Venezuelan women building peace in impossible places

Dreaming of a better future

Since mid-2018, from the Centre for Justice and Peace (Cepaz) we have been developing empowerment work with women in La Dolorita, one of the most vulnerable communities in Venezuela, where drinking water has not been coming through the pipes to homes for more than 15 years, 70% of the homes do not have direct electricity, but rather get it precariously from public lighting. There are high rates of violence against women and, according to a food security survey we conducted, 45% of the women interviewed at least four times a month have had to sleep hungry because they did not have enough food to eat.

In addition to all this, there is a lack of awareness of women’s rights, severe difficulties in keeping girls and adolescents enrolled in the formal education system, conflicts between different sectors of the community, menstrual poverty and an almost exclusive and exhausting house workload in the home, increased by the pandemic, which prevents them from enjoying time for recreation and personal development.

Our daily contact with the women of La Dolorita has allowed us to get to know in depth the problems that afflict them, but also their enormous desire to take transformative action, because as Cheiti Mendoza, one of the women of the community, says “women can do anything”.

These resilient and sorora women have created solid bonds of trust and cooperation, learning together, empowering themselves with their rights, consolidating themselves as community leaders and building peace in a space where it was almost impossible, but they need the support of many people like you to move forward.

Betting on women is transforming the community. Together with them we have developed several initiatives, but we need resources to move forward. With your contribution you help their dreams come closer to being realities.

Nothing is impossible for them, because "we are all leaders, we are all women and we are all fighters", Yajaira Guevara.

What can we do with your help?

Delivery of menstrual hygiene kits

Women in the community have difficulty acquiring menstrual hygiene products due to their high cost, and in many cases, they are forced to decide between buying food or buying sanitary pads and tampons. Many adolescent girls and women use old socks, cardboard and paper, exposing themselves to gynecological infections and limiting their activities.  Menstrual cups, which last up to 10 years, allow them to save almost 95% of what they would spend in the same period on menstrual hygiene products. To date we have delivered 860 kits that contain, in addition to condoms and personal hygiene products, a menstrual cup, but if you support us they can be many more.

Community Recreation Center

They have begun a process of promoting peace in the community, including the assimilation of values, attitudes and ways of relating to the environment, with respect for human beings and the environment, thus fostering a harmonious coexistence without violence. One of the ideas to achieve this is the creation of a community toy library, conceived to rescue the game as a space for personal growth and to achieve peaceful interaction between the people who make up the community, also promoting imagination and creativity. The toy library is an oasis in the midst of the multiple daily problems they face, but it needs to be provided with toys and books and you can help us to achieve it.

Reading Club

Distracting yourself from your daily worries is not easy for these women. With the pandemic, cases of depression, anxiety and stress have increased. For this reason, we started a reading group via WhatsApp with which we also encourage them to find meaning in relating to each other, putting the concept of sisterhood into practice. The gathered women read and listen to chapters of the books that they themselves have selected. But the phones we have for this activity are few to cover all the women interested in participating. With your contribution we could buy more.

Mentors in sorority

In Venezuela, with a deteriorated educational system and without resources, the risk of dropping out of school increases significantly. For this reason, we want to establish a volunteer group of university mentors, who motivate girls and adolescents to remain active in the educational system, supporting them in their school work, so that they take responsibility for their learning process. Together we can make this pilot program become a permanent accompaniment.

Training of companions in violence against women

We formed a first group of 50 women from La Dolorita, in order to offer accompaniment and first aid to their own neighbors within the community, from training in the right of women to a life free of violence, to the legal system, and the instances and organizations to which they can go for legal and psychological assistance in case of being victims of gender-based violence. Help us with your donation to add many more.

Community gardens

The women of La Dolorita decided to take advantage of the available land in the mountainous area where they live to grow crops, thus increasing the variety of food they consume daily. Thanks to their tenacity, the local gardens have become a very powerful benefit to the community. It is not just about providing them with food, but also helping women to develop a sustainable approach to food production and consumption and encouraging cooperative work. But, although they take advantage of the seeds of the foods already consumed, they need to add more variety to the crops. With your contribution we will be able to buy seeds that are resistant to the climatic conditions of the area and to pests.

How can you help?

Our goal is to raise $2,000 to continue developing these initiatives with these resilient women.

• If you donate $10 we can provide mentoring to a girl or adolescent.
• With 15 dollars we can give legal support to victims of violence.
• With $20 we can buy seeds to grow community gardens.
• If you donate $30 we can provide a health kit.

We want to invite you to be part of these resilient and inspiring initiatives.

Join our campaign, let's support the women of La Dolorita to build a better future for themselves.

When we unite we are stronger and we go much further!

If you can't donate, support us by sharing this campaign on your social networks, among your friends, family and co-workers, help us spread the word!

This is your opportunity to make a significant difference and make the dreams of these women, that are determined to change their difficult reality, come true.

About Cepaz

Cepaz is a non-profit organization that works to promote and defend democratic values, human rights and a culture of peace in Venezuela. Under this mandate, its main areas of action are the empowerment of women, the creation of activist networks and training in the culture of peace. It also develops specialized work on behalf of vulnerable populations, focusing on women. Learn more about what we do on our website cepaz.org or on our social networks: Twitter @_CEPAZ and Instagram: @_cepaz