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"You can have individuals who act as leaders for a group of people, but when that person is gone, or moves on to other things, all the progress stops. Leaders have a responsibility to build a real process for change. I see this as my life's responsibility..."

In 2001, at the age of 21, Mónica Carrillo founded the Centro de Estudios y Promocion Afro-Peruano (Center for Afro-Peruvian Studies and Empowerment, LUNDU), an organization devoted to advancing the human rights and encouraging the political participation of people of African descent in Peru. In particular, LUNDU works to empower young people in low-income settings who face pervasive discrimination and receive little information on sexuality and reproductive health. more>>

>>Click here to read the full interview 

>>Also available in Spanish, Portuguese, and French

Jennifer Kidwell, IWHC: How did you get involved in the struggle for women's and young people's rights and health?

Mónica Carrillo: Early on, I recognized the very great needs of young people, especially Afro-descendant young people, who every day live out the intersections of racism and sexism. more>>

JK: Why did you found LUNDU?

MC: LUNDU comes from a personal point of view. Since I was a child I understood the need to have an answer against racism. more>>

JK: How would you say that both LUNDU's work and your own personal work have changed young people's lives?

MC: I hope that LUNDU can be a place where young people and children can come to learn about their own identity, and where they can begin to deconstruct internalized racism. I want them to rediscover their multiple identities-whether Afro-descendant, gay, female, and so on. more>>

JK: What do you think are the major challenges facing young people in Peru today, especially in the places where you work, like El Carmen and El Callao? Also, what are their greatest opportunities?

MC: Right now, the challenge is to keep working with them on deconstructing their internalized racism, so that they have the possibility to dream and believe that they can build another kind of life for themselves, their community, and their country. more>> 

JK: Can you talk about the health challenges that are facing Afro-descendants in Peru and especially young women and young girls?

MC: There are probably three major priorities. First, girls and young women in my context must have the possibility to say both yes and no in sexual negotiations. Another priority is for them to be able to exercise the power to decide what kind of relationships they want to have, whether sexual or emotional. more>>

JK: Can you tell me whether HIV/AIDS is a problem for young women living in Peru? I think a lot of people don't believe or know that it is.

MC: Tourists in the community are part of the problem, and many of the young people have sex with the tourists, often for money. But when the tourists leave, people have sex within the community, and they believe that if they've known a person since they were children, they don't need to use condoms. more>>

JK: What do you think that activists, or other groups, could do to so that young people have more say in decision making and what happens in their own lives?

MC: "Young" becomes a static identity and young advocates are not respected, they don't really have any power in decision-making processes. If they are involved, it's because it's a "young decision," and if it's a young decision, it's not a real decision. This has become a real trap in the system and it is important that young people and youth movements are aware of this. more>>

JK: What would you say your dreams are for the future? Can you describe your vision of an ideal world?

MC: First, my dream is that Afro-descendant people, and all historically excluded communities, have a space in the world to make decisions, to build or lead or inject their particular values into their national and regional processes. more>>

JK: How did you first become acquainted with IWHC? Can you describe what your work with IWHC has been like over the years?

MC: It's important that the organization's name is "International Women's Health Coalition," but that the Coalition does not only work with women. Of course, together, we do some work only with women because it is important that women have the space to talk about their needs. But the reality of a gender perspective is recognizing that gender problems are between men and women. That is why LUNDU works with both men and women, and it is not easy to find organizations that are working with women and that understand that we need to work with men also. In the case of the Coalition, it happens. more>>