Guatemala: Women Workers' Committee | Muixil
Women Workers' Committee
Formed in 1997 by a group of women maquila (sweatshop) workers, the Women Workers' Committe is an essential 
resource for residents of Bárcenas, a make-shift and marginalized urban community on the outskirts of Guatemala City. The Committee works to meet immediate needs in the community and advance the rights of women and young people in Bárcenas.
For example, one of the Committee's first projects was to install water filters in their neighborhood. Like poor, unplanned communities everywhere, Bárcenas lacks infrastructure and basic municipal services. The water filters now provide clean drinking water to community members and to three schools serving approximately 2,400 children.
Other aspects of the Women Workers' Committee's work include:
- Trainings on labour rights for women who work in maquilas.
- A computer literacy program for children and young people, particularly young women.
- Sexual health and reproductive rights workshops.
- Health fairs that give community members access to dental care, vision tests and pap smears.
- After-school classes for children offering tutoring and enrichment courses.
MUIXIL
MUIXIL is a Guatemalan organization that focuses on the political, economic, and cultural rights of Ixil Mayan and other Indigenous women in Guatemala.
The mission of MUIXIL is to strengthen the Ixil community in Ixil country, a historically isolated Mayan farming community located in the northernmost outcrop of the Guatemala Highlands. The organization works to implement income-generating farming projects in this community and ensures women’s effective involvement in those projects.
