This paper consists in an analysis about some women who are trying to be, through the Ampal (Associação das Mulheres do Projeto de Assentamento Nova Lagoa Rica, in Portuguese) work experience, in Paracatu (Minas Gerais State), a protagonist in the family farming field. Furthermore, this article tries to understand how the gender issue is inserted in the settlement's process of territorial building, seeking to emphasize some dimensions of communitarian life. The study, conducted in 2006, is based on technician-methodological perspective of Anthropology, which has been conducted by two guidelines: the requirement of the field research and a case study. The results have shown that activities that results in asymmetry of relations between men and women have still been reproduced in the scope of family farming, which does not help to reduce gaps in rural areas. However, it also shows that there is an opposite trend from women agriculturists who, through group work, have started an emancipating process to know their own needs. This analysis also enables to elaborate some considerations about public policies that intend to support family farming with gender emphasize.
Family farming; gender; territorial approach; agrarian reform; public policy