Crossed Legs Movement
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The Crossed Legs Movement was a protest organized by the women of Barbacoas, Colombia in 2011, with the goal of pressuring the government to repair the main road to their town. When more conventional ways of protest failed, they decided to abstain from sex to raise awareness and demand change. This protest lasted from June 2011 to October 2011. It received international attention and achieved promises from the government to improve the road.
History
Colombia has a history of sex strikes as a form of protest and reform, particularly concerning the safety of women. In 1997, a sex strike was enacted by the wives of guerillas, drug lords and parliamentarians to demand peace.
A second sex strike was called in 2006 among the partners of local gangsters, pressuring organized gangs to engage in vocational training with the government (Global Nonviolent Action Database). In this case, the gangsters’ spouses gathered to oppose the violence between the government and the local gangsters and drug lords. This campaign met with positive results, and Colombia experienced a significant decline in gangster activity.
On June 24, 2011, with support from two local judges, Maribel Silva and Diego Enriques, women of Barbacoas declared a sex strike in response to the lack of government action.[1] They declared that if the men of the town were not going to demand action, they would refuse to have sex with them. On June 24, 2011, the women began their strike, their motto being “No more sex. We want our road”.
The men of Barbacoas showed no support at the beginning of the campaign, but they soon joined in the protest campaign.[2] The number of deaths caused by the damaged road, coupled with the economic toll, changed attitudes.
Results
On October 11, 2011, the Colombian government promised action on road repairs, and construction ensued. Twenty-one million dollars was pledged to repair the first 27 kilometres, as well as to fund studies and research on the cost of the second part of the highway. Construction of the road was slow and delayed by the lack of proper equipment and resources. Resistance came from Colombian rebel forces, leading to the death of a construction worker by guerrilla forces.[3]
Progress on the road stopped abruptly after this murder for two years. In April 2013, the women of Barbacoas launched a second “crossed legs movement” and after four months of strike action repairs were again pledged. Although action followed, funding was not available for sustained road repair, again stopping the project. Some women are determined to continue the sex strike, but it is not known whether this has happened.[1]
References
- ^ a b "Colombian women use sex strike to pressure government to repair road (Huelga de piernas cruzadas), 2011". Global Nonviolent Action Database. Swarthmore College. Retrieved April 29, 2016.
- ^ Montes, Euclides. "The "Crossed Legs" Movement: How a Sex Strike Got Things Done". AlterNet. Retrieved April 29, 2016.
- ^ Otis, John (November 5, 2013). "Colombian women on 'crossed legs' sex strike over crumbling highway". NBC News. Retrieved April 29, 2016.