“From crisis to conversion” - 11 international Cardijn-inspired movements call to use the crisis for holistic change
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The International Specialised Catholic Action Movements (Miacs) represent more than 500 movements around the world with a great diversity of countries and backgrounds. One year of exchanges about the impacts of the Covid on the respective members resulted in the common conviction that “a system that cannot solve these problems […] must change”. The pandemic brutally aggravates pre-existing problems such as unemployment, inequalities between genders, between rich and poor within and between countries as shown by various surveys carried out by Midade, Fimarc and the IYCW.
Relocation of the IYCW Archives in the KADOC Catholic Documentation Centre of the University of Leuven
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On February 23th, 2021, the archives of the International Young Christian Workers (IYCW) were moved from the International Secretariat in Brussels to KADOC Documentation and Research Centre on Religion, Culture and Society connected to the Catholic University of Leuven.
The IYCW has a rich history and pre-history. From its origins in the Young Christian Workers (YCW) (1925) movement, to its official recognition as an international movement in 1957 and beyond, it envisaged the emancipation and education of young workers all over the world. Through the years, the IYCW has produced vast archives containing written correspondence with the national branches and local (Church) authorities, documents on daily governance and activities, information on personnel and finances,… It really reflects the history of more than seventy years of IYCW.
To Meet Post Covid-19 Challenges, the IYCW Calls To Work With and For Young Workers
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Young workers have been particularly affected by the pandemic that hit all continents in 2020. Governments and actors of society have to unite to support them, as requested by the International Young Christian Workers (IYCW) based in Brussels and active on all continents.
With the title “The impact of Covid-19 on young workers,” the International Young Christian Workers (IYCW) has published, in about twenty pages, an analysis based on the See-Judge-Act method of the movement. It was presented at the beginning of a webinar that brought together over a hundred participants from more than 30 different countries on Saturday, December 12, despite the time differences. They included current and former YCW leaders, but also partners and supporters from all over the world, from Australia and Venezuela to Belgium, from Gabon to Argentina, from Sri Lanka and Canada to Tanzania, including members of other movements and organizations, such as the International Labour Organization (ILO).
An In-Depth Study
Quoting testimonies of YCW members from Egypt, Peru, Haiti, Germany, Japan, Brazil and the Philippines, this analysis first shows that due to the spread of Covid-19, young workers were among the first victims and they lost their sources of income, but also that the digitization of the (working) world has accelerated with both positive and negative consequences. The survey goes on to indicate that gender inequalities and injustices are even more pronounced and that migrants are particularly impacted, especially in refugee camps where it is, to say the least, difficult to respect social distancing! The lack of social protection is even more blatant, health is endangered as it is not being guaranteed at work, and reactions within the society vary greatly, with on the one hand many actions of solidarity and, on the other hand, many questions as to the real societal priorities.
December 12, 2020: Join the IYCW for a Webinar on The Impact of Covid-19 on Young Workers' Reality
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It has been almost a year since Covid-19 emerged and it is still hitting humanity very hard. Unfortunately as predicted, young workers have not been able to escape and they are strongly affected by the situation. They are experiencing the impact and consequences of the pandemic in their daily lives, in their social life, in their families and at work.
Taking this reality into account, the IYCW carried out a survey and collected testimonies from young workers around the world. The International YCW wants to share that information and those realities and will therefore organize a webinar on the impact of Covid-19 on young workers’ reality on December 12, 2020 at 2:00pm (CET-Brussels time).
The panelists for this webinar are from Africa, Asia, the Americas and Europe, and they will share their analysis on the impact that the measures implemented after the surge of Covid-19 around the world have on young workers’ reality. There will be young activists of the International YCW, a representative of a Belgian social movement (WSM), the Deputy Director of the Bureau for Workers’ Activities (ACTRAV/ILO), as well as the former International YCW president (2000-2004) who fights for social rights in Quebec.
Our aim is
- To raise public awareness about how young workers have been affected by this global pandemic and about the impact of the measures implemented by the states on their lives;
- To give visibility to the actions carried out by young workers as an alternative to face the measures against Covid-19, as well as their demands to improve their living and working conditions.
You are most welcome to take part in this important WEBINAR!
Save the date: Saturday, December 12, 2020 at 2:00pm (CET-Brussels time).
Translation: Spanish/English.
If you wish to participate, please click on the link below and sign up: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_kzGL7k0BSMKV-8EKV5cgiw
The online event will also be broadcast live on our social media: Facebook & YouTube.
Please spread this information. We look forward to your participation!
Listen to the Cry of the Most Vulnerable in the Most Crucial Time We Face as Humans! And Take Steps in their Favor!
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Today, November 25, as we celebrate the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, we, the International Young Christian Workers, want to highlight the issues that young women are facing all over the world, from harassment to violence, discrimination and femicide, and we want to let those young women know that their cry has been heard.
"My boss wanted me to be alone with him all the time so he could kiss me by force. He was very aggressive. It became very difficult to say no to him. I didn't say anything because I had no choice and I needed the job. He ended up firing me because I was resisting him. That day I went home crying because I realized that I was unemployed again". - Gabon
In the last decades, humanity took steps toward the elimination of violence against women, but throughout this year only, all those steps have been demolished and humanity has taken hundreds of steps backward.
