Farida Afridi
Young Feminist Activism
Organizing creatively, facing an increasing threat
Young feminist activists play a critical role in women’s rights organizations and movements worldwide by bringing up new issues that feminists face today. Their strength, creativity and adaptability are vital to the sustainability of feminist organizing.
At the same time, they face specific impediments to their activism such as limited access to funding and support, lack of capacity-building opportunities, and a significant increase of attacks on young women human rights defenders. This creates a lack of visibility that makes more difficult their inclusion and effective participation within women’s rights movements.
A multigenerational approach
AWID’s young feminist activism program was created to make sure the voices of young women are heard and reflected in feminist discourse. We want to ensure that young feminists have better access to funding, capacity-building opportunities and international processes. In addition to supporting young feminists directly, we are also working with women’s rights activists of all ages on practical models and strategies for effective multigenerational organizing.
Our Actions
We want young feminist activists to play a role in decision-making affecting their rights by:
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Fostering community and sharing information through the Young Feminist Wire. Recognizing the importance of online media for the work of young feminists, our team launched the Young Feminist Wire in May 2010 to share information, build capacity through online webinars and e-discussions, and encourage community building.
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Researching and building knowledge on young feminist activism, to increase the visibility and impact of young feminist activism within and across women’s rights movements and other key actors such as donors.
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Promoting more effective multigenerational organizing, exploring better ways to work together.
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Supporting young feminists to engage in global development processes such as those within the United Nations
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Collaboration across all of AWID’s priority areas, including the Forum, to ensure young feminists’ key contributions, perspectives, needs and activism are reflected in debates, policies and programs affecting them.
Related Content
Por que devo considerar responder ao inquérito?
Existem várias razões pelas quais a sua resposta ao inquérito WITM é importante. Por exemplo, tem a oportunidade de partilhar a sua experiência vivida com a mobilização de financiamento para apoiar a sua organização; de reivindicar o seu poder como especialista sobre como o dinheiro circula e os bolsos em que entra; e de contribuir para a defesa coletiva e consistente junto de financiadores para mover mais recursos de maior qualidade. Ao longo das últimas duas décadas, o inquérito WITM da AWID tem-se revelado um recurso fundamental para ativistas e financiadores. Convidamo-lo a juntar-se a nós na sua terceira edição para destacar o estado efetivo do financiamento, desafiar soluções falsas e apontar a forma como o financiamento precisa de mudar para que os movimentos prosperem e enfrentem os desafios complexos do nosso tempo.
The AWID Forum Access Fund
We strive to make the AWID Forum a truly global gathering with participation from a diverse array of movements, regions and generations. To this end, AWID mobilizes resources for a limited Access Fund (AF) to assist some participants with the costs of attending the Forum.
The 14th AWID International Forum will take place 11-14 January 2021, in Taipei, Taiwan.
How will the Access Fund be allocated?
For this AWID Forum, there will be no application process.
Access Fund grants will be allocated by invitation only to:
- Two persons per activity selected for the Forum program (decided by those organizations, groups or individuals organizing the activity)
- Participants who identify as part of Priority Forum Constituencies (PFCs) recommended by the organizations, networks and groups who are co-creating the Forum with AWID.
- PFCs are those which we consider would strengthen our collective power as movements, are not centered in mainstream feminist movements, and whose Feminist Realities we would like to honor, celebrate and visibilize:
- Black feminists
- Indigenous feminists
- Trans, gender non-conforming and intersex feminists
- Feminists with disabilities
- Feminist sex workers and informal workers, including migrant workers
- Feminists affected by migration
- Women affected by drug policy
- Feminists from the Forum regions (with a focus on the Pacific and mainland China)
In addition, AWID will fund approximately 100 participants from the Forum’s location. Forum Committee Members (Content and Methodology, Access and Host) as well as those in the Artists Working Group [link] are also granted Access Fund support.
What does the Access Fund cover?
