Dear sisters of the WMW National Coordinating Bodies,
Our 24 Hours of Feminist Action around the World is fast approaching!
On the 10th December 2012, from midday to 1pm, we’ll be mobilised in our streets, public spaces and communities across the world: to give visibility to, and highlight, the five values in our Women’s Global Charter for Humanity – equality, justice, freedom, solidarity and peace; to express our views on the current socio-political-economic context; to demonstrate our resistance against militarisation, the criminalisation of protest and attacks on women’s rights; to strengthen our national and local struggles (be they for the right to abortion and public health services, against austerity measures, against colonialisation, for climate justice, for peace, etc).
We know that many NCBs are already organising local and national actions, and we’d like to share with you the decisions made at the last International Committee meeting (in October 2012 in the Basque Country) with suggestions for mobilising activities (before the 10th December), and other activities to be carried out between midday and 1pm on the 10th December itself:
1) WMW International Declaration:
Please find attached the declaration written by the International Committee for the 24 Hours of Feminist Action around the World. It is a declaration that can be used as a tool for mobilisation, to give visibility to the 24 Hours of Feminist Action and to promote an international dynamic during the action itself.
2) Logo:
Please find attached the 24 Hours of Feminist Action logo (in English, French and Spanish, the 3 WMW working languages), created by the WMW-France with inspiration from the WMW-Brazil. Please use it as widely as possible in your communication tools (printed material, emails, social networks, websites, etc) as well as in the photos of WMW activists (seen number 5, below).
3) Website:
In order to connect local activities and to give visibility to the global dimension of the 24 Hours of Feminist Action, an interactive website is being set up. This website will be a space for NCBs to share information about their activities as well as to find out about and react to other NCB activities. Michèle Spieler, former IC member, is very kindly creating this WMW website for the 24 Hours of Feminist Action.
The website will serve as both a tool for mobilisation and we therefore aim to launch this website on the 24th November with several materials already available: the WMW International Declaration(see number 1, above); short videos (see number 4, below); photos of WMW activists with the 24 Hours of Feminist Action logo (see number 5, below); and a map with information on scheduled activities all over the world. On the website you will also find technical guides on how to share your media (photo, audio, video).
Furthermore, this website will play a vital role in the creation of an online 24 hour “wave” of feminist action on the 10th December itself. This will be achieved through the posting of photos by NCBs themselves as they carry out their action (or just after it) so that sisters around the world are able to follow – online – the actions in different countries, as the “wave” of action passes around the globe (see number 6, below).
4) Videos:
Short interviews in video format will be posted onto our website during the month of November, as a tool for mobilisation. The first ten of these interviews were filmed during the 8th International Meeting in November 2011 with WMW activists from different countries replying to the question “what is feminism to you?” and “how to we construct feminism?” These videos will be posted in the language in which they were filmed because we don’t have time or human resources to translate them, and we will include a subtitle the name of the country and of the WMW.
As well as the interviews that were filmed during the 8th International Meeting, we’d like to invite all NCBs to send us one or more short interviews filmed with local WMW activists answering the same questions.
Technical orientations for the short videos:
- The questions for the short interviews are “what is feminism to you?” and “how do we construct feminism?”
- Please do not film several different interviews in the same video; please film each interview separately;
- Each video should not last more than 2 – 3 minutes;
- Please film in a space that is both silent and well-illuminated;
- When you begin to record, count 3, 2, 1 and then begin to speak. Please apply the same rule at the end of the interview: after the sister has finished speaking count 1, 2, 3 and then stop recording (if not the beginning and end of the interview is very abrupt);
- Please make sure you mention the WMW in the interview or in the description of the video (when you upload it onto the internet);
- Please upload your videos to YouTube, Vimeo, Dailymotion or another video-sharing platform.
Please send the links to your videos to by the 27th November so as to allow time to post these videos on the website. Should you have trouble uploading the videos, contact
As well as mobilisation in the run-up to the 24 Hours of Feminist Action, these videos can also be used during the action itself on the 10th December, for example shown on a big screen in a public space.
5) Photos of WMW activists + logo:
On the 24 Hours of Feminist Action website we will create a photo album in which we will post photos taken of WMW activists holding the logo (please see number 2, above) in their hands. The idea is that as activists we are creating a chain of international solidarity between us, as symbolised by “holding hands” with the women pictured in the logo…
Please find attached an example of the kind of photo that we invite you to take!
Please send these photos to by the 27th November so as to allow enough time to post them in the album on the website.
6) Photos to be taken during the 24 Hours of Feminist Action:
As explained above (in number 3), the website is a mobilisation tool, but it will also play a vital role in the creation of an online 24 hour “wave” of feminist action on the 10th December itself. In order for this to work, we will ask each NCB to choose one of the following options:
- During, or straight after, the action from midday to 1pm, NCBs can post one photo of their action on our website homepage. As NCBs post their photos, one after another, on the website, this will create an online “wave” that passes around the globe that sisters from other countries will be able to follow. We will send orientations on how to post your photos to all NCBs before the 10th December.
OR,
- During, or straight after, the action from midday to 1pm, NCBs cansend one photo of their action by email to . We will post the photo on the website on behalf of the NCB as soon as possible (bearing in mind that we will not be awake during the whole 24 hours of action!). This means that the actions will be registered on the website, but not necessarily in the order in which they were carried out.
Important! NCB sisters, please remember to send your photos and videos by email to by the 27th November.
Please also send us information by email to about what your NCB is planning for the 24 Hours of Feminist Action itself (on the 10th December) by the 27th November:
-What action are you planning between midday and 1pm?
-What are your NCB’s priority issues?
-Where are you planning to hold the action?
-Who will take part in the action?
We’re really excited to think that we’ll soon be mobilised internationally and collectively in our diverse countries!
In feminist solidarity,
Celia for the International Secretariat
World March of Women
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