Feminist Futures II: Feminist socialisation. Interview with an organiser

The international conference 'Feminist Futures II: Feministisch vergesellschaften - Her mit dem ganzen Leben!', from 25 to 27 September in Bochum, aims to connect the themes of feminism and socialisation. It explicitly refers to the Feminist Futures Festival, which took place seven years earlier in Essen in September 2019.

The Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung is organising the conference; the Care Revolution network is one of the feminist and care policy associations supporting the conference. Melanie Stitz is involved in the organisation of the conference as office manager of the Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung North Rhine-Westphalia. She has also been active in the Care Revolution network for a long time. We are pleased to have the opportunity to ask her a few questions about the idea and perspectives of 'Feminist socialisation - Bring on the whole life!

Thank you for doing this written interview with us, Melanie! Firstly, what can those coming to the conference expect? Who do you hope to see there?

The conference is intended to be a place to reflect on and further develop the many practices and struggles in which we have long been in the process of socialising our livelihoods in a feminist way. Namely, wherever people are fighting for the democratisation of all areas of life, where they no longer accept care work as a task to be solved privately, but instead seek collective solutions in different communities and reject gendered and racialised divisions of labour. Where they (re)appropriate together what they need to (survive) and take back the time that the capitalist patriarchy steals from them every day. Where they build caring cities or fight to transform shopping malls into care centres, where they withdraw healthcare from the logic of profit or practice subversive care... We invite all those who are involved in such projects, who perhaps sometimes despair at the contradictions, who think ahead or accompany this with analyses or are simply curious, to the conference! We are very much looking forward to seeing you again, as well as the many who are coming for the first time!

There will be exciting panels, lots of workshops and, of course, a great party! I recommend taking a look at the programme on our website.

The issues of feminism, for example with the increased participation in the 8 March demonstrations or taking up the ni una menos movement, and socialisation, above all with the "Expropriate Deutsche Wohnen&Co" campaign, are gaining in importance within the left. It seems urgently necessary to combine the two so that the perspective of socialisation relates to the entire economy and all work. As the conference organisers, how do you bring the topics together?

We want to work in two directions: on the one hand, we want to work out the extent to which queer-feminist struggles and struggles for socialisation belong together. Anyone who talks about ending violence against women and queers must inevitably also talk about social and democratic rights for all, affordable housing and good wage labour. Violence can also thrive because the structural vulnerability of all those who perform care work or are in need of it is politically organised on a daily basis. Violence - or the threat of violence - aims to relegate women, queers and migrants to "their place": So also to care work in the family or the toxic couple relationship. For true democracy and reproductive justice, it is not just minds and hearts that need to be won over - the material basis for this and the right to dispose of it collectively are also needed. Oppression, exploitation and the expropriation of everything that should belong to no one or to everyone are inextricably linked.

Now that the welfare state is being shredded - here in Germany too - basic social rights are being called into question at all levels and the parliamentary right is gaining strength, we want to contribute to (re-)politicising queer-feminist struggles even more clearly.

Conversely, we have the impression that feminist aspects are neglected in debates about socialisation. It is usually only about the abolition of private property and the logic of profit. From a feminist perspective, however, the shift of care work to private households and families is also a problem. This is a consequence of the gendered division of labour and the separation of the two sides of social (re-)production: the production of food and the production of life. Both are mutually dependent and can only be understood and changed together. Otherwise the whole question of care remains unresolved - it is faded out, mystified or declared a "private matter". In the struggles of the IG Metall trade union at the time over the 35-hour week, for example, women in particular made it a central theme that shorter paid working hours are - and should be! - in order to share care work fairly. Because care work takes place on a daily basis, they were also in favour of shorter working days instead of a four-day week.

We aim to address these connections in every workshop at the conference. The conference itself is a statement and sees itself as an intervention in the current debates on feminism and socialisation. We therefore expressly encourage you to stumble over the somewhat unwieldy title.

The Feminist Futures Festival in Essen was in 2019, and since then we have experienced and continue to experience the waning of the climate movement, the normalisation of armament and social cuts, the retraditionalisation of gender roles in some cases and the real danger of a national-authoritarian regime with or without the participation of the CDU. Why are you organising the conference right now, what is it supposed to achieve or initiate in this situation?

