True democracy without the equal and meaningful participation of women is impossible. Following the disputed results of the August 9, 2020, presidential election, women in Belarus took the lead in organizing demonstrations and peaceful protests across the country. Despite being faced with police brutality, unlawful detainment, and hate speech, the women of Belarus carried the momentum of the movement, forming “solidarity chains” and holding marches. Thousands of women participated in the movement in their call for a fair election and a peaceful, democratic resolution of the country’s political crisis, become a driving force in the pursuit of equal rights. Yet women – and young women in particular – still face significant individual, institutional and cultural barriers when participating in civic life in Belarus.
On October 29, EHU will welcome women students to an interactive, virtual workshop to build their leadership skills. As evidenced most recently in the 2020 elections, women who speak out in public or advocate for their rights are often targets of harassment and hate speech and face criticism that has nothing to do with their ability or experience to lead. While skills such as leadership and public speaking are invaluable to all citizens seeking a role in civic life, young women don’t often have the same opportunity to develop such skills through formal education. This workshop is meant to foster a safe and inclusive environment for women to grow confidence in themselves and find their voices as leaders in their communities and in their country’s political processes.
NB! The workshop will be held in English via Zoom on Friday, October 29, at 4 PM – 5.30 PM (Vilnius time). We invite all female students to join and register via the link for participation.
Speaker: Gina Chirillo, Global Gender Specialist, International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES).
Gina Chirillo is the global gender specialist at the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), where she provides technical assistance to IFES’ work empowering women in politics and promoting inclusive elections and democratic processes. She has authored gender analyses in Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Honduras, Iraq, and Ukraine and serves as the program manager for IFES’ Women, Peace and Security Indicators project. Chirillo joined IFES as a research officer in the Center for Applied Research and Learning, focusing on projects on electoral leadership, cybersecurity in elections and electoral integrity. Previously, Chirillo served as the coordinator in the Office of the President at the Institute for Women’s Policy Research and as the managing editor of the Journal of Women, Politics & Policy. She also worked as a gender and women’s political participation specialist at the National Democratic Institute. Chirillo holds a master’s degree in public policy with a concentration in women’s, gender and sexuality studies from the George Washington University, where she received a full-tuition fellowship and an award for feminist leadership, and a bachelor’s degree in political science and French from Emory University.