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NATIONWIDE DEMO FOR JUSTICE FOR WOMEN On the 14th of March there were simultaneous demos outside High Courts in Auckland, Christchurch, Hamilton and Dunedin as well as outside the Appeal Court in Wellington. The day marked the day on which Gay Oake's lawyers were appealing her case in the A ppeal Court. The day was not only about Gay and her case but about highlighting the inequities in the 'Justice(sic) System'. Like how can it be that when a man kills his partner he can plead provocation and get off on man-slaughter or less but when a wo men kills her partner, a partner who may have been severely beating her up over decades, she can be separated from her children and get convicted of murder. The justice system is obviously warped!. In addition when a man pleads provocation the victim, th e dead woman can't speak out and say if he was provoked, yet in the woman's case there is often solid evidence through police records etc that abuse was going on, yet the murder sentence is still past down!. Women for Justice for Women a group set up to address the inequities in the justice system, believes that the Gay Oake's appeal raises some important issues of gender bias. + the extent to which the effects of long term abuse on women must be taken into account when deciding guilt or innocence, + the tendency of the criminal justice system to blame women for its failure to protect women, + women's and children's right to saf ety, + the right of a woman to a fair and non-discriminatory trial. The legal ins and outs of Gay's case are that when her case was initially heard her lawyer somehow tried to use 'self-defence' and 'provocation' arguments. Both of these fell short of an argument called 'self-preservation' which has not been set into la w, yet. Basically, the 'self-preservation' argument states that anyone has a right to protect themselves from perceived imminent attack. 'Self-preservation' may take into account such things as 'the battered woman's syndrome' or at the very least consid er the reality, the terror, of a woman frozen into a long time abusive relationship. Appeal cases don't reopen the facts of a case they review points of law. In Gay's case how the judge behaved was being reviewed. He may have led the jury by understating the situation of battered women in general. The appeal court has come out with a "reserved judgement" on Gay's case, it will continue at a later date. Points of law, facts of the case or legal arguments, it doesn't really matter! Simply, justice wasn't done or didn't work well for Gay before Doug Gardener died, Gay appealed to the Police, got out non-molestation orders and did everything she could. Yet after Doug Gardener died the justice system worked particularly fast, wosh down on Gay. Down on a woman who once rang the police for assistance and was told they couldn't come out because some diplomat was in town. Write to Women for Justice for Women, Suzanne Berry, Law Faculty, Canterbury University, Private Bag, CHRISTCHURCH or Gay Oakes, Paparoa Women's Prison, CHRISTCHURCH -------------------------------------------------- 1 9 9 5 Anarcha-Feminist Conference The Katipo Collective organised a Third Annual Anarcha-feminist Conference on February 17-19th 1995. It was held at Makahika Lodge, east of Levin. The Katipo Collective is made up of about fifteen women and is a Wellington based group which has been meeting regularly over the past four years. Our conferences which are annual events are organised because they are effective in bringing together Anarcha-feminists, one time during the year to share ideas, discuss Anarcha-feminist issues and develop a feelingof sisterhood. Anarcha-feminist conferences are a good opportunity to socialise with other women from around the country. This year women got together at workshops and discussed a variety of topics which were: Introduction to Anarcha-femi nism, Advanced Anarcha-feminism,Communit Justice for Rapists and Abusers, Collective Decision Making, Reunification of Germany -(German Feminist Perspective), Introduction to Massage, Ecofeminism, Sexuality, The Fiscal Envelope Celibacy, Class, Educating Our Children, as well as a Weed Walk and a talk on Bicycle Maintenance. On Friday night up to fifty women arrived from around the country. Women came from Auckland, Hamilton, Palmerston North, Takaka, Nelson, Levin, Wellington as well as from Canada, Germany, and England. Saturday morning started off with Defensercise (a mix of Self-defence and Jazzerobics). That was followed with a hearty breakfast, an introduction session and then into the first lot of workshops. Introductory Anarcha-Feminism and a more in depth Anarch-Feminist workshop were the first two workshops of the day. In the introductory Anarcha-feminist workshop, anarchism was explained as well as its history. The discussion then went into Anarcha-femin ism, how it was different from other feminisms and a bit of Anarcha-feminist history. The in depth Anarcha-feminist workshop were for those women who felt they already knew what Anarcha-feminism was. It was to discuss our own doubts about Anarcha-feminism , why we think women may not want to be involved. It was a very positive approach which highlightedareas we have not been addressing.On Saturday there were four session of workshops with a big lunch break which gave women an opportunity to relax and to go and swim in the nearby waterhole. By the end of the day we were both stimulated by the workshops and tired! Later that night we had a collective banquet dinner then a Performance Show led by some members of the Random Trollops, an Anarcha-feminist performance troupe. On Sunday we had more of