The FMC pulsates in the present

Established on August 23, 1960, the Federation of Cuban Women (FMC) is more than a historical entity brimming with memories and duties, as its heartbeat intensifies among the new generations with multiple tasks to protect emancipation and pay endless tribute to its founder, the frontline combat comrade Vilma Espín Guillois.

With her enormous stature as a freedom fighter on the plains and in the Sierra Maestra mountains as member of 26th of July Revolutionary Movement and of the guerrilla warfare, Vilma embodied the audacity, courage and tenderness of Cuban women, whom she engaged and empowered at a time when their wings were still restrained by patriarchal customs.

The movement to change mindsets and lives in Cuba was always based in love and without detriment to family, seeking and prioritizing the care and education of children, young people and the elderly in rich, harmonious synergy bound to make changes without creating antagonistic contradictions within a united and hatred-free society.

It would seem unimportant to mention this, but it must be recognized now that discrepancy and resentment are stirred up by the ferocious campaigns orchestrated abroad through a media war spanning fifth generations and designed to divide us and prevent our historic achievements from being appreciated.

That is why the FMC beats stronger than ever today as our people strive to improve their economy, boost development programs, protect national sovereignty, fight the U.S. blockade, and continue their unfinished and perfectible efforts to achieve full equality for women without stopping their struggle against still latent remnants of machismo and patriarchal views which put obstacles in the lives of some women but fortunately not in the vast majority of them.

There is no end of inspiring examples in a country that brought to life heroines such as Mariana Grajales, Mother of the Homeland; Ana Betancourt, who pioneered the struggle for women's rights, and courageous revolutionaries like Celia Sanchez, Haydee Santamaria, Melba Hernandez, Lidia Doce and Clodomira Acosta, as well as other eminent women in various sectors such as education and science.

It is striking that Cuban women insist on not shutting themselves up in their homes even if nowadays their households are at the center of the often titanic endeavor of providing for and looking after their children and vulnerable family members, nor do they need to be leaders or outstand in some vital sector, although those who are take pride in it, because the women who work for society in today's Cuba while coping with a harsh blockade that makes life all the more difficult are heroines of sorts who deserve our homage, and their Federation knows this.

The chances to study, have a decent job, gain a technical degree and being treated properly keep inviting them to contribute to the present, no matter how many difficulties there are to overcome.

The daughters of this land also enjoy the privilege of receiving the same salary as men for the same work—rare even in developed countries—which is in line with the political will of the Revolution and responds to the strength and the respect gained by the organization that represents them. Another good reason to believe that so much effort has not been in vain.

Joyful days of intense work are a constant feature of the Cuban women's daily life these days. The road is arduous, but they have the courage to move forward without stopping.