Venezuela: Communards Gather To Make ‘Communal Feminism’ a Priority

By Ricardo Vaz – Oct 13, 2025

Grassroots organizer Manuela Sánchez emphasized the need to collectivize care work in communal spaces.

Caracas, October 13, 2025 (venezuelanalysis.com) – Dozens of Venezuelan communards held a three-day gathering dedicated to advancing communal feminism and committed to future meetings in other states.

The meeting was co-organized by the Communard Union and the Ministry of Communes’ School for the Strengthening of Popular Power (EFPP) and geared towards grassroots leaders from around 20 communes in Caracas and nearby states Miranda, La Guaira, Aragua and Carabobo.

Communard Union organizer Manuela Sánchez Avilán told Venezuelanalysis that the meeting represented another step to “build and put into practice a feminism that reflects the reality and needs of the Bolivarian Revolution.”

“The present reality, with an economic blockade, disproportionately affects women,” she said. “It was important to have a space to share experiences and work together towards common solutions.”

Sánchez explained that female communards often face a triple work burden, balancing formal employment, domestic care and local grassroots organizing.

From October 4 to 6, 40 women gathered at the “Produciendo en Revolución” Agro-Touristic Commune in Miranda state for debates, lectures, planning sessions and cultural activities centered on the role of women in popular power organizations.

“The Communard Union has identified the construction of communal feminism as a priority, to communalize and collectivize care responsibilities,” she affirmed. “This activity followed up on our national meeting in March and we set up a plan to replicate it in the different territories.”

The communal feminism gathering featured lectures and debates on political participation, feminist economy, preventing gender-based violence, and sexual and reproductive healthcare. Members from Brazil’s Landless Workers Movement (MST) shared experiences from the organization’s initiatives.

Participants likewise analyzed Venezuela’s present political context, including the growing US military threats and the role of grassroots organizations.

Sánchez, who also serves as EFPP director, emphasized the importance of state institutions supporting popular initiatives and classified the meeting as “very productive.”

“We had very meaningful formation sessions and debates which also helped add an ideological dimension to the realities witnessed in the different territories,” she concluded.

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Officially founded in 2022, the Communard Union aims to bring together communes to form an alliance on a national scale. Former President Hugo Chávez defined communes, which are territorial self-government instances, as “building blocks” for the construction of socialism.

The organization, which currently groups 136 communes from 18 states, has several running initiatives focused on territorial work, political education and local economies.

The School for the Strengthening of Popular Power (EFPP), an institution under the umbrella of the Ministry of Communes, is responsible for organizing educational efforts with popular power collectives across Venezuela.

Activist Manuela Sánchez explained the importance of collectivizing care responsibilities in popular power spaces. (María Ramírez / EFPP)
Participants debated Venezuela’s present political context, including US military threats. (María Ramírez / EFPP)
The early October meeting followed a national gathering organized by the Communard Union in March. (María Ramírez / EFPP)
The gathering was jointly organized by the Communard Union and the Ministry of Communes School for the Strengthening of Popular Power. (María Ramírez / EFPP)
The meeting also included cultural activities. (María Ramírez / EFPP)
Participants shared common experiences faced in different territories. (María Ramírez / EFPP)
Lectures and debates focused on subjects such as feminist economy and preventing gender-based violence. (María Ramírez / EFPP)
The meeting included a space for collectivized childcare. (María Ramírez / EFPP)
The gathering featured participants from 20 communes in Caracas and nearby states. (María Ramírez / EFPP)
One of the main topics was the “triple work burden” faced by women in communal organizations. (María Ramírez / EFPP)
40 women grassroots organizers gathered for a three-day meeting in Miranda state. (María Ramírez / EFPP)