For selected participants, the Access Fund will cover the cost of their:
- Flight
- Accommodation
- Visa
- Local transportation in Taipei
- Travel medical insurance
The Access Fund will NOT cover their:
- Forum registration fee
- Transportation to and from the airport in their city of departure
- Other incidental costs
Apart from the Access Fund, how can I fund my participation at the Forum?
We have listed other ideas on how to fund your participation at the AWID Forum on the Funding Ideas page.
Snippet FEA Decent Pay (EN)
DECENT PAY
Islam Bibi
Reason to join 1
Be part of an international feminist membership organization and community. Our members are based in all regions of the world, learning and supporting each other in a global network based on solidarity.
هل يمكن أن تعبئ مجموعة واحدة الاستطلاع أكثر من مرة واحدة؟
كلا. نطلب فقط تعبئة استطلاع واحد لكل مجموعة.
Dilma Ferreira Silva
Dilma Ferreira Silva was a leading Amazonian rights activist who fought for decades for the rights of people affected by dams.
She herself was among the 32,000 people displaced by the Tucuruí, a mega-hydroelectric power plant, built in Brazil during the 1964-1985 military dictatorship.
In 2005 Dilma was invited to join the Movement of Dam-Affected Peoples in Brazil (MAB), and in 2006 she formed the women’s collective, eventually becoming regional coordinator of the movement.
In speaking about her activism, her colleagues commented:
“She stood out very fast because she was always very fearless in the struggle.”
Dilma lived in the rural settlement of Salvador Allende,50 kilometers from Tucuruí, and dedicated her life to better protect communities and the land affected by the construction of mega projects. She was especially concerned with the gendered impacts of such projects and advocated for women’s rights.
At a national MAB meeting in 2011, Dilma spoke to women affected by the dams, saying:
“We are the real Marias, warriors, fighters who are there, facing the challenge of daily struggle”.
In the following years, Dilma organized grassroots MAD groups and worked with the community to form farming cooperatives that created a better distribution of food for the community. They improved the commercialization of fishing, and developed a cistern project for safe drinking water. She was also an advocate for farmers whose lands were being coveted by ‘grileiros’ (land grabbers).
On 22nd March 2019, at the age of 48, Dilma, her husband and their friend were all brutally murdered. The three killings came as part of a wave of violence in the Amazon against the Movimento dos Trabalhadores Sem Terra (translates as ‘landless workers’ movement’), environmental and indigenous activists.
AWID Member Community Guidelines
Co-creating welcoming and safe spaces
The co-creation of our feminist realities starts with ourselves and how we treat each other. We are dedicated to creating and protecting safe and supportive spaces for our communities both online and in person. We also consider that safe and welcoming spaces are co-owned and co-created.
We expect our members to act in a manner that is ethical, responsible and consistent with the values of AWID and assume collective responsibility to ensure an atmosphere of mutual respect and solidarity.
All AWID members are encouraged to:
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Connect with others, help break isolation and further solidarity. It’s easy to feel lost and alone, and a little friendliness and responsiveness goes a long way.
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Interact and engage peacefully. Differences in opinion will naturally arise, so please think of these differences as useful for expanding your thinking and ways of seeing the world.
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Help build a space that recognizes and validates multiple lived experiences and diversities of bodies and gender expressions. Recognize that we all carry intersectional identities.
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Use inclusive language. Be respectful of how people want to be referred to in terms of gender identity or expression (like pronouns), and practice inclusive language.
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Listen and make adjustments in your behavior and ways of engaging if someone says they feel uncomfortable. Don’t ask others questions that you wouldn't want to be asked yourself.
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Help challenge oppressive behavior, which includes harassment, verbal or physical violence, violation of consent, and any action that perpetuates classism, ageism, ableism, racism, misogyny, heterosexism, transphobia and other oppressions. If needed, please reach out to AWID staff.
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Practice speaking and listening with an open mind and heart and without judgement.