the same, with an intensive schedule of workshops, two slots in the morning, one in the afternoon and a caucusdiscussion on how the conference went, and Future Directions. The Katipo Collective got a lot of positive feedback on the conference during the final caucus session. It was said that, As Education is getting more and more expensive events like the Anarcha-feminist conference are an oppertunityto educate women about things they might not come into contact otherwise and that The Conference was about women educating each other. There is a conference planned for 1996 although who will be organising it, where it will be held and when the exact dates are, is yet to be decided. Look out for information about this in future issues of Sekhmet. -------------------------------------------------- Introduction to Anarcha-feminism Workshop The introduction to Anarcha-feminism workshop was taken by Lou and Lyn. The first half of the workshop which Lyn took, is a general talk on anarchism, anarchist history and anarchist movements around the world. This article doesn't cover what was discussed by women in the workshop. Going back to its Greek roots the word anarchy comes from the word archon, meaning power. Words like monarchy and patriarchy have the same root. But with the prefix 'an', anarchy comes to mean the absence of such power. Today anarchism is a theory for social change. The essential anarchist belief is that no person has the right to have power over another person. When you accept that notion that every person has there own personal sovereignty, it becomes apparent, that the present social structure does not allow people equal footing. It does not allow us control over our own lives. This is why anarchists actively oppose those things which we see inhibit our own personal freedom and inhibit a more beneficial social order from developing. Anarchists have traditionally opposed all hierarchies including monarchies, governments, fascism, sexism, and racism. And anarchists oppose the violent methods power uses to protect its own interests such as police and armies. Anarchists believe that we don't need the government to look after us, and that in fact people would be a lot better off looking after themselves. Instead of organising in hierarchies with some people like bosses and politicians telling everyone else what to do; people could work in smaller groups, in collectives where there is no boss and decisions can be made by every member of the collective. A society without government is a heavy concept when you first think about it. Of course we have all been well socialised into believing that government is necessary and that really people can't be trusted with themselves. Anarchist thought about how a society without coercion would work has led to specifically anarchists methods of working. Anarchists believe that no one should own property. All land in the 'anarchist' vision would be held in common. Anarchists believe also that work would be quite different in an anarchist society. Because everyone would have access to work. The unemployed, disabled and elderly wouldn't be kept from meaningful work like they are now. There would be no need for those that do real productive labour to work so excessively hard to support the people that aren't allowed to work and the people that do useless wor k like politicians. A crucial part of anarchism is that the means you utilise will determine the end result. So if you want an equal society you don't work in a hierarchy to get it and you use direct action grass roots methods instead of relying on the government for reforms . To sum up means define the ends. Right onto some anarchist history! The Free Spirit was probably the world's first major anarchist movement that I know of, flourishing throughout the Middle Ages in virtually every part of Europe. It began in 1200AD among Paris intellectuals as a rebellio n against the overwhelming power of the church. Although the central group was swiftly executed by the church for 'heresy', their ideas spread from town to town, especially along trade routes. Women and weavers (such as the weavers of Antwerp) were particularly receptive. All renounced property, power, and privilege. In 1259 they were excommunicated, the Church being especially horrified by the many Free Spirit women living in communal households - in Cologne they numbered 2000. According to the Bishops their chief sin was their independence from men; they were "idle gossiping vagabonds who refuse obedience to men under the pretext that God is best served in freedom". Everything about them was banned by the church and refusing to purchase absolution many were burnt or drowned for their belief in freedom. Forced underg round they became mobile spreading into many countries. Their vivid message was carried by word of mouth but their propaganda also included the written word. Although Marguerite Porete was burned at the stake in 1310, her Mirror of Simple souls, was cover tly distributed across Europe for several centuries. Other anarchist movements in pre-industrial revolution Europe included the Ranters in Diggers. In the second half of the 19th century people actually started calling themselves anarchists this is the heyday of men with beards - Bakunin, Kropotkin, Poudhon, Reclus etc. all writing long books. About the same time the Paris Commune of 1871 was the fir st great urban go at it. The commune gave priority to education - one child in three would otherwise have had no schooling at all. An all women committee, including the anarchist Louise Michel, organised classes for women, and organised schools and day nu rseries near the factories. 