Communities in Conversation: opportunities for women and girls' self-empowerment

Abstract

Safeguarding the rights of women and girls is a special concern within the context of prevailing gender discrimination and violence in South African societies, often rooted in cultural or religious contexts. In a South Africa Netherlands research Programme on Alternatives in Development (SANPAD)-funded international research project (2010-2013), women teachers, mothers, and caregivers in selected schools were engaged in research which used an innovative approach which we defined as Communities in Conversation (CiC). In this article, we examine the potential of CiC to support women's empowerment, and share our experiences of using CiC in two school communities. CiC involves women in conversations that focused on human rights and human rights education within the context of gender, culture, and religion. As such, it offered participating women opportunities for sharing and learning, and developing friendships and feelings of solidarity which are particularly important for empowerment processes.La protection des droits des femmes et des filles est une préoccupation spéciale dans le contexte de discrimination et de violence basées sur le genre qui sont répandues dans les sociétés sud-africaines et qui sont souvent ancrées dans des contextes culturels ou religieux. Dans le cadre d'un projet international de recherche financé par le Programme de recherche Pays-Bas-Afrique du Sud sur les alternatives dans le développement (SANPAD) (2010-2013), des enseignantes, des mères et des soignantes et aidantes dans certaines écoles sélectionnées ont pris part à des recherches qui employaient une approche innovante que nous avons définie comme Conversations communautaires (CC -Communities in Conversation). Dans cet article, nous examinons le potentiel de l'approche CC pour soutenir l'autonomisation des femmes, et nous présentons nos expériences de l'utilisation de cette approche dans deux communautés scolaires. L'approche CC a fait participer les femmes à des conversations qui se concentraient sur les droits de l'homme et l'éducation en matière de droits de l'homme dans le contexte du genre, de la culture et de la religion. Cette approche a ainsi offert aux participantes des occasions d'échanger et d'apprendre, et de développer des amitiés et des sentiments de solidarité qui sont tout particulièrement importants pour les processus d'autonomisation.En las sociedades de Sudáfrica, la defensa de los derechos de las mujeres y de las niñas es de especial importancia en el contexto actual de discriminación de género y de violencia, a menudo arraigado en ámbitos culturales o religiosos. A partir de un proyecto de investigación internacional (2010-2013) financiado por SANPAD (siglas en inglés del Programa de Investigación Sudáfrica-Holanda en Alternativas de Desarrollo), maestras, madres y cuidadoras de escuelas seleccionadas, participaron en una investigación a la que se aplicó un enfoque innovador, llamado por las autoras Comunidades en Conversación (CeC). En el presente artículo, las autoras analizan el potencial mostrado por las CeC p...

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