Making Visible
Poor Migrant Women Workers
Ground-up reflections on intersectional practice from and with practitioners in India
(Part of the Support Program, Reducing Inequalities Through Intersectional Practice, by Robert Bosch Stiftung)
(Part of the Support Program, Reducing Inequalities Through Intersectional Practice, by Robert Bosch Stiftung)
Do you work with poor migrant women workers? Would you like to reflect on your practice?
We have created a reflective tool for stakeholders working with migrant women workers, to self-assess and examine their focus on gender equity and intersectionality, in programs and interventions deployed on ground.
We have created a reflective tool for stakeholders working with migrant women workers, to self-assess and examine their focus on gender equity and intersectionality, in programs and interventions deployed on ground.
Personas of Poor Migrant Women Workers in India
The personas portrayed here tell the stories of real poor migrant women workers (fictionalized with changes in personal identifiers), amplifying the voices of the most vulnerable to create a positive impact in the lives of migrant women.
The personas bring the value of their experiences, the patterns of constraints that limit their realization, and the associated costs, not only for the migrant women workers, but also of their families and communities.
In a world where the production of knowledge remains with the powerful - shining the spotlight on poor migrant women workers is also an attempt at changing the narrative.
Almost 70% of India’s internal migrants are women¹. Despite seeing migrant women working all around us, they remain hidden in plain sight. How much do we really know about them? Who are they? Where do they come from? What are their stories?
Their work is dismissed, underpaid, or unpaid, because of inequalities and discriminations linked with their gender, caste and tribe.
Their work is dismissed, underpaid, or unpaid, because of inequalities and discriminations linked with their gender, caste and tribe.
|
Rank
out of 156, is India's rank in the Global Gender Gap Index, third worst in South Asia²
|
Women spend
% of their hours on unpaid labor; men do 400% more of paid work as compared to women³
|
It has been
years since the population of NT-DNT + PVTG were counted in the census; estimated to be 10% of the population⁴
|
Almost
% of manual scavengers in India (a banned activity) are Dalit women⁵
|
|
Migration is crucial to economic empowerment due to the opportunities it opens up. However, the availability of work, and the subsequent experience of being employed, is determined by one’s identity, which is layered by several intersections in the case of India's poor migrant women workers.
Dasra has undertaken an immersive and reflective learning journey with NGOs that showcase the powerful impact of using intersectional approaches in addressing the issues of poor migrant women workers. |
|
Our journey so far has entailed...
Listeningto practitioners, community leaders, sector and gender experts to learn more about the lived experiences of poor migrant women workers in India, and the usage of intersectionality as an approach
|
Learningfrom organisations that work with poor migrant women workers across sectors and needs, on how structural inequalities at different intersections affect their lived experiences
|
Reflectingon strengths and opportunities across our own intersectional practice, with the hope to promote replicate of the same for systemic change in collaboration with other ecosystem actors
|
We facilitated reflections and cross-learning among 11 non-profit organizations in India, who are championing and showcasing the powerful impact of using intersectional approaches in addressing issues of poor migrant women workers. Over a two-day workshop in October 2021, we shared perspectives and built together our insights on a few key questions:
Who are the poor migrant women workers we work with? What are the programs we undertake? |
What is intersectional about our work? Why do we consider our practice intersectional? |
What are our recommendations for key stakeholders to transform the lives of migrant women? |
Some glimpses of the diversity of our conversations during the workshop, through live artwork
Artwork by: Ghana
Migrant women from across the country participated in our workshop, sharing their stories and educating us about their biggest challenges. We also had a charcha (discussion) with industry experts and practitioners on what intersectionality means in the Indian context for poor migrant women. Here are the names of the participant organizations:
If you are working with Poor Migrant Women Workers / using Intersectionality as an approach in programs, we would love to hear from you!
Please watch this space for more updates!
Please watch this space for more updates!
Features
Narratives That Represent All: An article co-created by peers in the Support Program on Intersectionality
Graphic Recordings by Kruthika on Narratives: Illustrations covering a workshop with the global cohort
Narratives That Represent All: An article co-created by peers in the Support Program on Intersectionality
Graphic Recordings by Kruthika on Narratives: Illustrations covering a workshop with the global cohort
A flagship project by:
Supported by:
References:
1: https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/the-invisible-majority-women-urban-migrant-workers-5185862/
2: http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_GGGR_2021.pdf
3: https://www.livemint.com/news/india/your-caste-and-class-determines-how-you-spend-time-11602657834829.html
4: https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/people-of-denotified-tribes-continue-to-bear-the-burden-of-an-unjust-colonial-past-7095613/
5: https://www.epw.in/engage/article/manual-scavenging-women-face-double-discrimination-caste-gender
1: https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/the-invisible-majority-women-urban-migrant-workers-5185862/
2: http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_GGGR_2021.pdf
3: https://www.livemint.com/news/india/your-caste-and-class-determines-how-you-spend-time-11602657834829.html
4: https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/people-of-denotified-tribes-continue-to-bear-the-burden-of-an-unjust-colonial-past-7095613/
5: https://www.epw.in/engage/article/manual-scavenging-women-face-double-discrimination-caste-gender