43 factories were collectively run. Eventually the commune was squashed and Louise Michel and others got exiled to New Caledonia as prisoners, and once there they ended up joining the 1878 Kanak uprising against the French colo nialists. Asia also has a widespread anarchist movement. In Korea in 1800 there was the Yeon Jeon System and in the 1860's Choi Jae Woo came up with the Dong Hak theory. A peasant army rose up, influenced by Dong Hak, against the ruling class. The numbers of the ar my snowballed as it crossed the country. The peasant army occupied 53 counties which produced half the grain of the country. All farms collectivised, abolishing feudal discrimination, redividing land etc. When the government despatched troops to reinforce their army it had been reduced to half by the time they got there because of desertions. In the end the Korean ruling class invited the Japanese imperialists in to restore 'order'. The modern anarchist movement in Korea before 1945 spent most of their energy trying to expel Japan from their country. During this time they had contact with other anarchists in Japan, China, Vietnam, Taiwan and others. In 1928 the Korean Anarchists orga nised the Eastern Anarchist Federation composed of anarchists from all these countries, and published a bulletin called 'Dong Bang'. Latin America also had a strong anarchist movement with huge anarchist unions. Mexican Indians were influenced by anarchist ideas especially the Zapatistas. Anarchism is at the centre of Cuba's long history struggle for freedom and independence. Anarchists drafted the Cuban Independence Resolution at the first workers conference in 1892 and the anarchist general workers league led the first General strike. Ma ny anarchists also fought in the 1895 insurrection against Spanish rule. Anarchists were also central with the 200,000 strong co-operative movement. I don't know about the history of anarchism on the African continent except that there is a large movement in Nigeria and they are currently working on a book about African anarchist history. The two most inspiring points of anarchist history for me is Russia in 1917 with the Makhnovists etc. and the other being the Spanish Revolution in 1936 which involved one and a half million anarchists. (I told the women in the workshop that I couldn't do either of these the justice with time we had but recommended that women find out more about them, and that if they asked me afterwards I could recommend some books. As well as plugging the video we had at the conference 'All of Our Lives' which is an i nterview with some anarchist women who were active during the Spanish Revolution.) Since Spain there have been uprisings in Hungary in 1956, France in 1968 though not necessarily anarchist were definitely very anarchist in flavour. (From here the workshop was passed onto Lou). By Lyn With loads of help from Sam's notes and various books. The second half of the workshop which was facilitated by Lou. She compared Anarcha-feminism with other feminisms. She also outlined some herstory of Anarcha-feminism around the world. What follows is a brief summary about the ideas put forward, some contentious points and some general group agreements. Liberal and Conservative feminism (neither myself who had done research on both feminisms, nor women in the group could actually see much of a difference between Liberal and Conservative feminism as neither directly challenge the existence and legitimacy of present power structures. There was a general agreemeent that both address women's issues within the status quo political structure. On reflection I think I see where the difference lies (although as an anarchist, it makes little difference to what I think about them both). Conservative feminism, positions women's rights and feminist issues under the hierarchal mainstream agenda. For example it is acceptable, according to conservative feminist beliefs, for women to have equal opportunities in the workplace but not to question the male defined arrangement of the workplace. Liberal feminism appears to be somewhat more challenging within the existing social, political and economic frameworks. For example a reordering! of the workplace may be acceptable within liberal feminism. Again though, this is not extended to a wider critique of institutions which order our lives: government, the legal system and capitalism. Socialist and Marxist feminism was discussed without too much controversy. However, a discussion of these feminisms introduced a very important problem to the group , the question of whether society based on anarchist-feminist principles is practically possible. Is a lack of government and legal structures, feasible? Could anarchist communities function? Obviously to many of us who were familiar with anarchist ideas prior to the conference this was an issue that may have already been dealt with and accepted - to varying degrees. For those who were unaware of anarchy as an everyday reality, I gave some examples of anarchist communities, such as those which existed in Spain in the 1930's. Socialist and Marxist feminism was critiqued as a challenge to the existing capitalist order, but limiting because of it's acceptance of the state. The anarcha-feminist idea, that a centralised and patriarchal institution cannot and should not ensure the liberation of women and other oppressed and marginalised groups, gave some group members good fodder to mull over. Lesbian and radical feminism were looked at and it was generally recognised that there are strong links between these and Anarcha-feminism. In fact it was suggested that all three accommodated each other within their special agendas. All of them reject existing male power superstructures and