San Antonio’s 34th International Women’s Day March

The Mujeres Marcharan Coalition proudly announces the 34th International Women’s Day March to be held on Sunday, March 10, 2024, beginning at 2pm at Milam Park (500 W. Commerce St.) in San Antonio. “Peace through liberation, liberation through struggle, from Palestine to Mexico, all the walls have got to go” is the theme for this year. Individuals are invited to peacefully join the march in solidarity for justice and equality.

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The International Women’s March in San Antonio has a long tradition as a grassroots event and a beacon of empowerment and resilience. The first San Antonio International Women’s Day (IWD) was celebrated in 1983, and organized by Susan Guerra. Later, the event was organized by the Esperanza Peace and Justice Center, Fuerza Unida, and PEACE Initiative among others. For years, the leadership expanded to include groups from diverse backgrounds demanding immigration reform, dignified housing, universal healthcare, LGBTQ+ liberation, environmental justice, and labor rights, for women and all people.

The 34th march will highlight the disproportional high impact that violence and militarized conflicts have on women and oppressed groups. More than 20,000 women and girls are murdered every year because of their gender (UN Women). In addition, intersectional conditions such as race, ethnicity, coloniality, labor rights, and migration status produce greater risks for women to suffer extreme violence. Mexico is one of the countries with the highest number of femicides.

Official data shows that 70% of Mexican women have experienced at least one gender violence incident. The statistics are worse for migrants and refugees running away from violent contexts due to US imperialist policies, the feminization of cheap labor in border cities caused by the NAFTA agreement, and the constant armed confrontation between criminal organizations and the government. Civil organizations estimate that one in three migrant women who cross Mexico using the train ‘la bestia’ are raped, frequently multiple times, increasing severely the risk of acquiring STDs and unwanted pregnancies.

In Palestine, outdated discriminatory colonial laws and the prolonged Israeli occupation have allowed the perpetuation of extreme violence in public and private spheres, especially in high-density areas such as refugee camps, hospitals, and schools (UN Women). After October 7, the Israeli military bombardment of Gaza and the West Bank intensified, killing more than 24,000 Palestinians. Seventy percent of the civil fatalities are women or children, almost 1 million women and girls have been displaced, and four in five Gazans face hunger and starvation (Gaza Media Office). The US government has continued to provide funds and military aid to Israel to continue perpetrating genocide and apartheid which made Gaza into an open-air prison.

Speakers before the march will highlight topics including political prisoners, labor rights, immigration, climate change, LGBTQ+ issues, and the Palestine conflict. After the march, the event will continue until 6 pm at Milam Park with art performances and an open mic session.

The Mujeres Marcharan Coalition’s demands are clear:

1. Equal Human Rights: We demand the right to a dignified life that recognizes our basic needs and human rights: including the right to a good-paying job, fair wages, equal pay, housing, universal healthcare, reproductive healthcare and abortion rights, maternity leave, a bill of rights for domestic workers, leisure time, free education, freedom of debt, the right to safety nets by our government for people in need, and the end of gender-based violence.
2. Liberation: We demand the right of all people in San Antonio, the US, and the world to have safe lives free from oppression, we demand liberation for the LGBTQ+ community to self/gender expression without violence or repression.
3. End of militarized borders: We demand the end of US tax dollars going to surveillance and control systems that oppress our people. We demand the right of people to migrate and escape from violence and poverty. We demand to stop the criminalization of migrants and human rights violations.
4. Ceasefire in Palestine: We demand an immediate ceasefire from the Israeli military and the recognition of the right to self-determination for Palestine. We demand that the city of San Antonio pass a Ceasefire Resolution and remove the status as Friendship City from Israel. We demand the US stop funding Israel’s genocide and for the US to stop funding the Pentagon with almost a trillion dollars a year
5. Sustainable future: We demand a system change to end the climate crisis. The US, especially the US military, has been one of the main polluters in the world, the fruit of the war system, and the economic and political imperialist interests. We demand the end of the use of fossil fuels and invest in community-led, collectively owned renewable energy and circular economy.

Once we have these needs met, we will be free.

For questions, contact:  mujeresmarcharan@gmail.com

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