Grace Mann
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
Contributors of toolkit (WITM landing page)
We would like to thank the contributors and advisors of this toolkit:
- Angelika Arutyunova
- Cindy Clark
- Kamardip Singh
- Martin Redfern
- Pei Yao Chen
- Srilatha Batliwala
- Veronica Vidal
Our neighbourhood, our network, our strength
by Marta Plaza Fernández, Madrid, Spain (@gacela1980)
The feminist reality that I want to share is about weaving networks in which we uphold one another. Networks which come together in different ways, which emerge from our shared vulnerability, and which make all of us stronger.
The streets of Chamberí, my neighbourhood in Madrid, became much more of a home following the gatherings in the plazas organized by the citizens movement that originated in a rally on May 15, 2011. I think about how, during those years, we met each other and were able to associate faces, voices, smiles with so many neighbours who previously were only silhouettes without names or pasts, and who we passed by without seeing or hearing each other. I think about how we’ve become involved and dedicated; how we’ve woven a palpable, tangible community; how we’ve been advancing hand in hand towards building a new more inhabitable world, which we want and that we urgently need to create.
A group of activists and utopian neighbours, (in the best sense of the word utopian) – that moves us to action to do something real – that group for me was practically the first that reacted differently when I shared a part of my history and identity with them. With these women I shared my psychiatric diagnosis, my multiple hospital stays, the number of daily pills that accompanied me, my disability certificate, my difficulty in preserving that vital link that periodically disintegrates in my hands.
These neighbours, friends, comrades, links, loves –did not only not distance themselves from me once they got to know someone who many others had labelled as problematic, manipulator, egotistical – but became my principal network of affection and mutual support. They decided to navigate with me when the sea became agitated with storms. These people have given a different meaning to my days.
Building our feminist reality also encompasses carrying the “I believe you, sister” that we use when a friend has suffered a macho attack to the violence experienced by psychiatrized women at the hands of the very psychiatric system and institutions that are supposed to help us (and instead are often the new abuser who traumatizes and hurts us all over again). And this reality must include respect for our decisions, without taking away our agency and capacity to direct our own steps to one space or another; to listen to our narratives, desires, needs…without trying to impose others that are alien to us. It means not delegitimizing our discourse, not alluding to the label of our diagnosis, nor our madness.
With these transformation, each stay in the psychiatric institute did erase the ties that we had been able to build, but instead this network stayed by my side, its members took turns so that each day there would be no lull in calls, in visits, so that I could feel them as close as one can feel another person separated by locked doors (but unfortunately open for abuse) within the confines of the psychiatric ward. Through the warmth and kindness from my people I could rebuild that vital link that had once again been broken.
The even bigger leap happened when I was already aware of the numerous violent acts and abuse (where among other assaults, I spent days strapped to a bed, relieving myself where I lay), I decided that I would not go back to being interned.
This network of care, these women neighbours-friends-loves-comrades, they respected my refusal to return to the hospital and supported me through each crisis I’ve been through since then. Without being interned, without violence.
They took turns accompanying me when my link to life was so broken that I felt such a huge risk which I couldn’t handle on my own. They organized WhatsApp group check-ins. They coordinated care and responsibilities so that no one would feel overwhelmed - because when an individual feels overloaded, they make decisions based on fear and the need for control instead of prioritizing accompaniment and care.
That first crisis that we were able to surmount together in this way – without being admitted to the psychiatric institute, represented a dramatic change in my life. There were months when my life was at risk, of intense suffering and of so much fear for my people and for me. But we overcame it together, and all that I thought was that if we could get over that crisis, then we could also find ways to face all the difficulties and crises that may come.
These feminist realities that we’re building day by day keep expanding, growing and taking different forms. We’re learning together, we’re growing together. Distancing ourselves from a welfare mentality, one of the first lessons was that, in reality, there wouldn’t be anyone receiving care (because of a psychiatric label) or anyone helping, from the other side of the sanity/insanity line. We learnt – we’re learning – to move to a different key – that of mutual support, of providing care and being cared for, of caring for each other.
We’ve also explored the limits of self care and the strength of collectivizing care and redistributing it so it’s not a burden that paralyzes us; we learnt – and we keep learning today – about joy and enjoying care that is chosen.