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Be honest, open and heartfelt. Speak and share authentically about your experiences, your challenges, your hopes and dreams, and your vision for your own life and your community.
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Practice active listening and self-awareness. Be aware of how much time and space you are taking up- leave room for others, practice active listening and learning.
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Be mindful and credit others for their work and activism. Remember that we are all working collectively to contribute to change-- Ensure that you recognize the contribution of others and credit them when appropriate e.g. in discussions, or in articles, pictures etc.
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Stay safe! We encourage you to take measures to protect yourself online and in person, especially if you have reason to believe that speaking out will put you in danger. Members may use aliases or profile images that conceal their identity. For more information please refer to the “Digital Security First Aid Kit for Human Rights Defenders” produced by APC - Association for Progressive Communications.
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Respect the privacy needs of others! Do not share or forward any information without explicit permission.
Our Values
Solidarity
We take a position in solidarity with each other and diverse struggles for justice and freedoms. We strive to mobilize and strengthen collective action and practice meaningful ways of working with each other.
Human rights
We believe in a full application of the principle of rights including those enshrined in international laws and affirm the belief that all human rights are interrelated, interdependent and indivisible. We are committed to working towards the eradication of all discriminations based on gender, sexuality, religion, age, ability, ethnicity, race, nationality, class or other factors.
Responsibility, Accountability, and Integrity
We strive for transparency, responsible use of our resources, fairness in our collaborations and accountability and integrity with our members, partners, funders and the movements with(in) which we work. We are committed to reflecting on our experiences, sharing our learnings openly, and striving to change our practices accordingly.
Intersectionality
We believe that for feminist movements to be transformative and strong we must continue to work across our similarities and differences. We also must interrogate power and privilege both within and outside our movements.
Bodily autonomy, integrity and freedoms
We celebrate everyone's right to choose their identities, relationships, goals, work, dreams and pleasures, and what they do with their mind, body and spirit. We believe in working towards access to resources, information and safe and enabling environments that allow this to happen.
Justice and systemic change
We work towards a world based on social, environmental, and economic justice; and interdependence, solidarity, and respect. We work towards dismantling systems of oppressive power and against all its manifestations, including patriarchy, fundamentalisms, militarisms, fascisms and corporate power that threaten our lives and our world. We want a just world where resources and power are shared in ways that enable everyone to thrive.
Please note:
AWID reserves the right to delete comments, suspend or revoke membership when our community guidelines have been violated. AWID members are not authorised to represent AWID in any official capacity unless stipulated in writing. Members cannot use AWID spaces to proselytize or recruit members to join a religious faith or organisation. Members cannot use AWID spaces to request funds for personal use although links to external fundraising efforts or activism campaigns are permissible.
Snippet FEA Sopo Japaridze Quote (ES)
"Sabemos que todo está en nuestra contra y hay muy pocas posibilidades de cambiar eso. Pero creemos en la intervención y creo que tenemos una oportunidad y deberíamos usarla. Es por eso que estamos haciendo todo lo que estamos haciendo. Estamos dispuestos a presionar por cosas inauditas".
- Sopo Japaridze para OpenDemocracy
Photo @სოლიდარობის ქსელი / Solidarity Network
Palwasha Tokhi
Reason to join 6
Participa en el Foro Internacional de AWID - un importante encuentro feminista global—, y accede a descuentos especiales para afiliadxs de AWID y puntos de entrada para el diálogo virtual. Creado en conjunto por los movimientos feministas, el Foro es un espacio único para una discusión profunda y para dejar correr la imaginación, donde desafiamos y fortalecemos nuestros procesos organizativos, donde conectamos nuestras luchas y las realidades feministas.
Могу ли я пройти опрос со своего телефона?
Да, доступ к опросу можно получить с помощью смартфона.
Body
Molara Ogundipe
"Pero, ¿ fue el maestro alguna vez
seducido por el poder?
¿Alguna vez se rompió
un sistema con aceptación ?
