New Epoch Media.
November 21, 2019
In
the following we want to publish an english translation of a Statement
of the Red Front Collective (Austria) on occasion of the International
Day against Violance against Women on the 25th of November 2019. We
assume it to be an important contribution to forward the debate and
dicussion on the development of an class concious womens movement in the
imperialist countries. The German original you can find here.
25th of November: International day against violence against women
Forward in the struggle against violence against women:
Down with patriarchy and capital!
Being
a „feminist“ has become fashionable today in broad parts of society and
many representatives of the ruling class are trying to use it, to build
up a good image for themselves. At the same time the reality of the
majority of women in Austria shows, that despite this „fashion“ the
actual politics are worsening the situation of women more and more and
violence against women is not decreasing, but increasing.
Not
least the increase of terrible murders of women, put violence against
women on the agenda again. In the light of this reality the lie of
absence of patriarchy in the „civilized, Christian Occident“ is
collapsing like a house of cards. Suddenly patriarchy is „denounced“
even in the most conservative circles and new explanation attempts, like
for example that patriarchy would be an „import product from abroad“,
or a product of „aggressiveness of single men“, are build up from
nothing in order to calm down the masses. For fear of even other great
emphasized „western values“ could become unmasked as pipe dreams, the
ruling class try to get themselves out of the line of fire by staging
them as „enemies“ of women‘s oppression. Hypocritical compassion and
demands of „stricter laws against perpetrators“ are presented as
„solutions“. Despite the fact that not even 1% (!) of rapists are being
sentenced with the actual laws, this „big words“ are just there to
distract from the reality that violence against women is producing on
the one hand individually terrible fates, but on the other hand is in no
way just a „private problem“.
Already
in the year of 1886 the communist Eleanor Marx-Aveling emphasized, that
it is not enough to only draw attention to single fates (as tragic they
may be), because thereby the root of women‘s oppression is not becoming
„automatically“ visible: „those who attack the present treatment of women without seeking for the cause of this in the economics of our latter-day society are like doctors who treat a local affection without inquiring into the general bodily health.“(1) Economy
is the basis of the society in which we are living, today
capitalism/imperialism. Women are in a position of double oppression
within it, because the majority of house-, care-work and child-raising
burdens on their shoulders within the private household. At the same
time women are supplementary work-forces, which are easily exchangeable
and mainly earn that less, that they can only earn a „supplementary
income“ for the family. It is only „consequent“ that on this economical
basis also the position of woman within the family is laid down, the
position in which the woman is at the mercy of man‘s arbitrariness.
Although this important conclusion has been made 150 years ago, the
ruling class is trying until today to blur and deny that fact. Also
„recent“ theories like „Queer-Feminism“, „LGBTQI“, or the „Identity
Policy“ are serving to cause confusion, because despite various
approaches they have in common, that patriarchy is considered detached
from the ruling social order, which is based on oppression and exploitation – thus on the division of classes.
Especially
with the worldwide financial crisis in 2008, causing the deepening of
the economical and political crisis of capitalism, also the ruling class
in Austria adopted a more aggressive course to intensify the
exploitation and oppression of the broad masses. Privatization, social
regression, cuts, savings in the education and health system, price
increase and working time extension are part of a reactionary program,
which was pushed through by the various governments in the last decade.
The „best of all possible worlds“ how it was presented in the 90s, more
and more turned out to be a „giant with clay feet“, as unbearable
parasite at the expense of the masses. Women are affected in a double
way by that attacks, because the consequence is not only that it gets
even harder to arrange work and family and that poverty between women
and children is increasing, but also an increased dependence on man.
While on the one hand working hours are increasing more and more and a
new peak against the workers rights was reached with the implementation
of 12 hours working day and 60 hours week, on the other hand the
majority of women is forced to do poorly paid part-time or marginal
jobs. Therefore the tendency that women are pushed back into „one‘s own
four walls“ is not primarily a product of a „conservative trend“ among
women, but especially an expression of the deepening crisis of capital
and therefore of the aggravation of patriarchy. It is nothing but
hypocrisy when now the ruling class, the politicians and „experts“ are
pretending to be shocked in face of increasing violence against women
within the family, because it is the ruling policy which is the major
motor of increasing violence against women, much harder and decisive
than a single man could ever be. To pretend that patriarchy would be a
„struggle between sexes“ is not only distracting from the real enemy,
but also pretends that only those women are oppressed by patriarchy
which actually „get beaten“. Of course it has to be an important part of
the struggle against the oppression of women to struggle for sufficient
protection possibilities for women and to resist against any further
cuts of women‘s shelters and victim protection facilities. But it should
not be forgotten, that despite a women‘s shelter can save lives in
various cases, it can not do anything against patriarchy as an
instrument of power (it‘s purpose is different). Patriarchy can only be
removed through the upheaval of economy, of the class society. Eleanor
Marx-Aveling draws the following conclusion in her Marxist analysis: „It
is essential to keep in mind that ultimate change, only to come about
when the yet more tremendous social change whose corollary it will be
has taken place. Without that larger social change women will never be
free.“(2) The struggle against patriarchy therefore is also part
of the struggle for the political power of the working class, therefore
even today it has to be directed firmly towards the revolution!
