10,000 Brazilian Women March Against Violence

Source: EVARISTO SA / Getty

10,000 women from all walks of life gathered in Brasilia to unify and mobilize women against violence.

When sisters come together with one collective voice, the earth can shake from our shouts.

The theme of the Marcha das Mulheres Negras was: “Against racism and violence and for the well-being.”

The event organizer, Ivana Braga said,  “This is the first time black women coming from all parts of the country came to Brasilia with the same message. It doesn’t matter if a black woman is in Congress, is a civil servant, in academia or is a domestic worker; their skin color will continue to play a part in how their rights are denied.”

Local organizations from each state contributed to the effort in their own way. Volunteers sold t-shirts and dinners to raise awareness and funds for the march. The results culminated in busloads of women arriving in the city after two years of preparation.

“This is the first time black women coming from all parts of the country came to Brasilia with the same message,” said Braga, who came from the state of Maranhão. “It doesn’t matter if a black woman is in Congress, is a civil servant, in academia or is a domestic worker; their skin color will continue to play a part in how their rights are denied.”

The social issues that plague their communities are similar to the fights we are up against here in America. Equal pay, violence against black people and national poverty were some of the causes the women passionately marched for.

Source: EVARISTO SA / Getty

The movement was originally planned for May 13, the historical day when slaves were freed in Brazil  over 125 years ago, but instead, organizers moved it to November 18 to coincide with the National Week Of Black Consciousness in Brazil (Umm, can we have that here??)

Braga marched alongside her mother of a different generation, Maria dos Rosana Moraes, who spent most of her life as a domestic worker, “This isn’t just my fight or her fight. It comes from generations of women who were denied their rights,” she explained.