The US-sponsored Contra War in Nicaragua turned Indigenous Miskito communities into battlefields. Armed groups targeted communities with mass-killings, rape, torture, and the bombings of daycares, hospitals, schools, community centers.
Decades later, communities are still healing from the legacies of this war, including the normalization of gender violence. Wangki Tangni, a grassroots organization run for and by Indigenous women, helps heal and strengthen communities. They serve over 115 communities to promote sustainable development, protect traditional culture and improve health among Indigenous people.
In the 1980’s, Indigenous Ixil communities in Guatemala suffered genocide and brutal massacres. The US provided millions of dollars in economic and military aid to fuel a vicious war against Indigenous Peoples.
Indigenous communities combat the traumas caused by war and conflict, and the ongoing threats of poverty and discrimination. Ixil women organize to support, fight for and better their community.
The grassroots organization MUIXIL was founded to support and propel Indigenous women’s organizing in Guatemala. Their work helps Ixil women build new skills and strengthen their leadership.
“It is important, the exchange, because all of us - when we exchange experiences of the work we are doing- we are learning many things. Every day more and more, we are learning how to defend the rights of women, to defend the rights of indigenous peoples, of our natural resources.”
- Naidira Leonidas, Wangki Tangni, Nicaragua
One of the ways that the women of MUIXIL and Wangki Tangni learned from each other was through cultural exchanges.Together, they shared their traditional dances and taught each other about the significance of their weaving.
This is resistance: reclaiming and sharing one’s culture and traditions when they have been so long under attack. This is one way that the women showed solidarity with one another.
In a series of workshops, we incorporated new and engaging methods to share information about human rights and community organizing.
One exercise called for participants to draw themselves and explain how they saw themselves as Indigenous women. By sharing their self-portraits, these women leaders were able to identify how they see themselves within movements, communicate the needs of their community and brainstorm solutions.
MADRE was founded after a US women’s delegation to Nicaragua. In June, we traveled back to where it all began—the community of Bihmuna, Nicaragua.
To honor our return, our partners held a healing ceremony to help women there heal from trauma, violence or illness.
We then visited the Harvesting Hope project, a MADRE-supported collective of Indigenous women farmers growing food for their families to see the success of the program and the life-changing effects of water projects in the community. Over 280 homes now have access to water pipelines and clean water!
The women of Wangki Tangni introduced MUIXIL to one of their ways of organizing—the radio station!
With MADRE’s support, Wangki Tangni uses the radio as a resource to support hundreds of women. The station, called Voices of the Women of Wangki Tangni, highlights issues of women’s rights, connects women to the community resources they need, and amplifies their community organizing.
The women from MUIXIL learned about Wangki Tangni’s journey in launching and sustaining this vibrant radio station.
In a delegation to North Dakota earlier this year, a group of Indigenous women leaders came together to share their experiences with oil and gas mega-projects on Indigenous lands. From North Dakota to Nepal to Nicaragua to Kenya, the delegates all shared their personal experiences and strategies to confront extractive industries.
Rose Cunningham of Wangki Tangni was one of the participants in North Dakota — and she brought her learnings back with her to Nicaragua, where communities suffer from the toxic effects of gold mining. Sharing with her Indigenous sisters from Nicaragua and Guatemala, she reflected on what she learned and tactics to guard against the abuses of the extractive industry.
Roselia de Leon is an Indigenous community organizer in Guatemala, who works as a secretary in an Indigenous mayor’s office — one of the few women in that office. While she is seen as a leader in her community, she has never considered running for office.
After meeting Rose — and seeing her in action and the care and leadership she put into the community — Roselia felt inspired to run for office in Guatemala. When she announced her decision at the exchange, the women there rallied behind her, encouraging her and offering their mentorship.
"I am excited and interested to learn from other Indigenous women. Thanks, MADRE, for giving us this opportunity. This is our chance to learn and establish connections between our social struggles," Roselia de Leon (MUIXIL).