"We need to think united and build together. We need to think about life, even beyond our legitimate claims for rights. Because, who takes care of us, the caregivers? A life worth living is a life in which there is time for joy. We want a union that is not limited to denunciation and conflict, but that creates the space for mutual help, to support each other. This is the most exciting form of affection between us." Territorio Doméstico

This 4-day school on the politics of care, open upon registration to people interested in work and care practices, brings together two existing groups. Territorio Doméstico is a Madrid-based collective focused on the struggle and emancipation of women, mostly migrants, and domestic and care workers (trabajadoras de hogar y cuidado). Operating at the intersection of feminism and workers’ rights, they fight racist, economic and institutional violence, proposing a form of unionism called ‘bio-syndicalism’ that places life at the centre of its actions. The Ligue des travailleuses domestiques sans papiers of the CSC Brussels leads a political struggle for access to legal work and a dignified life. The school is an opportunity for all involved to share political tools, artistic methodologies, advice on care for care workers, resistance dances, battle songs and joy in activism. Different interveners will join the classes, among them Silvia Federici, Lea Melandri, Maddalena Fragnito and Liryc Dela Cruz. At the end of each day, a moment with them is open to a wider audience. This is a source of inspiration for all those involved in social struggles.

Public talks

Ligue des travailleuses domestiques sans papiers/CSC Bruxelles & guests

Podcast/conversation
19.05 – 17:30 | French
Free entrance, no registration required

Grand Ménage au Tribunal is a sound installation collecting the voices of militants from the Ligue des travailleuses domestiques sans papiers of the CSC Brussels during a fictional trial. On 16 June 2023, International Domestic Workers' Day, the group held a "tribunal of political courage" to put the Brussels Capital Region's Employment Ministry on trial and make their demands heard. The podcast made by Colettes! reports on the meeting with Angèle, one of the activist members. A listening session will be followed by a conversation between the Ligue and yamna atlassi about care, labour and migration and their role in the political debate.

Moderation: yamna atlassi | Sound recording: Colettes! | Editing: Ccil Michel, Hélène Baquet, Sonia Ringoot | Visual: Hélène Baquet | With the support of the Ligue des familles

Silvia Federici & Territorio Doméstico

20.05 – 17:30 | Spanish, English → EN
Registration required (sold out)
With the support of the Instituto Italiano di Cultura in Brussels

In 1975, Silvia Federici published Wages Against Housework, one of the fundamental texts of contemporary feminism that reflects on the condition of domestic work within the dynamics of unobserved exploitation in capitalism. She will be in conversation with Territorio Doméstico, to discuss their book Biosindicalismo desde los territorios domésticos and thus add a chapter to their enduring collaboration.

Lea Melandri & Maddalena Fragnito

21.05 – 17:30 | Italian, English → EN
Free entrance, no registration required

The documentary Scuola senza fine (Adriana Monti, 1983, 40min) portrays a group of women who complete their secondary school education through a worker-union-sponsored course with feminist, activist and writer Lea Melandri. The participants reconsider their role as housewives and the effects of this type of political education on their self-narration. This outstanding documentary presentation is followed by a conversation between Lea Melandri and Maddalena Fragnito.

(cancelled)
Liryc Dela Cruz 
Il Mio Filippino: Kung Ano Ang Naaalala ng Hangin (What The Winds Remember)

Lecture performance
18.05 – 17:30 | English 

Continuing his artistic research project on the Filipino diaspora, Liryc Dela Cruz creates Il Mio Filipino: What The Winds Remember especially for the festival, an experimental work mixing readings of letters recorded on tape in Tadalong with soundscapes, film footage and a ritual to summon the wind. This performance is an experience and a reflection on memory, longing and return, questioning the visibility of absence and how the world remembers.

Workshops 

18 – 21.05
Sold out