Yes, the attacks on all of our social rights, on women and queers, on migrant people are massive - and not just from the far right. We recently organised an event in NRW, initiated by the Cologne Assistance Collective, on the social cuts that have already been implemented or are planned. This calls into question the right to participation of people with disabilities and undermines the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Almost all speakers referred to the same picture: the glue that holds our society together is now being scraped out of the last few seams. And time and time again, this resonated: "We can no longer afford people like you". Refugees and people with the right to a citizen's income are also experiencing this. This strengthens the right and drives brutalisation - useful in times of (pre-)war and a preparation for an "emergency", when reverse triage is to be practised in the "war-ready" hospital: the lightly injured soldiers, who are supposed to return to the front quickly, then have priority...

There are so many places where resistance is needed! At the same time, there is so much that divides us. Different experiences and histories come together, we are entangled and affected by exploitation and oppression in different ways. Nevertheless, and even more so, there is a need to organise together. We believe that feminist socialisation can be a desire that connects the many: a powerful utopia, too good not to be true. A frame of reference that provides orientation for criticism and commitment. A roof under which we can make plans together and make appointments, and a slogan by which we can recognise each other.

A lot of the topics, especially in the strand 'Caring Cities - Towards a Socialist-Feminist Future', seem to emanate strongly from the local level. Is this currently the decisive level of empowering feminist organisation for you?

That's a very good question! That's what drives us in all contexts. Where are the contradictions and cracks where we can apply leverage? Who is willing and at the same time able to do something about the climate? Wouldn't it be better to prepare for the great collapse and practise for life in solidarity afterwards? Which action, which project will have the greatest possible impact? Do we hope for (wage) industrial action, the parliamentary route or mass mobilisations on the streets? Do we create facts on the ground and rely on instructive and encouraging initiatives "from below", do we throw ourselves into local politics or do we initiate transnational campaigns?

I believe and fear that there is enough capitalist patriarchy for everyone. It needs all of us, everywhere and at the same time. I hope we can make good progress on these strategic issues, forge powerful or cautious alliances, join forces and agree on sensible divisions of labour and synergies.

Of course, almost all of the issues that will be discussed at the conference can only be resolved radically - i.e. fundamentally and globally - in the best sense of the word. At the same time, we must ask ourselves where we have the opportunity to apply leverage here and now. Despite all this, this is a motto that I believe accompanies many of us through our everyday lives. Experiencing making a difference together with others is currently, in this country and if at all, probably more the case at a local level. But of course we don't want to stop here. The concept of Caring Cities, which will characterise the conference, attempts to build precisely this bridge: from the utopia of a caring society based on solidarity, a "democracy as caring practice", as Joan Tronto has called it, to concrete projects.

There have been many encouraging examples of this in recent years, including internationally, and the conference is largely inspired by them. After all, the conference also aims to promote international dialogue and mutual learning on all the issues mentioned.

In New York, a socialist mayor recently won the elections - something like this is currently only possible at municipal level. But here it is possible and can make a tangible difference for millions of people: Zohran Mamdani's city council, for example, wants to offer free childcare for all children up to the age of 5, which would be a small revolution in the US. Rebecca Bailin from United Childcare in New York will be our guest. She is the founder and CEO of "New Yorkers United for Child Care" and led the "Invest in Our New York" campaign - a billion-dollar budget for public programmes. The richest New Yorkers and large companies are expected to pay taxes for these programmes. Rebecca Bailin will share with us her experiences of how she managed to win this political success by demanding better care conditions. There is a lot to learn.

Another guest is Vraîe Cally Balthazaar, who has been mayor of Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka, since last summer. The political activist and feminist has been campaigning for the rights of women and children for years and is particularly committed to the right to housing. We will also have guests from Mexico City who will tell us about the project of feminist mayor Clara Brugada - the care centres there relieve the burden on those who do most of the care work, especially in poor neighbourhoods. With Grace Blakeley and Nat Raha - both from the UK - we want to discuss gender relations in high-tech capitalism and intersectional feminism.

Argentina has moved to the extreme right under President Javier Milei and people are suffering from the government's harsh austerity measures. We will talk about this with Argentinian activist Verónica Gago. She is a feminist theorist and part of the Argentinian collective Ni Una Menos. Women from Eastern Europe and Africa will also discuss with us, report on successful struggles and look for common solutions.

Thinking outside the box is important. Exchange and sisterhood are the basis for common struggles.

What would make the conference a success for you and what would you like the participants to take away with them?

We discussed for a long time whether the title of the conference - feminist socialisation - would even work. "What, pray tell, is that supposed to be?" some people asked. The discussions were always very exciting. If afterwards everyone who attended the conference, and many beyond, had an idea of what feminist socialisation means, why it is needed and how they can get involved, then the conference was a great success!