History

Foundation of the network

The history of the Care Revolution network began around the summer of 2012, when the Feminist Institute Hamburg organised a meeting to provide an opportunity for an in-depth exchange on feminism and the critique of political economy. From this meeting, around 10 people founded the supra-regional "Working Group on Reproduction", in which different analyses of the crisis of social reproduction were initially discussed.

The newly founded working group also included people who organised the event "Who Cares? Queer Feminism and Economic Critique" in Berlin in 2010. This multi-day event with around 400 people was not a traditional conference, but instead different formats for exchange, debate and information sharing were developed together. This event demonstrated the great need to put social and political issues of social reproduction on the political agenda. The need for encounters, networking and solidarity in this field, which is characterised by social insecurity and isolation, became clear.

In spring 2013, the AK Reproduktion decided to intervene politically. Together with the Feminist Institute Hamburg and the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation, a Care Revolution action conference was organised. This was followed by a year of mobilisation, discussions, networking and joint preparations for the conference. Public preparatory meetings were held in three cities in order to attract as many supporters and participants as possible. Gradually, 70 organisations and groups were recruited as cooperation partners.

The topics and organisation of the conference were discussed and decided upon together. Groups and individuals joined together to form working groups and took responsibility for specific workshops in the run-up to the conference, participated in the production of mobilisation material and organised a demonstration and rally for the action conference. A moderation workshop was organised before the conference in order to provide further training, practise participatory methods and enable as many people as possible to play an active role in shaping the conference.

With around 500 participants, the three-day Care Revolution action conference in March 2014 was very well attended. To kick things off, eight initiatives presented their commitment and political goals in various areas of care work. This was followed by 19 workshops and a demonstration and participatory rally, which - supported by the musician Bernadette La Hengst ("I do care, I love it") - brought our concerns to the streets. In the workshops, the participants discussed their experiences and political concerns on many facets of the topic of care in various care professions, in the social infrastructure, in families and relationships and even in self-care.

The fundamental aim was to bring together different perspectives and explore solidarity between paid and unpaid care workers and those who need care work. This revealed both commonalities and contradictions. However, the atmosphere was one of solidarity and productivity, characterised by a lively exchange, intensive discussions, the development of joint ideas and lots of hallway conversations between participants with very different backgrounds, experiences and political positions. At the end, a resolution was passed and the founding of the Care Revolution network was decided. We see the network as part of a care movement in the making.

The Care Revolution network - activities from its foundation to 2019

Even though the Care Revolution network was only established a few weeks later, its foundation was finalised with the success of the action conference in March 2014. Around 500 participants ensured that the meeting room in the ND House and the rooms for the workshops were overcrowded, and those present were also able to realise how stimulating and necessary discussions are that are held across different care experiences and political backgrounds. Care Revolution was also a topic on the streets even before the action conference: there was already a first appearance with the Care Revolution logo at the Blockupy actions in Frankfurt/Main in June 2013.

As can be seen from the cooperation partners, the Care Revolution network was extremely diverse right from the start: It included feminist women's groups, trade union organisations, church groups, self-representation projects from a common situation, e.g. as carers or people with disabilities, and groups from the radical left. The discussions were correspondingly lively right from the start. On the one hand, curiosity about each other and the desire to take action led to a pragmatic approach to the existing differences. On the other hand, there was a great need for clarification.

Pragmatic solutions were needed, for example, to ensure that the common ground of the network remained recognisable despite the differences in positions and language habits and, conversely, to maintain the diversity of voices despite the consensus. For example, we decided early on that the network as a whole would not sign any appeals, but that this would be left to the regional groups in the network, which could reach internal agreement quickly. These regional groups first had to be set up and quickly became the actual mainstay of the Care Revolution network. Originally intended as local networks of the groups involved in Care Revolution, they turned out to be a suitable way for interested individuals to get involved. These individual activists connected in regional groups soon made up the image of the network. In addition to this strong role of the regional groups, which each decide on their own topics, content or alliances, it was important that we agreed on a consensus principle that applies to all important decisions, that individual network members are free to present their respective understanding of Care Revolution in workshops or articles, and at the same time no one can act as a spokesperson for the network.