¿Cuándo el JEFE te entregará el poder con amor?
¿En Jo'Burg, en Cancún o en la ONU? - Molara Ogundipe
En una entrevista, realizada en la Feria Internacional del Libro de Ghana de 2010, Molara Ogundipe se presentó con estas palabras "...Soy una nigeriana. He vivido, posiblemente, en todo el mundo, excepto en la Unión Soviética y China".
A través de los diferentes continentes y países, la profesora Ogundipe enseñó literatura comparada, escritura, género y filología inglesa, y utilizó la literatura como vehículo para la transformación social y el replanteamiento de las relaciones de género.
Molara Ogundipe, como pensadora, escritora, editora, crítica social, poeta y activista feminista, logró combinar el trabajo teórico con la creatividad y la acción práctica. Se la considera una de las principales voces críticas de los feminismos africanos, los estudios de género y la teoría literaria.
Molara acuñó el concepto de "estiwanismo" a partir de las siglas STIWA (Social Transformations in Africa Including Women) [Transformaciones Sociales en África Incluyendo a las Mujeres], con el fin de reconocer la necesidad de “alejar la definición del feminismo y los feminismos en relación con Euro-América u otro lugar, y declamar lealtades o deslealtades". Con su obra fundamental, "Recreándonos Nosotras Mismas", de 1994, Molara Ogundipe (publicada bajo el nombre de Molara Ogundipe-Leslie) dejó tras de sí un inmenso cuerpo de conocimientos que descolonizó el discurso feminista y "re-centró a las mujeres africanas en sus completas y complejas narrativas... guiadas por una exploración de la liberación económica, política y social de las mujeres africanas y la restauración de la agencia femenina en las diferentes culturas de África".
Comentando los retos a los que se enfrentó como joven académica, dijo:
"Cuando empecé a hablar y escribir sobre el feminismo a finales de los años sesenta y en los setenta, se me veía como una chica buena y admirable que se había extraviado, una mujer cuya cabeza se había arruinado con un exceso de aprendizaje".
Molara Ogundipe se destacó por su liderazgo a la hora de combinar el activismo con el mundo académico; en 1977 fue una de las fundadoras de la Asociación de Mujeres en la Investigación y el Desarrollo, AAWORD (por sus siglas en inglés),. En 1982 fundó Mujeres en Nigeria, WIN (por sus siglas en inglés), con el fin de abogar por un acceso pleno a los "derechos económicos, sociales y políticos" para las mujeres nigerianas. Posteriormente, estableció y dirigió la Fundación Internacional para la Educación y el Monitoreo y pasó muchos años en el consejo editorial del periódico The Guardian.
Luego de haber crecido con el pueblo yoruba, sus tradiciones, cultura e idioma, dijo una vez:
"Creo que la celebración de la vida, de las personas que mueren después de una vida llena de logros, es uno de los aspectos más hermosos de la cultura yoruba".
El nombre de alabanza yoruba 'Oiki' de Molara era Ayike. Molara nació el 27 de diciembre de 1940 y falleció el 18 de junio de 2019 a la edad de 78 años, en Ijebu-Igbo, Estado de Ogun, Nigeria.
Yo, Imposible proyección: la guía de participación
Snippet FEA Otras Union meetings and demonstrations (FR)
Réunions et manifestations du Syndicat OTRAS
Maha Abu-Dayyeh
Our values - esponsibility, Accountability, and Integrity
Responsabilité, responsabilisation et intégrité
Nous nous attachons à faire preuve de transparence, à utiliser nos ressources de manière responsable, à être équitables dans nos collaborations et à faire preuve de responsabilité et d'intégrité envers nos membres, nos partenaires, nos bailleurs de fonds et les mouvements avec lesquels nous travaillons. Nous nous engageons à réfléchir sur nos expériences, à partager ouvertement nos connaissances et à nous efforcer de modifier nos pratiques en conséquence.