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| World March of Women | |
|---|---|
| Name | World March of Women |
| Formation | 2000 |
| Founders | Social Activists |
| Type | Feminist Network |
| Region served | International |
World March of Women The World March of Women is an international feminist network that mobilized for women's rights across continents, coordinating advocacy, demonstrations, and campaigns linking activists, nongovernmental organizations and social movements. Founded at the turn of the 21st century, it drew participants from diverse movements including labor unions, LGBT+ rights organizations, Indigenous groups, and anti-globalization coalitions, and engaged with institutions such as the United Nations, the African Union, the European Union, and regional bodies. Its campaigns intersected with issues addressed by movements like the Zapatistas, anti-apartheid activists, and environmental networks, situating the organization within a broad transnational activist landscape.
The initiative emerged from convergences among activists associated with Beijing Declaration, Canadian Women's Movement, Latin American feminist networks, African women's networks, Asian women's networks, and grassroots organizations linked to World Social Forum, Social Forum of the Americas, International Planned Parenthood Federation, and Women Living Under Muslim Laws. Early planning involved coalitions that included representatives connected to Amnesty International, Médecins Sans Frontières, Oxfam International, Greenpeace, International Trade Union Confederation, and faith-based networks such as World Council of Churches. The first global mobilization drew inspiration from prior campaigns like Women's March on Versailles (historical precedent), Greenham Common Women's Peace Camp, International Women's Year, and transnational campaigns against structural adjustment policies implemented under International Monetary Fund and World Bank programs. Founders coordinated across cities with histories of protest such as Montreal, Santiago, Dakar, Mumbai, Manila, and Johannesburg.
The movement articulated goals grounded in feminist frameworks associated with leaders and theorists from bell hooks, Simone de Beauvoir, Gloria Steinem, Angela Davis, María Lugones, and organizations like Association for Women's Rights in Development. Principles emphasized intersectionality as theorized alongside scholars linked to Combahee River Collective and movements connected to Black Lives Matter, Indigenous rights movements, Dalit rights movement, Lesbian and Gay Movement, and campaigns addressing HIV/AIDS led by groups such as ACT UP. Policy demands targeted instruments and treaties including advocacy at United Nations Commission on the Status of Women, engagement with Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, and critiques of trade agreements like NAFTA, Trans-Pacific Partnership, and structural programs associated with World Bank lending. The platform combined reproductive rights agendas championed by Planned Parenthood Federation of America and International Planned Parenthood Federation with economic justice aims resonant with Via Campesina and International Trade Union Confederation.
Major actions included coordinated days of protest, delegations to intergovernmental summits such as World Trade Organization ministerials, lobbying at United Nations General Assembly sessions, and solidarity events timed with anniversaries like International Women's Day and Human Rights Day. Campaigns addressed crises connected to conflicts such as those in Palestine, Syria, and DR Congo, and humanitarian responses related to disasters like the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami and Haiti 2010 earthquake. The network launched initiatives against privatization policies implemented in regions affected by Structural adjustment programs promoted by International Monetary Fund and World Bank, and supported movements against extractive industry projects linked to corporations and states implicated in protests like those at Belo Monte Dam and Standing Rock. Tactical alliances included collaborations with Amnesty International, Greenpeace, Human Rights Watch, and coalitions engaged in campaigns comparable to Take Back the Night and Ni Una Menos.
The structure combined local collectives, national coalitions, and transnational assemblies modeled on practices used by World Social Forum and International Women's Health Coalition, with coordinating bodies similar to networks like Women in Europe for a Common Future. Membership comprised activists from grassroots groups, community organizations, academic feminists from institutions such as University of Toronto, University of São Paulo, University of Cape Town, and representatives of NGOs including Oxfam International and CARE International. Decision-making drew on participatory methods employed at gatherings like Zapatista National Liberation Army assemblies and protocols resembling those of Indigenous Peoples' Global Summit. Funding and support came from diverse sources, including solidarity fundraising, grants from foundations comparable to Ford Foundation and Open Society Foundations, and grassroots contributions coordinated through national chapters in countries like Canada, Brazil, Senegal, India, and Philippines.
Supporters credit the movement with amplifying demands at forums including United Nations Commission on Status of Women, influencing policy dialogues in bodies such as African Union and European Parliament, and strengthening links between feminist, labor, Indigenous, and environmental struggles exemplified by alliances with Via Campesina and Greenpeace. Critics, including commentators from outlets like The Guardian and scholars affiliated with London School of Economics and Harvard University, argued that transnational coordination risked privileging actors from the Global North, reproducing hierarchies critiqued by activists in Global South networks, and facing challenges similar to those observed in Occupy Wall Street and some World Social Forum campaigns. Debates engaged legal scholars referencing instruments like Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women and political theorists studying deliberative models used in international movements.
Notable mobilizations included global marches, participatory forums, and commemorative actions timed with Beijing Platform for Action anniversaries, cross-continental caravans that converged in cities like Montreal and Dakar, and solidarity vigils during international crises in locales such as Kabul and Beirut. Commemorations involved partnerships with cultural figures and institutions including collaborations with artists associated with festivals in Cannes and Edinburgh Festival platforms, academic conferences at universities like University of Oxford and Columbia University, and recognition events timed with observances like International Women's Day and Human Rights Day.
Category:Feminist organizations