MADRE Supports Frontline Communities in Ukraine

MADRE stands in solidarity with the Ukrainian people whose lives were upended by a colonial invasion and the political ambitions and war crimes of a foreign ruler. We also stand with the tens of thousands of Russian anti-war protestors who have taken to the streets in St. Petersburg, Moscow, and across their country to denounce the invasion of Ukraine, at serious risk to their own safety.

Peaceful, mass protests across the region demonstrate, yet again, that the most potent opposition to authoritarianism, in Russia and around the world, is grassroots action. In particular, the leadership of women peacebuilders must take center stage for the resolution of this crisis. Peace agreements are more likely to be successful and 35% more likely to last at least 15 years when women are involved as negotiators, mediators, witnesses, and signatories.

Now is the time to mobilize a feminist response to the crisis, based on hard-won experience of women’s movements in the region and around the world.

From Russia to Ukraine, the people most directly impacted by this war are calling for peace. World leaders must heed their call and make space in formal political processes to ensure that Ukrainian leaders and civil society, especially women, have a say in the fate of their nation.

MADRE is making emergency grants to frontline women leaders in Ukraine to ensure directly impacted communities have access to food, medicine, and other essential goods and services.