II Meeting of Feminists and Women’s Organisations Concludes in Anozategui, Venezuela

Anzoategui, 12^th August, 2013  (Prensa MinMujer)  – More than 200 women participated in the 2 meeting of Feminists and Women’s organisations held from Thursday 8 August to 11 August. Working groups were organised in order to discuss topics that contribute to feminist socialism.

The meeting was held in the Regional Centre of Teachers’ Support in Clarines, Anzoategui state. Spokespeople from different national collectives made proposals and exchanged experiences. Rebeca Madriz, the vice minister for protagonistic participation and socialist education with a gender vision from the women’s ministry, also participated.

A diverse range of feminist collectives and organisations participated in the event, including; Gender with Class, MUSA (Aragua), Josefa Joaquina Cemejo Organisation, Socialist Justice Mission of the Bolivarian University, Tribal Raising Collective, Feminist Spider, Apakuana (Bolivar), Momumas (Anzoategui), and Those Without Shame. Profesor Alba Carosio, from the Centre of Women’s Studies of the Central University, member of the Tinta Violeta Collective, and national coordinator of the Feminist Spider Collective, reported to the ministry on the event.

Topics such as grassroots feminism, the political participation of women, violence against women, work and the socio-economic model, sexual rights, reproductive rights, de-patriarchalisation of culture, education and communication, sexual and gender diversity, and the new masculinities.

Further, the Feminist Spider collective proposed, as a key topic in the area of culture, promoting socialist feminism, equality of female creators, and campaign so that the state doesn’t finance productions (publicity, articles, audio visual content etc) with sexist content, in order to transform not just social aspects of life but also cultural ones.

In the area of education the proposal was to go through the curriculums, from the Simoncitos [free childcare] and the schools to university education, with a gender perspective. It was proposed to work together with the education ministries.

“There have been advances, such as the Simoncitos, but it’s necessary to continue working and go further, towards true education for equality between man and women,” said Carosio.

Finally, Joselin Ariso, from the Bolivarian University of Venezuela, the Eco Socialist Autana Tepuy Collective, and the Venezuela Free of GMOs Campaign, expressed her excitement at participating in the meeting. “We have a eco-socialist struggle, we contribute to the construction of comandante  Chavez’s legacy; a new socio-economic model where women aren’t seen as objects but rather as the protagonists of transformation and the builders of grassroots power,” she said.

Translated by Tamara Pearson for Venezuelanalysis.com