That
this orientation is nothing „exotic“ or „something belonging to the
past“ becomes clear, if we turn the focus today out of the
(pseudo-)liberal bubble. Especially in the oppressed countries of
Africa, Asia and Latin America the women‘s struggle is already today an
essential component against the capitalist/imperialist order. That the
ruling class in Austria and several parts of the women‘s movement
themselves present the female combatants of the YPJ(3) in North-Syria as
„prototype“ of heroic and struggling women internationally, is by no
means a „logical“ or „automatically“ result, because there in
particular, women are not understood as a part of the revolution, but
the so-called „women‘s liberation“ should become implemented by the
separation of sexes, without any break with the ruling order – and in
addition under the patronage of the USA.
Finally
all efforts will stay ineffective, if women‘s oppression is considered
detached from the revolution, detached from class struggle. Such
„feminism“ will finally not be able to gain a bigger influence within
the majority of women and stay detached from the real needs and
aspirations of women. Just like there is no need for doctors who are
content with superficial symptoms, there is no need for „feminists“ who
do not want to know anything about economy and class struggle! That
gives the strong task to all struggling and revolutionary forces of the
women‘s movement, to direct their politics especially to the women of
the working class (who are the majority of women!), those who are
oppressed and exploited the most, in order to develop together the
struggle against capital and patriarchy. Thereby it has to be especially
taken into account, that the influence of bourgeois ideology has left
deep marks on the masses of women and there is not only an increasing
tendency of conservatism and liberalism, but also a lot of women are
once again moving back into an „unpolitical“ attitude. This tendency
hast to be understood in particular as a teaching, that the increase of
oppression does not lead „automatically“ to the increase of resistance
or struggle, but the crucial point is to be able to give orientation and
perspective to the oppressed and exploited, on the basis of the real
conditions. A women‘s movement which is not detached from the real
conditions and the forces within the class struggle, can only be a
class-conscious women‘s movement. Thereby the progressive women have the
task, on the basis of proletarian feminism,
to set the women‘s movement on scientific feet and thus carrying the
firm orientation towards the revolution into the masses of women! Clara
Zetkin, one of the most important representatives of the worldwide
class-conscious women‘s movement, showed us with the following the key
point of this task: „We must not conduct special women‘s propaganda, but Socialist agitation among women.“(4)
Proletarian science has determined in the center of its teaching, that
an upheaval of the social relations can not be spontaneous and therefore
the struggle against patriarchy needs systematic and scientific work,
thus organization. With proletarian feminism, as essential component of
proletarian ideology, it created a powerful instrument in the struggle
against patriarchy. The role of women, as half of the population, within
class struggle thereby not only gains special significance, but even
the success of revolution and therefore of socialism is assessed by the
participation of women. Thus it becomes clear, that the struggle against
patriarchy and also the struggle against violence against women can not
be a minor matter and all tendencies which want to reduce the „women‘s
question“ to a „problem of women“ or even only a „bad behavior“ have to
be removed.
To master the task „to carry socialism into the women‘s masses“, it needs a program
for the next goals and tasks of the women‘s movement. A program, under
which the women can gather themselves and which is uniting them in an organization, is the decisive lever to break with passivity and spontaneity
and to rise the struggle of the women to a conscious level. Thereby
also the task to struggle against racist and chauvinist attempts of
division within the women‘s movement has to be an important priority.
The particular oppression of Muslim women through anti-Muslim racism is
today an instrument of fragmentation of the women‘s movement and tries
to replace internationalism as an important part of the women‘s
movement. This tendency of the ruling class should not be underestimated
and requires appropriate attention from all progressive and red women.
Contrary
to the defeatism and chauvinism, it is necessary today to build up the
firm orientation towards the revolution, which is today the main
tendency on a world scale. Within the women‘s movement the international
struggles of women serve as an important guiding star and orientation
point. The development of the revolution on a world scale is unequal and
that is why especially those struggles of women which are already
further developed should serve as a source of inspiration and action to
all progressive women in Austria. Special
lessons are taught by those women, who forged themselves within the
people‘s wars in India, Peru, Turkey and the Philippines in their
hundreds of thousands under the leadership of communist parties to
conscious combatants against imperialism and patriarchy. Those excellent
examples will create a bond of internationalism among the masses of
women and raise consciousness, that trusting in our own strength is a
sharp weapon in the struggle against passivity and deputy-thinking.
Struggling
women: Close the ranks on the international day against violence
against women firmly with the oppressed women! Show on the 25th of
November that violence against women is not a „minor matter“, which we
could not oppose! Make the 25th of November to become a symbol of
struggle of women against oppression and exploitation!
In service of the revolution: Down with patriarchy and capital!
Red Front Collective, November 2019
1 Eleanor Marx-Aveling and Eduard Aveling, The Woman Question (1886)
2 Ebd.
3 Kurdish Women's Protection Units in Northern Syria
4 Clara Zetkin: Only in conjunction with the proletarian woman will socialism be victorious, 1896
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