‘Rebirth’ captures the momentum of spontaneous celebrations that broke out on main squares across the country to celebrate an overwhelmingly popular vote to change Pinochet’s constitution in the referendum held on 25th October 2020. Feminist movements have long been present in this struggle that began in Chile last October 2019 when nationwide protests against injustice and inequalities shaken the country. On a transnational scale, the Chilean feminist movement is in tandem with feminist struggles elsewhere to reclaim politics for the many to collectively deliberate alternatives to neoliberalism.

This talk reflects on how the Chilean feminist movement has become one of the key driving forces of the 2019-2020 Chilean protests and its role in co-weaving a constituent process in Chile to write a new Chilean constitution. It discusses how this local struggle, along with contemporary feminist struggles elsewhere, are offering ways to articulate feminism(s) as a potential historically distinctive counter-hegemonic political project to neoliberalism and towards feminist internationalism.

Speakers

Alondra Castillo is a psychologist, feminist militant and member of the Coordinadora 8 de Marzo and the group of Feminist Studies in Chile. She has recently contributed a chapter to the book ‘For a feminist Constitution’ published by Pez Espiral.

Laura Roth (PhD) is a researcher and activist based in the Basque Country. She works on municipalism, democracy and feminist practices. She recently published a report and toolkit on feminist practices in the municipalist movement called Feminise Politics Now! and an entry on New Municipalism for the Springer Encyclopaedia on Educational Innovation.

Phoebe Martin is a PhD student at UCL Institute of the Americas and an affiliate student of KCL. Her research looks at the new generation of feminism in Peru and the role of artistic and creative strategies within this movement, particularly the phenomenon of ‘artivism’. She is particularly interested in transnational feminisms in Latin America, and the relationship between social media and visual or artistic forms of activism. Her research is funded by a London Arts and Humanities Partnership studentship.

 

Organised by Gender Studies Network at KCL - Dr Ivette Hernandez S.

If you have any questions, please contact Ivette at ivette.hernandez_santibanez@kcl.ac.uk