Today is not a “happy day”.
Today, the Argentine administration posted a greeting for International Women's Day on its X account. The current administration of the Argentine Republic commemorated a historic date, of great symbolic significance in the country that created the pioneering movement Ni Una Menos, with a video depicting nine images of women. Through three uniformed members of the Security Forces, two workers wearing helmets, two women dressed in black coats, white shirts, and scarves, a cook, and a young woman in an office, the association of IWD with the femininity offered by the post decided to make diversity invisible.
The administration that raises the flag of freedom limits the political meaning of IWD to cisgender, employed adult workers. The post is accompanied by the phrase: "HAPPY WOMAN'S DAY," plain, in capital letters, in singular (Día de la Mujer, instead of Día de las Mujeres). This discourse reflects the decisions of this government in terms of public policies: the downgrading of the Argentine Ministry of Women, Gender, and Diversity, the cancellation of the "Registradas" Program to formalize domestic workers, the open question regarding policies for the LGBTI+ population, the questioning of housewives' retirements, and the suspension of the "Acompañar" Program, which provides economic and psychosocial support in cases of gender-based violence, trample upon the rights that took so many years to conquer. A separate paragraph for the ban on gender-neutral language announced by the presidential spokesman, Manuel Adorni, and the rebranding of the Casa Rosada's Women's Hall, which will be renamed the "Hall of the Founding Fathers" and will not have female portraits.
How do we work in Argentina with this economic and social crisis? We can’t evade our reality. More than ever, we strive to apply a gender and human-rights-based approach. Each one of the achievements of the feminist movement was the result of the consensus of different sectors and adherence to international standards of equality, diversity, and civil liberties. Raising our voice against a State that neglects its assumed responsibilities and ignores collective demands is an urgent need.