S3 Ep 2b: How social movements saved lives and rights in a Time of Covid (An English summary of Episode 2 on Emergent Agency)

People vs Inequality Podcast

In this short summary episode we hear how social movements in Argentina saved lives during the pandemic and how women from poor neighbourhoods are organizing for their rights. We speak to Francisco Longa, and reflect on the work of Dina Sanchez whom we heard from in the Spanish Episode Two of this series. So for all you English speaking listeners, this is your chance to hear her story and more!
From the personal to the political – we talk about how women and informal workers were particularly affected and what life in poor neighbourhoods looks like during a pandemic. We discuss important lessons on solidarity, addressing urgent needs and working for long-term structural change, and perseverance. But also what the pandemic meant for unpaid carework and the political agenda of movements who have the streets as their centre stage.
Dina Sánchez is Deputy Secretary of the Unión de Trabajadores de la Economía Popular (UTEP) and national spokesperson for the Frente Popular Darío Santillán. She is a feminist activist passionate about getting all women’s paid and unpaid work recognized and protected. UTEP is the union recently created by social movements to achieve labour rights for informal economy workers, a growing sector in a highly unequal society that was hit particularly hard during the pandemic. Both movements played an incredible role in the pandemic.
“Without the work of these women many more would have died”
Francisco Longa is an expert on social movements and political change, and a researcher (full-time) in the National Scientific and Technical Research Council of Argentina. He has also been an activist in social movements in Argentina for more than 15 years and participated in the Emergent Agency dialogues on Social Movements.
For resources from this episode see below:

UTEP – https://www.facebook.com/utepargentina/ (Dina speech inauguracion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Hhh3sWD2Ps)

Frente Dario Santillan https://frentedariosantillan.org/ Facebook: @frentepopulardariosantillan

Proyecto Las Nadies https://www.argentina.gob.ar/noticias/las-nadies-el-homenaje-del-inadi-mujeres-fallecidas-por-covid

Manifesto 8 Marzo -

(https://www.pagina12.com.ar/406421-dia-internacional-de-las-mujeres-la-deuda-es-con-todas)

The People vs Inequality podcast is a production by Barbara van Paassen (creator and host) and Elizabeth Maina (producer). This episode is part of a short special series in collaboration with the Emergent Agency in a Time of Covid-19 research project, which is led by Oxfam GB and funded by the Atlantic Fellowship on Social and Economic Equity based at the International Inequalities Institute, London School of Economics and Political Science. The research aimed to understand positive lessons from civil society’s responses in the pandemic. The research report will be out soon, keep in touch to hear more!