In 2021, I participated in a workshop for the formulation of productive projects with former combatants of the extinct guerrilla group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). Throughout the morning, we discussed how the productive projects should be to bring peace and reconciliation to Colombia, ensuring that nearly seventeen thousand former guerrilla fighters remained away from weapons. Until that moment, all interventions had been led by men. Just before the midday break, a female former combatant requested the floor and, in a brief but impactful intervention, said:
'Of all that has been discussed so far, no proposal includes mothers, no one has considered how to ensure that mothers participate in decision-making spaces and in productive projects, even though our participation is crucial because we are the mothers of peace in Colombia.'
Her intervention shattered my perspective and deeply challenged me regarding the absent voices in the spaces of ideation and construction of sustainable productive projects for peace. In my ten years traveling through Latin America and engaging in community processes, I too often find that mothers cannot participate in community planning spaces due to relegation to household activities, preparing food during workshops, or caring for children during training and planning sessions. This omission results in a significant loss of a valuable and essential part of the narrative needed to ensure the construction of productive projects that strengthen local economies from an inclusive and caring perspective.
Dialogues between friends to understand why mothers are excluded from peacebuilding processes
To understand better this phenomenon and acknowledge what we are missing when we exclude the voices of mothers in sustainable projects, economic processes, and political processes for peace, I decided to interview two friends. Both are experts in the field, drawing from their experiences as mothers and professionals, advocating for non-violence and peacebuilding: Jazmín Antista and Ana María Quintero.
I met Jazmín during our master’s studies; we studied together and had the pleasure of producing a podcast about women-led organizations that have made milestones in South America to advance reconciliation. We compared the Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo in Argentina with La Ruta Pacífica de las Mujeres in Colombia. Jazmín, born in Olavarría, Argentina, is a psychologist and holds a master’s degree in Peace and Conflict Analysis from the University of Queensland. She is the mother of Iñaki, a lovely baby who is now 4 months old. Jaz has worked in public health with a gender focus and has an inspiring vocation for community building. She is one of those people who evoke a sense of community. Jazmín, more than a pacifist, defines herself as an advocate for nonviolence in everyday life.
To Ana, or Ani, a native of Bogotá, who has traversed all of Colombia on a mule’s back, as the maestro Molano would say, I met her accompanying former FARC combatants in the implementation of the economic and social reintegration process into civilian life in 2021. Since then, she has become a great friend and dream accomplice. Ana is an ecologist, certified in Gestalt, and the mother of Alejandro, a very affectionate and intelligent 6-year-old. She has been quite active in social and left-wing political movements in Colombia, advocating for the creation of public policies that promote inclusion and ecosystem conservation. Ani defines herself as a woman capable of overcoming the challenges that life has placed in her path. The death of her mother during adolescence led her to perceive motherhood as a political matter.
Listening to Jazmín and Ana, I found both similarities and differences, as expected, stemming from their different life experiences. Jazmín, with a background in community reflection supporting marginalized communities in Argentina, and Ani, from her activism with the Colombian left. However, even with their differences, their perspectives on motherhood and the construction of community processes undeniably carry a Latin American flavor, reflected in the way they challenge the state and the capitalist model, inviting a reclamation of solidarity networks that have sustained global political and economic systems for years.
For Jaz and Ani, the participation of mothers in public life must be supported by public policies in a Social Rule of Law state. However, it should also be based on close community support networks, reminiscent of the practices of our South American ancestors, who, through activities like 'la Minga', addressed the challenges of daily life to sustain life in formation.
Networks to Sustain Life
For Jazmín, 'Community Care Networks' that surpass state policies are fundamental for sustaining human groups. These networks safeguard life, not only the mother’s life but also the life in formation, challenging the current capitalist paradigm of private property and individualization.
As our South American ancestors did, these networks shape individuals who are conscious of their relationship with a territory, language, world, and system of values, argues Jazmín. The perspective of networks for motherhood reminds us of the complexity of relationships and connections that colonial, Eurocentric, and modern epistemology have confined to the nuclear family as the only standardized primary structure of socialization in societies. This leads to the upbringing of humans with fragile socialization capabilities, often disconnected from their roots and identity. Networks or 'tribes', as Jazmín describes them, are based on solidarity, sustaining life and to those who care for the lives of others.
The Power of Community Bonding for Coexistence in Society
In addition to the notion of a Community Care Network, Jazmín brings up the power of community bonding, which could be considered as the substance of the Community Care Network. It relies on strong bonds of solidarity that exist outside of state management.
Jazmín’s reflection invites us to move beyond the Eurocentric-colonial-modern dichotomy of public/private. It undeniably guides us back to the complex thinking of our ancestors, who understood the integrality of community systems with the Quechua notion of Ayllu, a form of social organization that includes families and communities linked in solidarity to sustain social life.
Regarding peacebuilding, Jazmín emphasizes that societies must prioritize the fostering of strong bonds for the formation of loving beings through laws that promote community support. Mothers and the community surrounding babies and children are central to forming their relationship with themselves and the world.
Public Policies for Economic Inclusion, Health, and Education for Mothers
For Ana, the Social Rule of Law has historical debts to mothers that can be repaid through more sensitive public policies recognizing the role of mothering and promoting economic autonomy.
In addition, Ana considers it crucial to recognize mothers as active political subjects playing multiple roles in their daily lives. Ana believes that public policies promoting active participation and recognition of mothers as active subjects are essential.
'Mothers can be political activists with their own space and voice in power scenarios where they can propose new working conditions for mothers at each stage of their children’s lives. Mothers can contribute to the creation of public policies that adapt to the new way of life and parenting, promoting educational and health systems that adapt to the needs of mothers, validate traditional knowledge, protect their mental health, and ensure their economic autonomy' Ana suggests.
Mothers invest their reflectivity, energy, and time in forming life and the socialization process, which is crucial for consolidating societies and the individuals who compose them. Ensuring the enjoyment of motherhood contributes to forming more peaceful societies. While this is my speculation and not a quote from any academic study, I have seen how family farms where community networks and the enjoyment of motherhood prevail are characterized by a love for life, despite the multiple challenges in peasant agriculture.
Perhaps this is because, as Jazmín suggests, individuals are more sensitive to their relationship with a territory.
'It is crucial that the entire work system of the economy, in general, considers the role of dedicating time to the care of a being in formation, constructing who they are, their relationship with this world, with a territory, and with themselves', Jazmín proposes.
Security Guarantees for Organization
Ensuring the security and protection of the lives of mothers organizing in social movements is no small challenge, Ana notes. Organizations of mothers, especially in Colombia, lack security guarantees for political participation. «Many times, their participation can cost their lives or the lives of their families» Ana says.
To Conclude
Perhaps one of the best conflict prevention strategies could be the proper nurturing of loving beings. Therefore, it is crucial to place the care of life in formation and the life of those who take care of those who care for the life that is born at the center of the community and political life of our societies, leaving aside the individualizing capitalist fetish. For those of us who are enthusiasts of family, peasant, and community agriculture, the consolidation of Community Care Networks can bring us closer to the establishment of healthier and fairer food landscapes.
After listening to the valuable reflections of Ana María and Jazmín, I want to conclude with more questions than certainties, with the overarching question: What kind of family, peasant, and community agriculture for peace are we building if we do not include the voices of mothers?
We appreciate Jazmín and Ana for their warmth and openness in this necessary reflection on the relevance of listening to and including mothers in the conversation about peacebuilding and other possible horizons.