S11: lessons for the feminist movement

October 11, 2000
Issue 

COMMENT BY KAMALA EMANUEL Picture

The September 11 (S11) protests in Melbourne against the World Economic Forum (WEF) inspired many new activists and provided the movement for global justice with important lessons. The feminist movement should take these lessons on board.

In most of the feminist collectives I have been involved in, and in the broader women's liberation movement, there is a debate about "celebrations". One side argues that the annual International Women's Day and Reclaim the Night events are celebrations, while the other argues that they should be mass mobilisations of women in support of clear political demands.

S11 confirmed the primary role of political demands in building socially progressive movements. S11 activists built the blockade by publishing information about the WEF and raised demands to fight neo-liberal globalisation.

Environmentalists, feminists, socialists, Aboriginal rights activists, trade unionists, anarchists, international solidarity activists, students, refugees' rights campaigners and many others were united in opposition to the profits-first agenda of the world's capitalist elite.

During the protests, a speakers platform highlighted the political issues and help coordinate the blockade. There was entertainment, but this was not the primary motive for participation.

That does not mean we did not have fun. S11 reminded many of the phrase that revolution is "a festival of the oppressed"; we had a taste of that in the streets of Melbourne. Creative people performed street theatre, rapped, sang, chanted and danced. There were puppets, drums, banners, placards, clothing with messages, a doof bus, spruikers, stilt-walkers and more.

There was a carnival atmosphere because there were so many of us. Doing a round of the casino, checking out the blockade sites, we could not help getting excited. "This is what democracy looks like", we chanted, and contrary to the establishment media's lies about "ugly" protests, the people's power we were participating in was a beautiful, empowering thing.

This is quite different from the demobilising approach taken by feminists who counterpose organising cultural "celebrations" to mobilisations based on clear political demands. A recent example of this is the World March of Women (WMW 2000) against poverty and violence against women. Its focus is on the United Nations and the international financial institutions, and its demands include the cancellation of Third World debt, an end to structural adjustment programs and the establishment of a new, democratic world political and economic system based on solidarity and justice, equal participation of women and men, and a fair say for poor countries.

The WMW 2000 coordinating body's web site explains the project is to build grassroots mobilisations of women to achieve a comprehensive set of political demands. There is an international petition and postcard campaign, and a plan for a women's delegation to present the demands to the UN, International Monetary Fund and World Bank.

However, in Australia, the focus of the coordinating body is on public statements and actions by high-profile individual women, and organising events to "celebrate". But celebrate what? The arrival of millions of postcards at the UN in New York, pleading for measures to eradicate poverty and violence against women? The chance for a delegation of 200 women from many countries to meet with the heads of the UN, IMF and World Bank?

Hobart activists report that the WMW 2000 national contact person, Cathie Piccone, advised them not to organise a march, but rather, a celebration.

The Hobart WMW 2000 collective is nevertheless organising a political rally and march. The march will link up with the Reclaim the Night action on Friday, October 13. Demands to be raised by speakers will include: abolish the GST; paid maternity leave; restore of child-care funding; reverse welfare cuts; cancel Third World debt; respect asylum seekers' rights; combat domestic violence; safety for sex industry workers; end sexist media images; decriminalise abortion; end discrimination in the access to reproductive technology; and that the Australian government sign the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women optional protocol. A forum will be held on October 11.

Unfortunately, the reliance on high-profile women to gain publicity and an emphasis on the cultural aspects of the action have overshadowed building the action as a political event through publicity explaining the issues and the need to develop a mass movement for women's liberation.

While the political and cultural aspects of WMW 2000 are not mutually exclusive, S11 shows that politics must come first. If we get that right, and identify the issues that are capable of drawing people into political action, the celebration will happen in the course of the struggle.

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