called for a radical reshaping of society and community. They are pro-collectives and reject hierarchal organisations and activities. For example, the early conscious-raising groups in the 'second-wave' of feminism operated anarchistically with no 'leaders' or bureaucracy, and it was only when the woman's movement as a whole began to aim to please government and so on that the initial equality was lost. Early 'second-wave' ideas read very similarly to Anarcha-fem ideas. Herstory By the time we had thrashed out all of the above, there was very little time for anything but a tragically inadequate summary of the international herstory of Anarchist feminism. I would have liked to have touched on Anarcha fems in Asia, especially key Chinese Anarcha feminists, but alas it was not to be. Key figures in European Anarcha-fem herstory were mentioned, including Emma Goldman, Mollie Steimer and Voltairine De Cleyre. The Spanish group Mujeres Libres was talked about in brief. If you want to become further aquainted with the history of Anarcha-feminism and Anarcha-feminist figures contact back issues of Sekhmet and books which can be obtained through the Katipo Collective or the Anarchist bookshop in Wellington. Some libraries particularly university libraries, may gave one or two relevant books on the topic. Relevant books are: Anarchist Women by Margaret S Marsh, Quiet Rumours: Anarcha-feminism in the 1970's and 1980's by Oak Star Publishing Collective, Mujeres Libres: Organising Women during the Spanish Revolution by Martha Acklesberg, Anarchism and Feminism by Kyka Kursh and Peggy Kornegger, and Fighters for Anarchism by Mollie Steimer and Senya Fleshin -------------------------------------------------- Bringing up our children As an Anarcha-feminist, how do you educate kids? Is education itself coercive? State schools certainly are! However, kids naturally like learning - the important thing is that they learn what they want, when they want. What about the history of an anarchist thought on this? Lots of famous anarchist dudes have ranted about education. History In 18th century England, William Godwin declared "education is the basis of freedom". Later, in Spain, Francis Ferrer was into "rational education". Groups of kids would decide what they wanted to learn, then organise a teacher. There'd be no homework, discipline or hierarchy (ie no teachers' desk). Emma Goldman railed against the US state school system. She supported free expression and sex education, and set up anarchist schools in New York. Zeb Koryanska, a contemporary English anarchist, is into home schooling. Its less competitive, and work and play can be integrated. If you don't like schools, "Teach your own" she says. We also discussed actual schools a bit. In 1901, Ferrer set up the Escuela Moderna in Barcelona. Classes were optional co-educational, and without prizes, marks, or exams. Nearly fifty schools were set up - partly funded by anarchist bank robberies! These inspired the Modern Schools Movement in the USA. From 1910 twenty two schools were set up. Hours were flexible and attendance optional. In one case the teachers got US$6.50 a week, which they spent on buying the kids ice-cream and taking them to the movies. Once, when the "Star Spangled Banner" was played in a movie, the kids refused to stand up, and the class has a big argument with the manager. Unfortunately both, lack of funding and disagreements between parents and teachers were big problems and the last school closed in 1960. Approach So how does an Anarcha-feminist today approach the subject of education? Feminist efforts in education are more often concerned with women educating each other within universities women teach and learn about woman's history, the history of feminism and feminist thought. Outside universities feminists run workshops on topics like self-defence, anger management and self-esteem. But what about education of children. Probably the biggest concern of feminist educationalists is gender socialisation of children. To a large extent children learn the play passive, active roles. Education must be partly responsible. Anarchists acknowledge many faults of the state education system. I will not attempt to cover them all. A primary fault is state schools aim to prepare pupils for the job market and a place in the hierarchy. School children are not taught to use their initiative or imagination, instead they are taught diligence and obedience. Another fault of state education is its inefficiency. Because of schools limited aims and high student to teacher ratio kids spend hours and hours at school with very little to show for it. The conference discussion acknowledged that there are alternatives to state education. Women focused on the parenting aspect of education. We also talked about the advantages of co-parenting and what constitutes a family. Not addressed were important questions like, what are the educational needs of children in Aotearoa, and is education itself coercive? Hopefully the topic of Anarchist education will continue to promote thought and discussion. Luv Catherine and Billie -------------------------------------------------- Coming out and homophobia in Aotearoa Coming out and homophobia are two of the most difficult issues for lesbian and bisexual women. Our workshop was primarily aimed at giving understanding the 'coming out' process and where homophobia comes from and the effect these have on lesbian and bisexual women. The issue of sexual orientation has to be important to all feminists, if we stand up for women's rights we stand up for all women's rights. It is in the interest of all women to protect women's choice of sexual orientation as a basic human