Join the action! Find or organize events in your area around these important dates of global mobilization.
8 March: International Women’s Day
La Via Campesina joins women movements and social movements from around the world to demand equal rights for women. Women farmers and farmworkers, indigenous women and women from rural areas, we will keep on struggling for the defence of nature, Mother Earth, food and Food Sovereignty. We will defend them against exploitation and violence at all levels and of all expressions, against the TNCs and against an exploitative and self-destructive system. Women and men of La Via Campesina demand the creation of spaces of debate and exchange, where valid tools for a diverse and plural society can be developed: tools to create awareness in the communities on the political and cultural visions that block progress in gender equality.
14 March: International Day Against Large Dams and for Rivers, Water and Life
Every year, thousands of people around the world raise their voices to celebrate the world’s rivers and those who struggle to protect them. The International Day of Action for Rivers is a day to celebrate victories such as dam removal and river restoration. It is a day to take to the streets, demonstrate and demandimprovements in the policies and practices of decision makers. It is a day to educate one another about the threats facing our rivers, and learn about better water and energy solutions. Above all, it is a day to unite – by acting together, we demonstrate that these issues are not merely local, but global in scope.
17 April: International Day of Peasant’s Struggle
This day commemorates the Eldorado dos Carajás massacre of 19 landless farmers demanding access to land and justice in 1996 in Brazil. Hundreds of direct actions, cultural activities, conferences, film screenings, community debates and rallies are organized by a wide variety ofgroups, communities and organizations. A full list of actions, ranging from university lectures and workshops to the occupation of land and government institutions is available on the website www.viacampesina.org. A map of actions is also be updated as the date nears.
10 September: International Day of Struggle against the WTO
This date marks the commemoration of the sacrifice of Mr. Lee Kun Hae, a Korean farmer who stabbed himself to death during a mass protest against the WTO in Cancun, Mexico in 2003. He was holding a banner saying “WTO Kills Farmers.”
12 October: Day of Indigenous Resistance / Indigenous People’s Day
This mobilization began as a counter-celebration to Columbus Day, replacing the holiday with a day celebrating the indigenous people of North America. The idea first arose in 1977 from the International Conference onDiscrimination Against Indigenous Populations in the Americas, sponsored by the United Nations. In the U.S., Berkeley,CA renamed Columbus Day to “Indigenous Peoples’ Day” beginning in 1992, with other cities now joining in the effort. A global community also recognizes the mobilization to redefine this day, such as the Venezuelan people, who commemorate the “Day of Indigenous Resistance” as a means to recognize the Americas’ fight for self-determination, unity and cultural and human diversity.
15 October: World Rural Women’s Day
The first International Day of Rural Women was observed in 2008. This new international day, established by the United Nations, recognizes “the critical role and contribution of rural women, including indigenous women, in enhancing agricultural and rural development, improving food security and eradicating rural poverty.”
16 October: World Food Sovereignty Day
People in the U.S. and worldwide are taking back their food systems – fighting for their land and waterways, reclaiming vacant lots, teaching others how to grow food, and developing local distribution systems – while simultaneously creating jobs, providing fresh food, preserving the environment, building rural-urban connections, advocating for just policies, and revitalizing their communities. Local control of seeds—by farmers, gardeners and seed keeping groups—is crucial for food security and food sovereignty. The Food Week of Action spans the two Sundays on either side of World Food Day.
10 December: Human Rights Day
In 1950, the UN General Assembly proclaimed 10 December as Human Rights Day in order to call attention to theUniversal Declaration of Human Rights. La Via Campesina also reports on human rights violations and victories from their website.
18 December: International Migrants’ Day
This is a day identified by the United Nations to recognize and respect the fundamental rights and freedoms of all migrants. It is also the day when, in 2000, the UN General Assembly adopted the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families.
Updated 8/2014
