Affected Women from five continents reaffirm their leading role in the popular struggle
Women. Affected by the capitalist, racist, patriarchal, sexist and homophobic model. Who wage the daily struggle to ensure the continuity of life in the face of so many crises. Women murdered for being who they are. Killed by partners, by foremen, by instigators without identity. With lives cut short for defending their homes, their territory, their right to food, water, and a full life.
Nilce de Souza Magalhães, Marielle Franco, Mãe Gilda de Ogum, Dilma Ferreira Silva, Debora Moraes, Flávia Amboss, Berta Cáceres, Diana Carolina Rodriguez Madrigal. It was the memory of the companions who fought various battles in the construction of another world that inspired women to shout for respect, for freedom, and for a just future on Saturday night (November 8), at the IV International Meeting of Communities Affected by Dams and Climate Crisis.
From the periphery to the countryside, they lead the fight for rights, land, and housing around the world, and each in their own reality – whether in Africa, Asia, Oceania, Europe, or South America – they are protagonists in the popular struggle and ensure the organization of other women in defense of water, life, and their territories.
From the cradle of humanity, a cry for the earth
Euxabuce Awuonda, from the World March of Women, came from Kenya and began her presentation with a warning: “I need to say that women make up 70% of Africa’s population and only 20% of them have access to land.” This exclusion, on a continent where women have historically been the guardians of the land and agriculture, constitutes widespread violence. “Land is a fundamental right, which we need to produce food for ourselves and our families. It is impossible not to speak about it and not to fight for it,” stated Euxabuce.
During her speech, the Kenyan explained that, despite being the primary workers on the land, African women frequently face significant barriers to legally owning it. Traditional inheritance systems and even modern laws, in many cases, privilege men. Therefore, the fight for the right to land and inheritance is one of the most important causes for women on the continent, who recognize that this system favors capital and fight to break these cycles of dependency. “Capitalism also takes advantage of this situation, because it prevents women from having their space, cultivating, harvesting, and moving forward,” she pointed out.
Euxabuce emphasized that the movement plays a fundamental role in organizing these women, informing them about their rights and organizing them into groups to address the problems they recognize in their territories.
“We bring them here to talk about their situations, especially those facing droughts and floods, signs of the climate crisis. From this, women seek alternatives for energy, production, and education. African women need to stand up and know that they have rights,” she declared.
With a plea to the delegates, Euxabuce Awuonda concluded her participation with: “Let’s not wait until the 5th meeting to do something. We need to do it now, something that can truly impact lives.”
Resistance in the Great Blue Continent
From a small island in Oceania, Moñeka Dioro brought a song celebrating the strength of women who protect men on every journey. A native of the Mariana Islands, at this 4th International Meeting she is part of the small delegation from Oceania, which she calls the “great blue continent.” Amidst the more than 10,000 islands scattered across the Pacific Ocean, she described how the seafaring peoples have been experiencing the climate crisis: “Our islands are being swallowed by capitalism! We suffer from frequent flooding caused by rising sea levels.”
For Moñeka, it is precisely the affected populations of these islands who should share their experiences and knowledge in the search for solutions. “We are the first on the front line in the fight against the climate crisis. My island was colonized 450 years ago and gained its freedom very recently, but it is rich because it has a people who resist, especially our women,” she stated.
The Kurdish Women’s Revolution
Kurdistan, a stateless nation whose territory is divided between Turkey, Syria, Iran, and Iraq, is the stage for one of the most radical and inspiring experiences of social organization of our time. The struggle of this people, possessing their own identity, culture, and language, goes beyond the pursuit of territorial autonomy: it is a revolutionary societal project that places the liberation of women at its center.
“In the capitalist atlas, Kurdistan may not even appear,” warned Kurdish activist Sermin Gueven. In her speech, she detailed the women’s battle to overcome patriarchy and denounced the ecocide and genocide promoted by large imperialist projects, such as the construction of dams. “However, no language, no dam, no colonial system will stop us in our struggle. Because we, women, are connected like rivers, from the smallest to the largest. When we unite, we are very large and nothing can contain us,” she declared.
Sermin emphasized that one of the fundamental pillars of the Kurdish movement is social ecology, which advocates a harmonious, not exploitative, relationship with Mother Earth – seen not as a resource, but as a community of which humanity is an integral part.
Finally, with the force that marked her entire speech, Sermin Gueven shouted for women, for life, and for freedom, concluding: “It’s not just about the past, or about today, but it’s also about the future. We are willing to fight together, never for profit, but for our people.”
The way forward is to put life at the center
Brazilian Natalia Lobo, from the World March of Women, closed the evening with a crucial warning: talking about feminism does not, in itself, guarantee the construction of a struggle capable of transforming women’s lives. Real change, according to her, comes from collective organization.
“What truly changes women’s lives is collective organization, not only among themselves, but also alongside men, to guide their struggles in all spaces,” she stated.
Natalia presented the principles of feminist economics, a perspective that places the sustenance of life – and not profit – at the center of the political project. “Having people’s lives at the center also means evaluating what sustains this life, which today is the work of women, often done invisibly. But this work cannot be only done by women; it also needs to be done by men and, above all, by the State,” she denounced.
She reinforced the urgency of recognizing that climate change especially affects women, impacting food sovereignty, increasing the workload, and exacerbating violence and human rights violations. For Natalia, the answer already exists in women’s practices. “We have the solutions to the problems we discuss within our organization and our daily lives. The challenge is to fight to implement these solutions globally.”