right (now unable to be discriminated against under the Human Rights Bill of Aotearoa). Homophobia should also concern feminists, whatever their sexual orientation because it controls women's lives, eliminates women's choices and suppresses women's sexuality. There is also an important connection between homophobia and anti-feminist attitudes, like being called a lesbian just because your a feminist, which has often been used to undermine women's movements and divide women on the basis of sexual orientation. Homophobia seems to be yet another patriarchal devise to control women that has evolved from many different socially prescribed norms and gender roles. These norms effect how women's sexuality is defined, especially the myth of 'compulsory' heterosexuality which defines women's sexuality as passive heterosexuality. Lesbian and bisexual women challenge this notion of women's sexuality by not following these norms. In reality this means it can be difficult for women to assess when it is O.K. to be 'out' and open or, to gauge the level of homophobia around them. This effects whether a woman for example openly: identifies as a lesbian; promotes bisexual politics; tells you she has a girlfriend; talks about her live-in woman partner. We are socialised to be heterosexual and discouraged to be anything else. There is a lot of fear caused mainly by ignorance and suspicion of people who are not heterosexual. Many lesbian and bisexual women many also fear rejection, abuse and violence because of their sexual identity. Ways to overcome homophobia include looking at our own backgrounds/socialisation to see where these feelings come from and why. Women may also benefit from joining a local 'coming out group' for women who are lesbian or bisexual . It is important to challenge homophobia in ourselves and others (that includes straight and bendy women). 'Coming out' is often an important time in a women's life. Coming out can be a personal process of realising that you are bisexual or lesbian, this might mean challenging the homophobe within. It is also about telling other people your sexual identity. Coming out is going to be different for everybody, we have to respect the way our friends, family and co-workers come out, who they come out to and how they do it. It is not save to assume women are 'out' to everybody, or that they are 'out' to their parents (giving it away may cause a premature crisis for your friend). Remember also that coming out may be a very private time (lots to think about) , so don't be offended people need some space. For many bisexual women coming out can be difficult, many women feel they have nothing to come out into, no community and not much of an identity. I hope this has covered the important aspects of 'coming out' and homophobia and been an accurate reflection on our workshop. I felt it was a safe, honest and open space to discuss these issues and women's personal experiences. So that we could find understanding, pride and healing about the way sexual identity, homophobia and 'coming out' effected our lives. Johanna and Billie -------------------------------------------------- Consensus and Chrysantheneums Consensus? It's harder than it sounds. It's important, though, because decision-making is power. You can't separate means and ends - the process can be as important as the decision itself. It's like gardening. There are heaps of difficulties. People can be left out due to race, culture, age, class, gender, or disability. New members often feel left out, while a couple of dudes dominate so no-one feels they've got the authority to speak. Sometimes structures which supposedly let everyone have their say (circles, rounds etc/, can actually be threatening, wimmen feeling 'put on the spot'. In the end , people feel frustrated and ignored, and the decision is weaker because it doesn't include everyone's experience. Rotating Chair Method This is the idea that the current speaker is responsible for "chairing" the meeting while she's speaking. When she's finished, she passes the "chair" onto the next woman. Woman show they want to speak by eye contact, hand symbols etc. This goes on till no-one else wants to speak - it's a bit like marae protocol. At the end, a decision is put together that includes everyone's opinion. If a decision can't be reached, the issue is left open. However, if it's urgent, the group has to focus on quickly reaching a decision everyone can live with. Roles Starhawk is more into using "roles" which rotate among the members of the group. First, there's the Facilitator., who keeps everything focussed and zooming along . The Vibeswatcher (great name) keeps and eye on the feeling of the meeting. The Peacekeeper helps calm people and deal with crises - both meetings and political actions. The Co-ordinator keeps track of what's doing and who's doing it! There are also roles which people can find themselves doing without realizing - and may wish to change. The SELF-HATER gets uptight that other people don't do as much as she does. The STAR talks a lot and shows off. The Rock does all the grotty tasks and get burnt out. The FILLER just sits there without saying much. These methods can take a lot of time and are usually more effective when the group is fairly small and is really committed to the same goals. Each group will need to devise its own processes - and share them with other people. The anarcha-feminst future we create (whatever that might be!), depends on how we make decisions today. Happy gardening! Two cool books: (i) Starhawk - Dreaming the Dark (ii) Charlene Eldredge Wheeler - Peace and Power, a handbook of feminist process. Catherine --------------------------------------------------