Thursday, August 9, 2007

Accountability

Accountability: Rendicion de cuentas; Responsabilidad por; Responsabilidad a
(to hold accountable: responsabilizar)

There are three senses of the term in English, so the translation will be different depending on the context and use. There is accountable as in able to be explained, that is, by giving “accounts”, for example, sharing our stories and being self-reflective about how we benefit from privilege and colonial patterns. Rendicion de cuentas. In so doing we can hold each other accountable for our geoeconomic and geopolitical position in the world, our social locations, and what we do with and about them (that is another sense, accountable as in responsible for: por). If phrased as in 'we will hold him accountable for x' you could render it as 'lo vamos a responsabilizar por x'. We can take the lead in this work from those most directly affected by racism and empire (the third sense, accountable as in responsible to: a). I deeply believe that as social justice movements we need to develop more spaces and mechanisms for accountability.