FEMINIST LETTER NO 20
To all feminists
All the tumult around the Feminist Initiative(F!)just goes to prove that feminism is under attack as never before. First Anna Wahl at the Handelshögskolan(School of Economics), then Eva Lundgren at the University of Uppsala and now Tiina Rosenberg at Stockholm University. All attacks, disguised as so called scientific scrutiny, but in actual fact with a strong political bias, originate from the think tank Timbro and those close to them.Last spring we had the commotion around the television documentaries ROKS (the National Federation of Women’s Emergency centres), full of insinuations and empty of factual content, in which the entire movement of emergency centres was portrayed as a collection of hysterical women who believe in conspiratorial pedophile networks that carve the foetus out of women’s bodies. No single television feature has resulted in as many complaints to the Broadcasting Commission. In spite of the fact that these complaints are not as yet dealt with, this documentary was recently awarded a prize for its “originality” in the field of documentary filming. The person who awarded the prize was no less than the minister of culture, Leif Pagrotsky.
Leif Pagrotsky is the representative of a government representing a party that according to its own party programme calls itself feminist. Its policies are based on an understanding of the fact that society is underpinned by a gender power structure that sets its mark on all areas of society and follows us from the cradle to the grave. The very same party has declared that its policies must reflect a greater feminist awareness and that knowledge of the patriarchal order of power, and the desire to put an end to it must permeate every sphere of political activity. Government ministers have these past 6 months, when the feminist debate has assumed increasingly grotesque and hostile forms of expression, maintained complete silence.
Now that Svenska Dagbladet, (one of the leading national papers), has published demands for a law putting an end to gender research at the universities and depict feminism as a poison spreading through society, no reaction is heard from the government. Neither the minister for education, nor the aforementioned Pagrotsky, or the minister in charge of gender equality, Jens Orback, has uttered one word in defence of learning.
Feminism has all of a sudden become a subject for the universities to abandon and preferably also for politics to discard. The following was uttered by Lars Lejonborg, (the Liberal Party )during the party leader debate held yesterday in Parliament): “Radical feminists, who strive to achieve warfare between the sexes and to abolish all individual choice by way of quota systems, have damaged the struggle for equal rights./…/ The fact that some members of the Feminist Initiative have mad ideas is no reason to slow the pace of our efforts to achieve gender equality. Poorly paid, harassed women should not have to pay the price for crazy ideas thought up by the radical feminists.”
Well, I suppose they are right, in their own way. We are so often touchingly in agreement over what the current situation actually is for women; they are discriminated against, have insecure jobs; they lack time to do their jobs properly and are insufficiently paid; sexism is rife and men’s violence against women is on the increase. This we know and are agreed upon. We talk with commitment about it all (at least at times) and are not prepared to accept status quo. We are after all agreed that we wish to achieve gender equality. No one stands up in defence of the injustices we (at times) are forced to witnesses. So why fight amongst ourselves? But then some feminists come along and say that they want to do something about it, actually do something. What sort of behaviour is that – to make a fuss and make demands!
Many people find it disturbing. The fact that we in F! even are aware of the conflicts created by taking the patriarchal order as the base for political organisation, that people find this provoking. We break down conformity and shatter the myth, revealing how the cherished idea of Sweden as the country where equality has been achieved is false and show that the feminist varnish is very thin, not least inside the party presently in power.
We are unsettling. We are just too much. And what happens then? Why, all those who earlier declared themselves defenders of gender equality now begin to feel things have gone too far. Gender equality, fair enough, but do not exaggerate! And when the surface, the myth of gender equal and tolerant Sweden starts to crack, barely hidden hatred of women and stale homophobia are revealed.
Several women who have actively supported F! have in different ways been made to feel this. Promised jobs have not been offered. Someone has had to give up her job. Another has experienced that the offer of a job has been accompanied by an ultimatum, yet another has been harassed by the social insurance office or been deemed unsuitable to represent her women’s association etc. The list can be made long and we make a note of all such circumstances. Everything will be revealed when the time comes.
Jag som har varit länge i politiken var bererdd på ett starkt motstånd. Jag förstår att man inte utmanar den patriarkala makten hur som helst, utan att det skulle bli ett just "herrans" liv. Men jag trodde motståndet skulle vara mer sakpolitiskt och öppet. Jag trodde att debatten skulle handla om de krav vi reser. Men så har det inte varit. Inte alls. Kritiken och debatten har i stället handlat om personer och om sexualitet. Till skillnad från hur Junilistans gubbröra har tagits emot. Jag jar inte sett några klippdockor med löskuk på Nils Lundgren men väl klippdockor med lösbröst och bävrar i brallorna (Aftonbladet) på både Tiina Rosenberg och mig själv.
I have been many years in politics and was prepared for strong opposition. I can understand that patriarchal power is not easily challenged and I expected a fight. However, I did believe the debate would be more openly focused on political issues and deal with the actual demands we put forward. But this has not been the case at all. Criticism and debate has instead been about individuals and about sexuality. Compare with the treatment given to the male dominated June list. I haven’t seen any cut out dolls of Nils Lundgren with a stick on penis, but there have been cut out dolls with loose breasts and “beavers” in their pants(in Aftonbladet) of both Tiina Rosenberg and myself.
There is a difference between the way one behaves towards men and women and how they are treated. This we knew. That there was still so much hatred of women and fear of homosexuality in the undertow of society, this I did not actually believe. Perhaps I too have been fooled by the myth of a gender equal and tolerant Sweden. At least I have learnt a lesson or two. The opposition is stronger than I thought and the necessity for F! is greater than I thought, here in Sweden, where a patriarchal spirit of consensus silences the voices of women.
The best we can do in the present circumstances, is to stick to politics – even more assiduously than before, in solidarity one with another and with all the women who are constantly exposed to discrimination and harassment. The patriarchy reacts in panic, something that indicates that we are definitely on the right path!
Gudrun
Tillbaka till Tidigare Feministbrev
