Toronto, ON – March 14, 2011 – In an empowering and celebratory night featuring a public lecture and a fundraising dinner, collective discussions led by progressive Filipino Canadian women, youth and workers educated over 80 participants on the need to reclaim the revolutionary road towards genuine women’s liberation. Presented by the Philippine Women Centre of Ontario in collaboration with UKPC@UofT (Ugnayan ng Kabataang Pilipino sa Canada/Filipino Canadian Youth Alliance–Ontario @ University of Toronto), the public lecture and celebration of the 100th year anniversary of International Women’s Day highlighted the fundamental importance of women’s liberation in the working-class struggle. “Reclaiming the Revolutionary Road Towards Women’s Liberation” was held at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE), kicking off at 6:00 PM with a dinner and ending off with solidarity performances. As the neoliberal agenda of globalization launches escalating attacks on women, the public lecture challenged all to recognize the revolutionary road as the only path that will lead towards genuine women’s liberation.
A conversation led by Cecilia Diocson, Executive Director of the National Alliance of Philippine Women in Canada (NAPWC), rooted a comprehensive understanding of women’s issues within the perspective of class struggle, racial discrimination and gender oppression. While women of colour have been rendered invisible as permanent sources of cheap labour by the neoliberal agenda of globalization, it is precisely their struggle that must become central to the overall struggle for equality and liberation, as Diocson noted. “Our history and experiences as Filipino Canadian women necessitates a vision for radical change within the community and as members of Canadian society. We will no longer keep our eyes closed as our women’s poverty and underdevelopment continues to be inherited by the next generation,” Diocson asserts. As the lecture has showed, progressive Filipino Canadian women are now proudly contributing to the reconceptualization of the Canadian women’s movement, enriching the struggle with a dynamic and grounded understanding of the inseperable issues of race, class and gender.
Diocson’s lecture called on all women to reclaim and strengthen the century-long legacy of revolutionary women’s resistance in the face of women’s growing demands for equality, human rights and genuine development, which are still largely unaddressed for working-class and racialized women. The continued existence of the Live-in Caregiver Program, a program that essentially perpetuates the modern-day slavery of the 97% of Filipino women it employs, directly impinges upon any advancements made by the women’s movement. “If women’s liberation is to be truly realized, we cannot accept the continued existence of a program that is based on the modern-day slavery of women,” says Kim Abis, UKPC@UofT member and Women and Gender Studies student.
As demonstrated by the event’s solidarity performances, empowerment and liberation on the revolutionary road can be actualized through the transformative capacity of arts and culture. Three songs performed by Sinag Bayan Ontario, an arts and culture collective composed of members of the Magkaisa Centre organizations, expressed women’s collective will to boldly march forward on the revolutionary road without inhibition.
Following on the heels of UKPC@York’s 1st public lecture, the success of “Reclaiming the Revolutionary Road Towards Women’s Liberation” is a mark of UKPC/FCYA-ON’s commitment to intensify their efforts in educating, organizing and mobilizing for the Filipino Canadian community’s just and genuine settlement and integration. Another public lecture by UKPC@UofT is sure to challenge all to build the strong foundational knowledge necessary in making the Filipino Canadian community count in Canada’s future.
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For more information, contact:
Ken Santos
416-519-2553
pwc-on@magkaisacentre.org
www.magkaisacentre.org