Change Through Collective Effort

Even though Servicio Domestico Activo organizes its workshops, activities and meetings solely through the effort of its directive, there are certain events and goals that Sedoac has recognized can only be achieved through collective effort. For instance, the Festival Reivindicativo or “Protest Festival” that is held at La Puerta del Sol on June of every year is organized by many other organizations such as El Grupo Turín, Mujeres que Crean, Las Brujas Migrantes, Las Feministas Comunitarias and La Asociación Pachamama Mujeres en Acción (APAMUAC). These groups were involved in planning the different aspects of the event such as organizing the cultural performances, reserving the space, getting the sound equipment and in promoting the event. I was able to videotape the event this year and Sedoac agreed to have the two videos I made of the festival posted on their YouTube channel. Although these organizations promote the rights of domestic workers within their respective groups of women in different ways, this is the time when they unite efforts to achieve their ultimate goal, that El Convenio 189 will be reformed.  Another important event for which these organizations come together is El Congreso Sobre Empleo de Hogar y Cuidados. This event was held for the first time last year on October 1st and since it was successful, an international Congreso is being planned for next year. El Congreso was a day long event where scholars, leaders from the different organizations and political leaders had presentations and discussions on labor rights and El Convenio 189.

El Grupo Turin was created in 2012 by the members of the domestic work organizations mentioned previously. Their main purpose, again, is to promote the regulation of domestic work legislation as proposed by El Convenio 189 through advocacy politics and social justice awareness. Most importantly, this group openly recognizes “the economic and social value of domestic work” and categorizes the ratification of El Convenio as “an end to exclusion and modern slavery.” Sedoac’s president, Carolina Elias, is part of El Grupo Turin so I was able to attend one of their meetings last week. The meeting was held at a seminar room in a community center that they are allowed to reserve on Saturday afternoons. I recognized many women there who had also been at the festival and learned about other organizations such as La Unión Sindical Obrera (USO) and el Territorio Doméstico. I also learned that the Saturday meetings always begin at 11:00 am but “they never say when it will end,” as one of the Sedoac members I had spoken to before informed me when an almost heated discussion ended abruptly, as did the meeting. An organization that is directly affiliated to the district was proposing that the organizations involved in El Grupo Turin can get an office space paid for by the district with the condition that their organization and El Grupo Turin become one organization. However, this was never in El Grupo Turin’s agenda and the members did not see why merging the two groups would be either necessary or beneficial to anyone. This would be an instance where an agreement, or simply an immediate agreement cannot be made because, perhaps, there are people who may have different interests from the main goal that was initially agreed on. This is to say that while El Grupo Turin’s main goal has always been the ratification of El Convenio 189, the district’s organization may view the established network this group has created as more valuable and its goal. This is a paradox in that while it is wrong to take credit or advantage of someone else’s hard-earned work, this is the only way Sedoac and the other organizations can further establish themselves by having a permanent location.