The Alabadas Manifiest

To reach gender equality it is necessary to generate a cultural change.

Patriarchal beliefs and their manifestation into behaviors are embedded in men and women equally.

To generate a deep change in our beliefs it is key that we forgo the patriarchy and build an equal society.

These beliefs are internal certainties that we have been building since our childhood and that are easily overlooked because they are accepted by our community and society.

The beliefs endorsed by a society generate a culture.

Culture is this set of beliefs that are transmitted from generation to generation and manifest themselves as collective behaviors.

Culture is not easy to change unless there is a unified group of people willing to do it.

Removing ourselves from the patriarchal matrix implies changing our perspective, seeing things differently.

Seeing the world from a broad perspective is affirming that beyond matters of sex and reproduction, both men and women can do, think and feel the same things.

Diversity is not determined by gender, but by the mark each individual makes.

There are no such thing as pre-established roles by a social mandate. Each person freely chooses the role they wish to partake, both in the private and public sphere.

The measure of professional development is training and talent.

Pay is not determined by gender.

Human beings have opportunities, with no distinction made between men and women.

Both feminine and masculine traits are present in men and women.

We are far from living in a world where these affirmations are true. Very far.

We need to unite and be willing to make individual changes so that our daughters and sons have this different perspective.

We need laws and norms to aid in this cultural change.

We need education that does not distinguish between men and women.

We need female role models in all fields, both in the private and public sector.

We need to eliminate labels and break free from stereotypes that only produce constant frustration and a false sense of happiness.

We need macro messages that help spread this message.

As Victoria Ocampo said, women do not want to take the place of men, but fully embody our own place.

Freedom is built from the inside out.

Once we have challenged our internal beliefs and norms, we can challenge and overcome our external limits and generate a vicious cycle that creates equity and helps us see and value ourselves as mere human beings – beyond gender.