Another recent learning is about how difficult it was to start integrating money as another component of mutual support that we all give and receive. It was hard for us to realize how internalized capitalism kept on reverberating in our relationship with money, and that even though no one expected any payment for the containers of lentils we cooked amongst us when eating and cooking were difficult tasks, our expectation regarding money was different. Phrases like “how much you have is how much you’re worth” become stuck inside of us without critically analyzing them. It’s easy to keep thinking that the money each one has is related to the effort made to earn it, and not due to other social conditioning distant from personal merit. In fact, within this well-established mutual support network – redistributing money based on needs without questioning – was still a remote reality for our day to day. That’s why this is something that we’ve recently started to work on and think through as a group.
We want to get closer to that anti-capitalist world where mutual support is the way that we have chosen to be in the world; and that entails deconstructing our personal and collective relationship with money and internalized capitalism.
In these feminist realities we also know that learning never stops, and that the road continues to be shaped as we travel upon it. There is still much to do to keep caring for ourselves, to keep expanding perspectives and to make ourselves more aware of the persistent power imbalances, of privileges that we hold and continue to exercise, without realizing the violence that they reproduce.
Though we’ve already travelled so far, we still have a long way to go to get closer to that new world that we hold in our hearts (and for some within our crazy little heads too). Racism, classism, adult-centrism, fat-phobia, and machismo that persists among our partners.
Among the pending lessons, we’ve needed for a long time already to build a liveable future in which feminism is really intersectional and in which we all have space, in which the realities and oppressions of other sisters are just as important as our own. We also need to move forward horizontally when we build collectively – getting rid of egos, of protagonisms, to live together and deal with the need for recognition in a different way. And to also keep making strides grounded in the awareness that the personal is always, always political.
How we relate to and link with each other cannot be relegated to the private domain, nor kept silent: other loves are possible, other connections and other families are necessary, and we are also inventing them as we go.
This new world which we want to create, and that we need to believe in – is this kind world – in which we can love, and feel pride in ourselves – and in which all worlds will fit. We’ll keep at it.
“Healing Together”
by Upasana Agarwal, Kolkata, India (@upasana_a)
Looking at activists and feminists as healers and nourishers of the world, in the midst of battling growing right wing presence, white supremacy and climate change. This piece highlights how our feminist reality puts kindness, solidarity, and empathy into action by showing up and challenging the status quo to liberate us all.
Yamile Guerra
Yamile Guerra fue una conocida abogada, líder comunitaria y activista política de la región colombiana de Santander.
Trabajó activamente para resolver las disputas entre comunidades locales y empresas promotoras, y abogó contra la apropiación ilegal de las tierras. Yamile ocupó varios cargos políticos, entre ellos la Secretaría General del Gobierno de Santander en Bogotá, y se presentó también a la Alcaldía de Bucaramanga. En los últimos años de su vida, Yamile se volvió cada vez más activa en las causas medioambientales contra los desarrollos urbanos, particularmente, en la defensa de los humedales biodiversos de Santurbán contra los desarrollos urbanos, una región que abastece de agua dulce a casi 2 millones de personas .
Según su familia y amigxs, Yamile recibía amenazas de muerte a diario y había pedido protección a las autoridades.
"Ella era muy consciente de este problema [litigio de tierras] y manifestó repetidamente que se sentía insegura". - Alixon Navarro Muñoz, periodista y amigo de la familia Guerra.
El 20 de julio de 2019, Yamile fue asesinada a tiros por dos hombres en Floridablanca, Santander. Acababa de terminar de discutir con ellos por una disputa de tierras. Un sospechoso fue arrestado más tarde por su asesinato y admitió haber recibido un pago por llevar a cabo su asesinato. Según varios informes, o Yamile fue la tercera integrante de su familia en ser asesinada a causa de las disputas por tierras. El padre de Yamile, Hernando Guerra, había sido asesinado también varios años antes.
El asesinato de Yamile forma parte de una ola de violencia y asesinatos sistemáticos contra cientos de activistas sociales y defensorxs de los derechos humanos en Colombia. Según el Instituto de Estudios para el Desarrollo y la Paz (INDEPAZ), en el momento de la muerte de Yamile, más de 700 líderes comunitarios y activistas de derechos humanos habían sido asesinadxs desde que el país firmó un acuerdo de paz en agosto de 2016. La mayoría de ellxs fueron asesinadxs por enfrentar el tráfico ilegal de drogas y las operaciones mineras. Las personas indígenas, afrocolombianas y las mujeres defensoras de derechos humanos son lxs activistas que corren mayor riesgo.
Menos de una semana después de la muerte de Yamile, miles de colombianxs marcharon por pueblos y ciudades sosteniendo fotos en blanco y negro de activistas que habían sido asesinadxs, en las pancartas se podía leer: "Sin líderes no puede haber paz" y "No más derramamientos de sangre".
