Mothers of the Revolution: Barrio Women’s Social Activism and Agency in the Bolivarian Process

Abstract

This thesis examines women’s participation in community-based organizing within the barrios (slums) of Caracas, Venezuela specifically in regards to their involvement as voceras (spokeswomen) for local water management committees entitled the mesas técnicas de agua (MTAs or technical water committees) in the popular parish of Antímano. Through the Bolivarian Process—a state-led effort to promote participatory democracy within Venezuela that emphasizes the importance of women’s involvement in citizen-led development strategies—the voceras have engaged in a number of social programs that tackle salient problems in their respective communities. Moreover, their struggle for water services—in addition to their participation in other forms of social activism—provides a clear illustration of how women relate to the discourse of “revolutionary motherhood” as their motivation for community-based organizing. This thesis will argue that while this process has been an empowering experience that has allowed the voceras to develop political consciousness and agency in an ongoing dialogue with the state, it has also resulted in myriad challenges and gendered consequences including the creation of a triple burden of labour.