DRAPER, Utah — Founded in 2014, the Feminist Workshop began with a mission to create a space for the feminist community to advance in Lviv, Ukraine and the country overall. The organization’s definition of feminism does not solely mean equality for women. It also strives to have a more inclusive society and to combat discrimination and violence against various communities.
Feminist Workshop, with its volunteers, puts considerable effort toward its mission. It organizes school class discussions for teenage audiences on topics such as tolerance and gender. During the 16 days of activism, the organization engaged in a campaign against gender-based violence. Annually, the Feminist Workshop has also been organizing events on International Women’s Day. Along with this, its team also publishes articles about topics related to feminism, news in Ukraine and the organization itself.
However, the Feminist Workshop has expanded the scope of its business ever since Russia invaded Ukraine. While it is still a feminist organization, the Feminist Workshop has adapted to providing a refuge for Ukrainians.
FemApartment
In 2022, Katya Dovbni, a coordinator at the Feminist Workshop, attained housing in Lviv from private owners that could accommodate about 23 people. While originally being a temporary home for five activists, the apartment is now a haven for women and children escaping different parts of Ukraine.
Titled FemApartment, the first shelter opened in April 2022 and a second one in June 2022, in the center of the city. Residing in the second shelter are eighteen people, nine of which are children from the ages of 13 to two months old. Within the Feminist Workshop team, two of the members are internally displaced as well, so the team understands the needs of those who require a safe place to stay and engages in creating a stable home for them.
Additionally, these shelters provide for the children. The team transformed one of the rooms in the apartment in order to educate the children and allow them to be creative. The room has space for 10 children and contains a projector for cartoons, watercolors, crayons and books. The FemApartment is a temporary accommodation, but it gives people in Ukraine much needed care and support.
In order to work and live at the FemApartment, the women had to “have some experience in activism” and be willing to help those who the war affected, according to Al Jazeera. These qualifications are consistent with the Feminist Workshop’s belief that feminism fights to resolve multiple social injustices. Living in the apartment is difficult at times, but the tenants are grateful to have shelter and are very mindful of each other.
Team Members
Among the activists living there is Katya, who helps provide basic needs for the tenants. For Katya, both physical needs and emotional needs are crucial. Katya, as well as other tenants and members of the Feminist Workshop, provide blankets, dishes and other items to give the apartment a cozier touch, according to Feminist Workshop.
Both an activist and a babysitter, Ivanka focuses on entertaining, teaching and reassuring the children as well as giving their mothers time to rest, Feminist Workshop reports. Team members including Anastasia-Lyubov, take care of elderly women, bringing them food and supplies and even offering to perform household chores like cleaning or making dinner. They make sure to contact them the day before in order to not disturb them and give them their contact information in case they need it.
Moreover, centered around providing psychological help, Ksenya is in charge of organizing both long-term projects and one-time events that strive to improve mental health. Ksenya also communicates with activists from other cities who wish to stay at the FemApartment and is responsible for finding therapists for the tenants who need them.
In addition, there are team members who contribute to media activities such as Nastia and Sasha. Their work includes building an online community and discovering stories that need attention as well as working with international media, with a focus on sharing the perspective of women and feminists.
Managers and Coordinators.
Furthermore, there are three managers and a coordinator available, for 12 hours a day, to help take care of common issues such as distributing food, water and hygiene products, as well as spending time with the children, Feminist Workshop reports.
Psychologists and art therapists from Malteser Ukraine began working with the children on June 14, 2022. Natalya, a psychologist, moderates a meeting for the adult tenants every two weeks. Those meetings consist of everyone getting to know each other better and learning to live and work together, but individual therapy sessions are also available for tenants.
Ivanka once stated that feminism is similar to a big machine that works smoothly “when every woman decides to be one small part of it,” Al Jazeera reports. The Feminist Workshop’s team consists of attentive individuals who unite with a strong belief in the mission of the Feminist Workshop.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine has brought a lot of heartache and trials to families and individuals living there. The Feminist Workshop, with the extensive efforts put forth by its team and other supporters, is seeking to give those people in Ukraine much needed protection and hope to move forward.
– Megan Roush
Photo: Pixabay