Yamile Guerra tenía solo 42 años en el momento de su asesinato.
Snippet - WITM Who should - PT
Quem deve realizar este inquérito?
O inquérito destina-se a grupos, organizações e movimentos que trabalham especificamente ou principalmente pelos direitos das mulheres, pessoas LBTQI+ e pela justiça de género, em todos os contextos, em todos os níveis e em todas as regiões. Se este for um dos pilares principais do seu grupo, da sua comunidade, da sua rede ou de qualquer outro tipo de organização, quer esteja registada ou não, seja nova ou já estabelecida, convidamo-lo a participar neste inquérito.
* De momento, não solicitamos respostas de indivídues ou de fundos feministas e de mulheres.
Body
FRMag - United against violence (ES)
Juntas contra la violencia
por Karina Ocampo
A un rincón escondido de Chiapas, México, llegamos mujeres y disidencias sexuales para organizar nuestras acciones. (...)
< arte: «Proyecto fotográfico: La muerte sale por el Oriente», de Sonia MadrigalExposition Pleasure Garden
Cette œuvre est la collaboration photographique et illustrative réalisée par Siphumeze et Katia pendant le confinement. Elle se penche sur les récits de sexe et de plaisir des queers noirs, le bondage, le sexe protégé, les jouets, la santé mentale et le sexe et bien d'autres choses encore. Elle a été créée pour accompagner l'anthologie Touch.
À propos des artistes
Siphumeze Khundayi est une créatrice d'art, photographe et animatrice qui s'intéresse aux moyens créatifs de réunir le dialogue et la pratique artistique en relation avec l'identité queer africaine.
Elle est directrice créative de HOLAAfrica!, un collectif panafricaniste féministe en ligne.
Ses travaux de performance en solo et collaboratifs ont été présentés dans un certain nombre de festivals et d'espaces théâtraux tels que le festival Ricca Ricca au Japon.
Elle a mis en scène deux productions nominées aux Naledi Awards en 2017 et 2018. Elle a aussi mis en scène un spectacle qui a remporté un prix Standard Bank Ovation en 2020.
En tant que photographe, elle a participé à une exposition de groupe intitulée Flowers of my Soul (Fleurs de mon âme) en Italie, organisée par le Misfit Project. Elle a produit trois publications pour HOLAAfrica et a été publiée dans le deuxième volume, pour lequel elle a fourni la couverture: As You Like des Gerald Kraak Anthologies.
Katia Herrera est une artiste visuelle numérique de 21 ans originaire de la ville bruyante de Saint-Domingue, en République dominicaine. Bien que Herrera soit une introvertie autoproclamée, ses œuvres d'art sont remarquablement fortes dans un monde qui tente de faire taire les voix des personnes noires. Avec des titres comme Black Woman (Femme Noire), You Own the Moon (La Lune t’Appartient), Earth Goddess (Déesse de la Terre), Forever (Pour Toujours) et Universe Protector (Protecteur.rice de l’Univers), l'héritage de Herrera sera marqué par sa volonté passionnée de mettre en lumière l'endurance et la persévérance des Noir·e·s d'hier et d'aujourd'hui, afin de contrer le discours selon lequel la peau noire ne devrait être associée qu'à l'esclavage.
L'une de ses œuvres la plus belle et la plus vivante, Universe Protector, dépeint l'âme noire comme une entité divine pleine de force, de puissance et de grandeur. C’est dans sa jeunesse que son amour du graphisme a été stimulé grâce à l'art de ses parents et le Photoshop qu'ils avaient téléchargé sur leur ordinateur pour leur photographie professionnelle.
Francela Mendez
Snippet FEA We are living in a world left (FR)
Nous vivons dans un monde où la destruction de la Nature alimente notre économie mondiale actuelle.
FRMag - Roots of Love and Resilience
Kunyit Asam : Les racines de l’amour et de la résilience
par Prinka Saraswati
Les cycles menstruels sont généralement d’une durée de 27 à 30 jours. Pendant cette période, les règles elles-mêmes ne durent que 5 à 7 jours. L’épuisement, les sautes d’humeur et les crampes sont le résultat de l’inflammation qui se produit alors. (...)
< illustration : « Mouvement féministe », Karina Tungari
Colectivo Morivivi
Colectivo Moriviví is an all women artistic collective. Our artistic production consists of muralism, community-led muralism, and protest performance/actions. Our work is about democratizing art and bringing the narratives of Puerto Rican communities to the public sphere to create spaces in which they are validated. We believe that through artivism we can promote consciousness on social issues and strengthen our collective memory.
