Charna Furman facts for kids

Charna Furman, born on December 12, 1941, is an architect from Uruguay. She is well-known for designing special housing for women and their families. This housing helped single mothers find homes they could afford. Charna Furman was held during a difficult time in Uruguay's history. After this, she became a strong supporter for people whose rights were taken away. She also helped make a film about her experiences.

Early Life and Education

Jaie Charna Furman Naidich was born in Montevideo, Uruguay, on December 12, 1941. Her parents were Jaie Naidich and José Furman. She grew up in her grandparents' home. Her family followed Jewish traditions. Her father's family had moved to Uruguay to escape the the Holocaust.

In 1961, Charna began studying architecture at the University of the Republic. She became very active in student groups. These included the Center of Architecture Students (Spanish: Centro de Estudiantes de Arquitectura, CEDA) and the Federation of University Students. She attended many international meetings. In 1968, she joined the Culture Commission. She was also involved in a youth movement. She finished her studies and graduated in 1973.

Her Career and Challenges

Charna Furman started working at the university in 1968. She was a research assistant in the Climatology Department. In 1974, she lost her job because of her past student activities. This happened after the 1973 Uruguayan coup d'état, when the government changed.

Even though she was no longer active in political groups, she was still seen as a supporter of them. She and her husband opened a small shop. They sold handmade items for decorating homes. In October 1975, Charna and her husband were arrested. Their children, Alejandro (4) and Aiala (2.5), went to stay with her mother. Charna was held until February 1980. She faced very difficult conditions. She was also treated unfairly because she was Jewish. After a year, she was moved to Punta de Rieles Prison. She stayed there until she was released.

Helping Families with Housing

In 1985, Charna Furman returned to her job at the university. She was in charge of housing projects. These projects aimed to help people who were struggling to find homes. In 1989, a group of single mothers shared their problems finding safe housing. Charna Furman then started planning a special project. It was called Mujeres Jefas de Familia (Women as Head of Families), or MUJEFA.

The city helped with this project. The plan was to fix up an old, empty building in the city center. It would become a shared living space for twelve families. It took four years to get the building's ownership. In 1994, the women began cleaning the property. The construction was finished in May 1997. The large house had three common courtyards. These were kept for the people living there. The big rooms were divided into apartments.

Charna Furman's project was very successful. It was a finalist for the 1995 World Habitat Prize. This award is given by a group in the United Kingdom. The project also won awards in Argentina and Dubai.

Working for Women's Rights

Charna Furman joined the International Habitat Council's Women's Network in 1992. In 1994, she helped start the Housing Institute for Women (Spanish: Instituto de Vivienda para la Mujer, IVIM). She became the president of IVIM in 1996. That same year, she joined a United Nations group. This group looked at how gender and poverty affected women.

In 1997, Charna Furman began working on several projects. These projects improved neighborhoods in Montevideo. She worked with the Municipal Commissariat of Montevideo (Spanish: Intendencia Municipal de Montevideo, IMM). She also worked with the Women's commission of the Federation of Housing Cooperatives (Spanish: Federación de Cooperativas de Vivienda, FECOVI) and IVIM. These projects included housing cooperatives like Covisfran and Olimar. They focused on creating safe spaces for working women. They also offered childcare and programs to help women start small businesses.

In 2001, the University of the Republic appointed Charna Furman to a special group. This group studied gender issues. Besides her city planning work, Charna taught classes for advanced students. These classes covered topics like designing homes for people with low incomes. She also taught about using recycled materials to solve housing problems. She wrote books and articles about housing solutions for cities. Some of her works include:

• Mujefa ya tiene casa: un proyecto piloto y sus impactos en el Uruguay (MUJEFA has home: a pilot project and its impacts in Uruguay, 1996)
• Soluciones habitacionales para personas adultas mayores (Housing solutions for older adults, 1997)
• Políticas de vivienda y hábitat. Las necesidades de las mujeres y de los nuevos arreglos familiares siguen sin ser contemplados (Housing and habitat policies: The needs of women and new family arrangements remain unseen, 2000)
• Nuevas ecuaciones sociales. Como responden las políticas habitacionales (New social equations: How housing policies respond, 2007)

Later Years and Advocacy

Charna Furman retired from the university in 2004. After retiring, she joined a group that investigated the time of the dictatorship. She also served on various neighborhood councils starting in 2007.

In 2005, she was part of a documentary film called Memorias de Mujeres (Memories of Women). Virginia Martínez directed this film. It shared the stories of women who were held during the dictatorship. The film showed how these women supported each other. They lived in a community style to help each other through difficult times.

See also

In Spanish: Charna Furman para niños