect their territories and collective life projects. She spoke out, in local and international foras, against the criminalization of dissent and resistance, the pressure and violence being enacted against community activists, in particular, women human rights defenders and in support of community led efforts for food sovereignty and sustainability. 

She was the Mining Justice Coordinator at Acción Ecológica, member of the Latin American Network of Women Defenders of the Social and Environmental Rights and a Board member at the Observatory of Mining Conflicts of Latin America.

In October 2010, Gloria was accused by the mining company Curimining / Salazar Resources S.A. (with Headquarters in Vancouver, Canada) of sponsoring an act of terrorism, sabotage and illegal association to commit a crime. Acción Ecológica believed this to be “in retaliation for her work of denouncing the impacts of mining activities in the country.”

In 2014, Gloria supported the coordination of a delegation to the UN COP 20 Dialogue on Climate Change. The group consisted of 25 Indigenous women from Latin America.

Gloria passed away due to complications from a lung transplant on December 28, 2019. She is remembered for her resistance and tireless work. 

"The fastest way to achieve sustainability is still resistance." -  Gloria Chicaiza (2010 interview)


Tributes:

“Para GLORIA. GLORIA Agua. GLORIA Tierra. GLORIA Madre. GLORIA Revolución. GLORIA Hermana. GLORIA Cielo. GLORIAmiga. GLORIAstral. Thank you for weaving us together.” -Liliana Gutierrez

“Thank you Glorita, for sustaining hope, for keeping the fabric strong, for connecting the community, for the united hands, for solidarity, thank you Glorita for standing with us in the most difficult moments. Thank you for teaching us that throughout life, nobody gets tired.” (Chakana News)

“Gloria Chicaiza cherished and flourished in being one of many. And as humble as she was, she had an uncanny ability to lead and maintain a steady and thunderous beat, a life-affirming pulse that guided, mobilized, and inspired communities and networks in the protection of Mother Earth. She denounced all forms of violence against cuerpos-territorios. She endorsed el buen vivir.” - Gabriela Jiménez, Latin America Partnerships Coordinator, KAIROS

“Thank you Gloria Chicaiza from infinity we are sure that you will continue to support our struggle. You who continued to struggle with us despite your failing health. You will live on in the forests and the water that you defended with such courage. You will live on in our hearts.”- The community of Intag in Ecuador

Read more Tributes to Gloria