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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:

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • Promoting more effective multigenerational organizing, exploring better ways to work together.

  • Supporting young feminists to engage in global development processes such as those within the United Nations

  • 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.

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FRMag - Ghosts Of Girlhood

Fantasmas de niña

por Akua Antiwiwaa

Delante mío hay una foto vieja, borrosa. En ella, estoy toda vestida de blanco, desde las perlas sujetas en mi cabello y apretadas contra mis orejas, hasta las que rodean holgadamente mis pequeñas muñecas. (...)

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arte: «Cultura Negra», Astrid Milena González Quintero >

Kate McInturff

Desde su paso por Peacebuild hasta la Canadian Feminist Alliance for International Action [alianza feminista canadiense para la acción internacional], Amnistía Internacional y el Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA, centro canadiense para las alternativas políticas), Kate tuvo durante toda su vida una pasión por los derechos de las mujeres y la igualdad de género y dedicó su carrera a luchar contra la desigualdad y a hacer del mundo un lugar más compasivo.

Fue integrante del Comité Coordinador de Social Watch [observatorio social] y colaboró con los informes del Observatorio Social Nacional canadiense. Como investigadora senior en el CCPA, Kate fue aclamada a nivel nacional por hacer la investigación, escribir y producir el informe anual «Los mejores y los peores lugares para ser mujer en Canadá».

Murió tranquilamente, rodeada de su familia, luego de una batalla de tres años con el cáncer de colon. Sus seres queridos la describen como «una feminista divertida, valiente y sin remordimientos».


 

Kate McInturff, Canada

What will be different about this Forum?

We have always worked towards ensuring that our Forums are co-developed with partners, movements and our priority constituencies.

For our upcoming Forum, we aim to deepen and strengthen that spirit and practice of co-creation and collaboration. We also recognize the need to improve the balance between the inclusion of many voices and experiences with room for participants and staff to breathe, take pause and enjoy some downtime.

This Forum will be different in the following ways: 

  • We will have far less organized Forum activities because we want people to have time to engage, experience, process, talk to each other, etc.  This is key to communicate: you can come to the Forum, be very engaged and active and not facilitate any organized activity (or “session”).
  • We will have Open Spaces - at least one whole afternoon without any organized activities - but also physical spaces available throughout the Forum for people to self-organize meetings, etc.
  • We have a Content and Methodology Committee made up of feminists from different regions with expertise on participatory methodologies to support us and all those leading activities at the Forum to use creative and engaging  formats for the Forum activities. 

 

I have responded to the survey but changed my mind and want our response to be withdrawn, what do I do?

If, for any reason, you want your response to be withdrawn and deleted, you have the right to do so. Please contact us via the form here, indicating “WITM Survey” as the title of your message, and we will withdraw and delete your response.

Snippet Forum Quoate Jac s m Kee, Malaysia (EN)

No hay nada como estar en un espacio compartido, intercambiar energías corporales, mirar a alguien a los ojos y establecer conexiones, ver el mundo y hacer algo juntxs. Eventos como el Foro se encuentran entre los más fuertes del movimiento feminista mundial...
- Jac s m Kee, Malasia

Film club - outrun

Out Run (2016) Anglais | Tagalog avec sous-titres anglais

Mobilisant des coiffeurs·ses transgenres de la classe ouvrière et des reines de beauté, les leaders dynamiques du seul parti politique LGBT au monde mènent une quête historique pour élire une femme trans au Congrès philippin.


Discussion en direct avec S. Leo Chiang et Johnny Symons, réalisateurs du film « Out Run »

Madiha El Safty

Madiha était une éminente professeure de sociologie qui s’est activement engagée auprès de la société civile en tant que défenseure des droits des femmes dans les pays arabes.

Elle a présidé l'Alliance pour les femmes arabes et a été membre du Comité sur la société civile et du Comité sur le développement du gouvernorat de Minia auprès du Conseil national pour les femmes. Elle a publié de nombreux articles qui ont éclairé et analysé les inégalités de genre et la discrimination à l'égard des femmes.

