This is a continental colloquium addresses feminicide and the role of Catholicism in supporting and reflecting theologically on these efforts. The colloquium addresses this gap and creates the conditions for a movement of collaboration and networking throughout the continent. Besides having contacted leaders working against feminicide in nearly every country in Latin America, the Caribbean, and North America, we were able to pair these leaders with Catholic theologians, mostly Latinas, to collaborate on ways to envision a more proactive role of the Catholic Church in the fight against feminicide. Organizers of this event have also contacted leaders from the United Nations, researching and promoting international advocacy on matters related to feminicide. The leadership of the Conference of Latin American Religious (CLAR, in Spanish), which represents all Catholic religious women and men in the continent, and the Secretary for the Pontifical Commission for Latin America at the Vatican, Dr. Emilce Cuda, have also expressed their support for this international colloquium and indicated their interest in attending personally. The National Hispanic and Latino MHTTC will present a panel on how the mental health field can contribute to ending structural inequities that sustain gender-based violence and feminicide in Latin America and their countries. This panel will begin conversations that include practical recommendations and creative solutions that encourage holistic initiatives to intervene and prevent the structural issues that lead to feminicide.
Darice Orobitg, PhD, Mónica Ulibarri, PhD, and Thelma García.