When people are silent, when they are unable to express themselves even through tears, it is because they have sunk into the paralyzing depths of dispair. Vanete Almeida, AVINA partner, knew how to listen to this silence of the women in her rural Brazilian community and decided to take action: “At first these women were practically mute, hardly able to pronounce their names. The only reference point they had was that of their communities. Now they speak openly and know about the whole continent.”

Vanete is the founder and executive coordinator of the Latin American and Caribbean Network for Rural Women (Red LAC) made up of 25,000 workers and 250 organizations in 23 countries. The network promotes and defends the rights of this broad-but-overlooked segment of Latin America’s population that is a victim of poverty, violence, discrimination and isolation.

In Latin America and the Caribbean, poverty is concentrated in rural areas, where two out of every 10 people live and work. According to the International Fund for Agricultural Development, 74 million rural people live in poverty, and 40 million are destitute. Within this concentration of poverty, women are particularly hard hit, with low levels of education and high levels of domestic violence. While conditions vary among communities and countries, connections that link community leaders enable sustainable solutions to be found.

Since 1990 the network has brought together dozens of movements of rural women throughout Latin America, organized national and international meetings for them, and participated in actions in defense of their rights. Some of its members have even been elected to government positions in their countries.

Coming together, keeping in contact and shedding light on their situation is no easy task. The majority live in highly secluded areas separated by huge distances. They have inadequate transportation and communication infrastructures. Red LAC puts them in contact with their peers and with the rest of the world. As Vanete puts it, for those who participate in conferences, the international airfare is only half of the battle: “getting from their homes to the airport is often the more difficult journey.”

Thanks to Red LAC, the experiences and needs of these women are beginning to be heard. The moving stories of 22 of these women from six countries – pioneers in spreading the work of Red LAC and now community leaders – have been recorded in the commemorative book “Una Historia Muy Linda” (A Very Beautiful Story) published in March 2008 by Red LAC with the support of AVINA and the Museu da Pessoa of São Paulo, Brazil.