Celebrating Feminists’ Voices, Inspiring Global Peace

It Rained, It Poured – We Conquered!

20 June 2017

Amid torrential downpours, against a backdrop of high rises, yellow cabs and food vendors, crowds of determined activists pushed their way across midtown Manhattan on 17 June. The sea of umbrellas was punctuated by bright bold signs demanding an end to nuclear weapons, and calls and chants to ban the bomb. The Women’s March to Ban the Bomb was on the move in New York City and nothing would stand in its way.

Hosted by WILPF and organised with the strong support of co-sponsors and partners, the event built on a strong tradition of women’s leadership in mobilising for peace and disarmament that has existed since the start of the atomic age. The Women’s March to Ban the Bomb took place as negotiations resumed at the United Nations on a new treaty that will ban nuclear weapons. These negotiations are historic and transformative, following on from years of advocacy and rooted firmly in concerns about the humanitarian and environmental impact of nuclear weapons – an aspect of the discourse, that has unfortunately long been absent. WILPF has been a ban champion since day one.

Photo: David Field and Eric Espino

Over the last several weeks, the Women’s March to Ban the Bomb has caught on as a movement around the world. At least 150 solidarity actions took place in nearly every global region and included marches, protests, photo actions, seminars and social events. Many of these were led by WILPF members and Sections and tailored to local contexts and realities.

Our event in New York was both a march and a rally that featured a line-up of women speakers and musicians who persevered despite the heavy rain in sharing their message to the committed crowds huddled under umbrellas. In helping to organise this event and reading the biographies of our speakers, WILPF has been impressed again and again by their respective stories and careers. Aiyoung Choi and WILPF International President Kozue Akibayashi have crossed the Korean demilitarised zone in the name of peace. Karina Lester was born to a father that had been blinded as a result of nuclear weapon testing in her home region of the South Pacific. Masako Wada was 22 months old when the atomic bomb fell on her city of Nagasaki. Cora Weiss and Leslie Cagan led the organisation of the 1982 anti-nuclear march that culminated in a rally in Central Park attended by one million people. Thilmeeza Hussain worked in the first democratically elected government in the Maldives and is now a dynamic climate justice advocate.

Photo: David Field and Eric Espino

These are only a few examples from the whole group but demonstrate the many different perspectives and experiences that these women bring to their common call for nuclear disarmament – which, in turn, demonstrate the scope and breadth of the threat. Nuclear weapons are a problem that affect us all, regardless of race, sex, gender, nationality, and culture. They have repercussions for both people and the planet. The effort to ban them must likewise be intersectional and requires combined commitment across communities.

WILPF will focus all energy on achieving a strong and effective nuclear ban treaty. The negotiations continue until 7 July. The best way to follow along is to subscribe to our Nuclear Ban Daily, a publication of WILPF’s disarmament programme Reaching Critical Will. You can also follow the live feed on Reaching Critical Will’s Twitter (@RCW_) or search #nuclearban and #womenbanthebomb. WILPF women will be there and continue to be a mobilising force in banning the bomb.

Photos from the march can be found online on the WILPF Flickr page, and videos from the march in New York can be found on the WMTBTB website. We will be pulling together the details of the sister events soon to share widely.

Photo: David Field and Eric Espino

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Melissa Torres

VICE-PRESIDENT

Prior to being elected Vice-President, Melissa Torres was the WILPF US International Board Member from 2015 to 2018. Melissa joined WILPF in 2011 when she was selected as a Delegate to the Commission on the Status of Women as part of the WILPF US’ Practicum in Advocacy Programme at the United Nations, which she later led. She holds a PhD in Social Work and is a professor and Global Health Scholar at Baylor College of Medicine and research lead at BCM Anti-Human Trafficking Program. Of Mexican descent and a native of the US/Mexico border, Melissa is mostly concerned with the protection of displaced Latinxs in the Americas. Her work includes training, research, and service provision with the American Red Cross, the National Human Trafficking Training and Technical Assistance Centre, and refugee resettlement programs in the U.S. Some of her goals as Vice-President are to highlight intersectionality and increase diversity by fostering inclusive spaces for mentorship and leadership. She also contributes to WILPF’s emerging work on the topic of displacement and migration.

Jamila Afghani

VICE-PRESIDENT

Jamila Afghani is the President of WILPF Afghanistan which she started in 2015. She is also an active member and founder of several organisations including the Noor Educational and Capacity Development Organisation (NECDO). Elected in 2018 as South Asia Regional Representative to WILPF’s International Board, WILPF benefits from Jamila’s work experience in education, migration, gender, including gender-based violence and democratic governance in post-conflict and transitional countries.

Sylvie Jacqueline Ndongmo

PRESIDENT

Sylvie Jacqueline NDONGMO is a human rights and peace leader with over 27 years experience including ten within WILPF. She has a multi-disciplinary background with a track record of multiple socio-economic development projects implemented to improve policies, practices and peace-oriented actions. Sylvie is the founder of WILPF Cameroon and was the Section’s president until 2022. She co-coordinated the African Working Group before her election as Africa Representative to WILPF’s International Board in 2018. A teacher by profession and an African Union Trainer in peace support operations, Sylvie has extensive experience advocating for the political and social rights of women in Africa and worldwide.

WILPF Afghanistan

In response to the takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban and its targeted attacks on civil society members, WILPF Afghanistan issued several statements calling on the international community to stand in solidarity with Afghan people and ensure that their rights be upheld, including access to aid. The Section also published 100 Untold Stories of War and Peace, a compilation of true stories that highlight the effects of war and militarisation on the region. 

IPB Congress Barcelona

WILPF Germany (+Young WILPF network), WILPF Spain and MENA Regional Representative

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Demilitarisation

WILPF uses feminist analysis to argue that militarisation is a counter-productive and ill-conceived response to establishing security in the world. The more society becomes militarised, the more violence and injustice are likely to grow locally and worldwide.

Sixteen states are believed to have supplied weapons to Afghanistan from 2001 to 2020 with the US supplying 74 % of weapons, followed by Russia. Much of this equipment was left behind by the US military and is being used to inflate Taliban’s arsenal. WILPF is calling for better oversight on arms movement, for compensating affected Afghan people and for an end to all militarised systems.

Militarised masculinity

Mobilising men and boys around feminist peace has been one way of deconstructing and redefining masculinities. WILPF shares a feminist analysis on the links between militarism, masculinities, peace and security. We explore opportunities for strengthening activists’ action to build equal partnerships among women and men for gender equality.

WILPF has been working on challenging the prevailing notion of masculinity based on men’s physical and social superiority to, and dominance of, women in Afghanistan. It recognizes that these notions are not representative of all Afghan men, contrary to the publicly prevailing notion.

Feminist peace​

In WILPF’s view, any process towards establishing peace that has not been partly designed by women remains deficient. Beyond bringing perspectives that encapsulate the views of half of the society and unlike the men only designed processes, women’s true and meaningful participation allows the situation to improve.

In Afghanistan, WILPF has been demanding that women occupy the front seats at the negotiating tables. The experience of the past 20 has shown that women’s presence produces more sustainable solutions when they are empowered and enabled to play a role.

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