As part of their participation in AWID’s Artist Working Group, Colectivo Morivivi gathered a diverse group of members, partners and staff to facilitate a collaborative process of dreaming into, informing, and deciding on the content for a community mural through a multi-stage co-creation process. The project began with a remote conceptualization with feminists from different parts of the planet brought together by AWID, and then it evolved to its re-contextualization and realization in Puerto Rico. We were honored to have the input of local artists Las Nietas de Nonó(@lasnietasdenono), the participation of local women in the Community Painting Session, the logistics support from the Municipality of Caguas, and FRIDA Young Feminist Fund’s additional support to the collective.
The mural explores the transcendence of borders by presenting bodies like a map, in an embrace that highlights the intersection of the different feminist manifestations, practices and realities.
We also thank Kelvin Rodríguez, who documented and captured the different stages of this project in Puerto Rico:
About Colectivo Morivivi
Moriviví is a collective of young female artists, working on public art since April 2013. Based in Puerto Rico, we’ve gained recognition for the creation of murals and community led arts.
The group started out in local Urban Art Festivals. As our work became more popular, organizations and community leadership started to reach out to us. We began as eight high schoolers who wanted to paint a mural together. However, in eight years of hard work, we’ve faced many challenges. Now we are in a period of transition. During this following year, we aim to restructure the collective internally. Our goal is to open new opportunities for collaborators and back-up our decision making process with a new evaluation system. In the long run, we aspire to become an alternative school of art practice for those interested in immersing themselves in community art production.
Jelena Santic
Laurie Carlos
Laurie Carlos was an actor, director, dancer, playwright, and poet in the United States. An extraordinary artist and visionary with powerful ways of bringing the art out in others.
“Laurie walked in the room (any room/every room) with swirling clairvoyance, artistic genius, embodied rigor, fierce realness—and a determination to be free...and to free others. A Magic Maker. A Seer. A Shape Shifter. Laurie told me once that she went inside people’s bodies to find what they needed.” - Sharon Bridgforth
She combined performance styles such as rhythmic gestures and text. Laurie mentored new actors, performers, writers and helped amplify their work through Naked Stages, a fellowship for emerging artists. She was an artistic fellow at Penumbra Theater and supported with identifying scripts to produce, with a goal of “bringing more feminine voices into the theater”. Laurie was also a member of Urban Bush Women, a renowned contemporary dance company telling stories of women of the African diaspora.
In 1976, as Lady in Blue, she made her Broadway debut in Ntozake Shange’s original and award-winning production of the poetic drama For colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf. Laurie’s own works include White Chocolate, The Cooking Show, and Organdy Falsetto.
“I tell the stories in the movement—the inside dances that occur spontaneously, as in life—the music and the text. If I write a line, it doesn’t necessarily have to be a line that is spoken; it can be a line that’s moved. A line from which music is created. The gesture becomes the sentence. So much of who we are as women, as people, has to do with how we gesture to one another all the time, and particularly through emotional moments. Gesture becomes a sentence or a state of fact. If I put on a script ‘four gestures,’ that doesn’t mean I’m not saying anything; that means I have opened it up for something to be said physically.” Laurie Carlos
Laurie was born and grew up in New York City, worked and lived in Twin Cities. She passed away on 29 December 2016, at the age of 67, after a battle with colon cancer.
Tributes:
“I believe that that was exactly Laurie’s intention. To save us. From mediocrity. From ego. From laziness. From half-realized art making. From being paralyzed by fear.
Laurie wanted to help us Shine fully.
In our artistry.
In our Lives.” - Sharon Bridgforth for Pillsbury House Theatre
“There’s no one that knew Laurie that wouldn’t call her a singular individual. She was her own person. She was her own person, her own artist; she put the world as she knew it on stage with real style and understanding, and she lived her art.” - Lou Bellamy, Founder of Penumbra Theater Company, for Star Tribune
Snippet - Blog post Quote_FR
« Poursuivons notre dynamique de solidarité, d’espoir et d’imagination radicale. »
- Beijing+30 et la CSW : adopter une lecture féministe des multiples défis de notre époque
Snippet - That Feminist Fire Podcast Trailer (ES)
FRMag - Armenians
Armenians, Feminism is our Past and Future
by Sophia Armen
Like it or not fierce ungerhouis have been part and parcel to our histories of resistance and are here to stay. (...)