Radical Feminism by F. Mackay

Radical Feminism by F. Mackay

Author:F. Mackay [Mackay, F.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781137363596
Publisher: PalgraveMacmillan
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00


Why should Reclaim the Night be women-only?

One common argument made in favour of women-only marches, and perhaps the most obvious one, is that the march is about violence against women and, as men are not women and so not victim to violence against women, they should not attend. Charlie, in her early thirties, made this point, also highlighting that as men are not affected, they also do not carry with them the fears and anxieties that women do about using public space at night for example.

men have not, and don’t, experience the unspoken sanctions that women do.

(Charlie)

This stance relied on activists identifying one aim of RTN being awareness raising about male violence against women specifically, and it not being about public safety in general. For those who saw this awareness raising and focus on women as victims as key, it was precisely the women-only element which was tactical. They argued that the women-only element of RTN is its unique selling point, it is what makes this march stand out from other political protests and therefore it would be impractical to miss out on this interesting feature. As Sheila said of mixed marches:

and it just makes it look like an ordinary march, like all the others.

(Sheila)

Sheila was 65 and identified as a radical lesbian feminist and a socialist. Sheila had been involved in feminism for decades and was still active in feminism as well as in socialist groups against government cutbacks and anti-war organisations. She was retired and therefore had the freedom to spend her time tackling the capitalist patriarchal status quo and enriched the groups she was in with her feminist theory and activist experience.

Several activists felt that by keeping RTN women-only, a clear focus is maintained on male violence against women and thus the message to bystanders is clear and unmistakable. Eight activists actually used the word ‘diluted’ when they critiqued mixed marches. Debbie for example, an anarcho-feminist in her late thirties, argued that:

I feel that ‘open-gender’ or mixed marches dilute the message and un-gender the very gendered phenomenon of sexual violence against women.

(Debbie)

For those in favour of a women-only RTN, the aim of the march was to highlight women’s demand to live free from the threat and reality of male violence. To have men on the march detracted from this, and sent ‘mixed messages’ to the bystanders watching or those hearing about a local march through the media. Rosa also emphasised this, another anarcho-feminist from the North of England; she had experiences of both mixed and women-only RTN. I met Rosa in a veggie café near to where I was staying with a friend in the city. After arriving late due to getting the wrong bus, we were able to chat about Rosa’s experiences of different RTN marches and the different approaches that had been taken in her city. Rosa worked as a therapist in a women’s centre, and was very committed to women’s empowerment through actively doing politics and because of this, she preferred to be involved



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