Ses collègues, étudiant-e-s et ami-e-s se souviennent d'elle avec tendresse.


 

Madiha El Safty, Egypt

How can I fund my participation in the AWID Forum? Many activists will not be able to afford the cost of the Forum – is AWID doing anything to provide assistance?

Please visit the "Funding ideas" page to get some ideas and inspiration for how you can fund your participation at the next Forum, including the limited support AWID will be able to provide.

¿Puedo compartir la encuesta con otrxs?

¡Sí, por favor! Te alentamos a compartir el enlace a la encuesta con tus redes. Cuanto más diversas sean las opiniones que recolectemos, más completa será nuestra comprensión del panorama financiero para las organizaciones feministas.

Où et quand se déroulera le Forum ?

Du 2 au 5 décembre 2024, à Bangkok, en Thaïlande ! Nous nous rassemblerons au Centre national de convention de la Reine Sirikit (QSNCC) et aussi virtuellement en ligne.

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Call to action

Mridula Prasad

Mridula was a strong advocate for the advancement for women’s health at a time when the topic of women’s sexual and reproductive health were considered taboo in Fiji.

The initial works of the Fiji Women’s Rights Movement about sexual and reproductive rights were under her guidance, and in September 1999, the United Nations Population Fund presented her with a regional award for Reproductive Health and Rights. Mridula was a strong, dedicated and tireless campaigner who was passionate about women’s health and empowerment.

She was a valued member of the women’s and feminist movement in Fiji and her contributions will always be remembered. Mridula passed away due to natural causes in 2017.

Mridula Prasad, Fiji

Will there be pre-Forum convenings this time around?

We have been contacted by global and regional partners about some ideas for pre-Forum convenings and we will share more information about these ideas soon.

If you plan to organize a meeting before the Forum please let us know!

Contact us


Many beautiful things emerged from the 2016 Black Feminisms Forum (BFF) that was organized by an Advisory Group and funded by AWID. Some of the independent organizing that arose from the BFF include Black feminist organizing in Brazil. While we won’t have another BFF this year, we remain committed to sharing some key learnings with anyone interested in continuing work around Black feminist organizing.

Snippet - WITM To share - RU

Чтобы поделиться опытом финансирования в вашей организации

How much does participation cost?

Please calculate your costs of travel to Bangkok, accommodations and per diem, visa, any accessibility needs, and incidentals, on top of a registration fee that will be announced soon. Hotels in the Sukhumvit area in Bangkok range from USD$50 to $200 per night, double occupancy.

AWID members receive a discount at registration, so if you are not a member yet, we invite you to consider becoming a member and joining our global feminist community.

ours chapter 4

Chapitre 4

Les acteurs et actrices antidroits

Un réseau complexe et mouvant d’antidroits exerce une influence croissante dans les sphères internationales et les politiques locales. Souvent soutenu·e·s par des financements d’origine imprécise, ces acteur·rice·s renforcent leur impact en créant des alliances tactiques entre thématiques, régions et croyances.

En lire plus

Amal Bayou

Amal fue una destacada política y parlamentaria de Libia.

Fue docente de la Universidad de Benghazi desde 1995 hasta su muerte, en 2017. Amal fue activista de la sociedad civil e integrante de varias iniciativas sociales y políticas. Asistió a las familias de lxs mártires y de lxs desaparecidxs y fue una de lxs fundadorxs de una iniciativa juvenil llamada «Juventud de Benghazi Libia».

En las elecciones parlamentarias de 2014, Amal fue elegida para la Cámara de Representantes con más de 14.000 votos (el mayor número de votos recibido por unx candidatx en las elecciones de 2014). Permanecerá en la memoria de muchxs como una mujer que actuó en política para garantizar un futuro mejor en uno de los contextos de la región más difíciles y afectados por los conflictos.


 

Amal Bayou, Libya