The anthropologist and feminist Marcela Lagarde visits the University in commemoration of the 10th anniversary of the Equality Unit.

Precisely on Tuesday, October 31 it is 10 years since the start of the Equality Unit when the Governing Council pass its creation as a service of general nature to promote the equality policies of the Universitat de València.

At that time, the Universitat de València was one of the pioneers at the state level when having an administrative structure designed to develop equality policies in compliance with Organic Law 4/2007, of April 12, which states: "Universities will have among its organizational structures with equality units for the development of functions related to the principle of equality between men and women”.

Over the course of these 10 years, the Equality Unit has depended on the vice-principal for Culture and Equality, Antonio Ariño and it has been directed by the teacher, now deceased, Olga Quiñones from its creation in 2007 until September 2011, Carmen Tomás until May 2015 and since then Amparo Mañés.

Many projects have been carried out by the Equality Unit since its creation, highlighting the drafting, negotiation and development of I and II Equality Plans with diagnostic reports and evaluations. 9 editions of the Week for Equality, the creation of the Olga Quiñones Award for TFG, TFM and thesis with a gender perspective, commemorations with institutional events of March 8 and November 25, the creation of an Equality Observatory to make visible inequalities between women and men in the university environment, collect and analyze statistical data and prepare reports. During these years it has started to work with Budgets with gender perspective, the study of gender gaps, the approval of action protocol against sex-based and sexual harassment nd a code of conduct and respectful relationships between women and men of this University. Training for PAS and PDI, training for the student body and the integration of the gender perspective in the programming of the cinema, theatre, exhibitions, debates or music.

During these 10 years, it has received awards and recognition, it has participated in the development of the Valencian Pact against Gender Violence, it has been part of the Observatory against Sexist Advertising of the Valencian Government and has developed several projects linked to the benefits of the Woman Institute.

Equality Unit is currently working on the evaluation of the II Equality Plan and the preparation of a new report on the situation of women and men in the University and it is also preparing the III Equality Plan for the institution.

Marcela Lagarde
Marcela Lagarde has been the author of the term “feminicidio” (feminicide), it is a exression which is considerated as a part of the theoretical baggage of feminism. According to the feminist anthopologist, femenicide includes the group of crimes against humanity that bring together crimes, kidnappings, disappearances of women and girls in the face of an institutional collapse. There is a fracture in the rule of law that favour an impunity of this crimes.

Marcela Lagarde is a professor of Anthropology and Sociology postgraduate studies of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM); postgraduate advisor in Gender Studies of the Guatemala Foundation and in the Diploma in Gender and development of the UNAM. She has been federal deputy of the Mexican Congress (2003-2006) where she was president of the Special Committee to know and follow up the inquiry related to the femenicides in Mexican Republic.

It is also necessary to emphasize the concept of “Sorority" as another contribution of Legarde to the feminist vocabulary, which is understood as the recognition and unity of women in their public action.

Marcela Legarde is the author of several books on gender, among them we highlight: Los cautiverios de las mujeres: madresposas, monjas, putas, presas y locas (1990). Gènero y Feminismo. Desarrollo humano y democracia (1996); Identidad de género y feminismo (1998); Claves feministas para el empoderamiento y la autonomía de las mujeres (1998); Una mirada feminista en el umbral del milenio (1999); Claves feministas para liderazgos entrañables (2000); Claves feministas para la autoestima de las mujeres (2001); Claves feministas para la negociación en el amor (2001); Claves feministas para mis socias de la vida (2005); Presentación de la Investigación diagnóstica sobre la violencia feminicida en la República Mexicana, 14 tomos, Cámara de Diputados, LIX Legislatura, México, 2006; Feminismo, género e igualdad. Pensamiento Iberoamericano N9 (2011) Coordinado por Marcela Lagarde y Amelia Valcárcel; El feminismo en mí vida. Hitos, claves y utopías (2013).