L atin A merican and C aribbean C onfederation of Household Workers: Political (Dis)Articulations

The aim of this paper is to address the configuration of the dominant identity categories in a Latin American feminine network that has historically claimed a lack of public recognition: the L atin A merican and C aribbean C onfederation of H ousehold W orkers. Working from the perspective of political discourse theory presented in the first section, we briefly analyze the discourses of emergence and development of the Confederation, focusing on women's struggles to be recognized as “household workers.” Special attention is given to their (dis)articulations, particularly with feminists and Catholic lay sectors, as discourses or meaning configurations that conditioned their development as a collective subject. From our perspective, these processes of (dis)articulation established specific meanings for household workers’ practices, instituting their limits in relation to other political projects available, including those held by feminists. The dominant meanings of identity categories have not only enabled specific ways to be identified “as a household worker” but also imprinted the limits and possibilities of their political practice.