Because Papiamento has roots in the slave trade, there was little public support in preserving the language or teaching it in the Dutch school system.

[7][8][9] In a report prepared for UNESCO, Clemencia argued that Papiamentu and English should be declared the national languages of the Antilles.

[11] Clemencia co-wrote with Omayra Leeflang a text for teaching Papiamento entitled Papiamentu Funshonal, which became a standard for secondary education instruction.

[13] As a member of the Caribbean Association of Women and Scholars (ACWWS), Clemencia participated in conferences and meetings to promote a feminist identity which recognized the diversity of women from the Caribbean and allow their contributions to be told in their own voice, be that Dutch, English, French, Spanish[14] or Creole languages, as the language used defines an identity strategy for the writer.

[15] Though an ardent feminist, Clemencia believed that general emancipation, including identity, independence and language, were critical elements in attaining political freedom.

[5] During the early years of the 21st century, facing high unemployment and social unrest in Curaçao, Clemencia joined with other intellectuals and in 2006 formed the Grupo Pro Defensa di Kòrsou (Group in Favor of the Defense of Curaçao) and a political party called Partido Indepensha (Independence Party).