Regular discussions are particularly important to ensure that everything does not fall apart on this loose basis. These discussions were particularly intensive at the biannual network meetings, which have been held since autumn 2014. For example, activists in need of assistance were quick to demand that we stop talking about care givers and care receivers and instead recognise that, despite the asymmetry that exists in care relationships, everyone involved actively contributes to their success. Intensive dialogue was also needed to sharpen the focus on the fact that, on the one hand, care work is omnipresent and largely unpaid, yet devalued and overlooked, and on the other hand, highly qualified professional care work exists, which is devalued because its professionalism is downplayed. Adopting these sometimes unfamiliar positions meant a learning process for trade unionists and feminist groups, for example. In addition to the network meetings, the Care Revolution workshop in Buchenbach near Freiburg, which has been held annually in autumn since 2015, was a place of exchange and position formation where around 20 activists met for a weekend.

The biannual network meetings were organised in ever-changing cities. Above all, however, there were plenty of activities organised by the groups represented in the network. Anyone who takes the time to look through the articles on the website will find this impressively confirmed: Right from the start, Care Revolution groups were on the streets at Blockupy actions and care flash mobs, on 8 March or on 1 May. Local groups have also been involved in supporting labour disputes in hospitals, daycare centres and schools from the very beginning. In this context, Care Revolution representatives regularly try to ensure that the perspective of patients, carers or parents, for example, is also taken into account. New alliance opportunities are also constantly being sought, e.g. at local action conferences such as those held in Freiburg and Leipzig in 2017.

There were not only Care Revolution appearances and alliance actions. The cooperation groups run their own projects and report on them. One example from previous years is the 'Lichtermeer' events, which combined the expression of political positions with offering disabled children an appreciative and enjoyable experience. Contacts in the network ensured that what Nicos Farm e.V. started in Hamburg was taken up in Frankfurt/Main. Related groups such as Poliklinik Veddel, which contributes to neighbourhood care that is both inclusive and politically activist, also reported on the website. In addition to these public campaigns, there were also repeated discursive interventions that emphasised the scope and diversity of care work - this view was much less accepted a few years ago than it is today - and that attacked the distribution of care work according to gender norms and showed how the assumption of care tasks in this society produces poverty and poverty in old age.

Many individual activists also played a part in the development of the Care Revolution positions, presenting our approach in books and articles, lectures and workshops. Gabriele Winker's book "Care Revolution. Steps towards a society based on solidarity" from 2015. All of these contributions led to the further development of our ideas. There were fewer joint attempts to update our positions. A joint paper was written before the 5th anniversary in 2019. We celebrated this anniversary as part of the big Feminist Futures Festival in Essen, with a workshop, care catwalk, presentation of the network and birthday party.

Activities since 2020

During the coronavirus pandemic, much of what had been happening in conference rooms and cafés, at demos and at stands moved online. This also affected our network meetings and the activities of the regional groups. However, some activities continued, including in alliances. One example is the participation of the Dortmund regional group in the popular initiative "Healthy hospitals in NRW - for everyone". As frustrating as this period was due to the limited scope for action, we also made new attempts. The "A place for care" campaign was a large-scale endeavour in which we attempted for the first time to connect local alliances through a common but locally adaptable appeal, a common logo and parallel actions. The aim was to literally create public space for care workers, who gained more visibility during the coronavirus pandemic and at the same time became even more overburdened. This campaign, which was implemented in various ways in eleven cities in 2021, published a brochure in which it looked back on the year's actions.

Gabriele Winker's book "Solidarische Care-Ökonomie", which followed on from "Care Revolution", also emerged from the pandemic in 2021: During the pandemic, the link between disasters in social relationships and ecological cycles became even clearer. This topic is currently also receiving more attention in the network. In particular, activists from Care Revolution and the climate movement met in the Care - Climate - Revolution working group. The war in Ukraine is also putting links with other social movements on the agenda: some Care Revolution groups not only took part in the 8 March and 1 May and climate strikes in 2022 and 2023, but also in the Easter marches of the peace movement.

Supra-regional working groups have achieved a lot since 2023. Among other things, several events have been organised - on socialisation and care, on radicalism in care work, with Ukrainian grassroots trade unionists and organisers of the daycare strike in Berlin - and two brochures on reducing working hours and time sovereignty have been produced. The brochure on reducing working hours originates from a working group that was formed as a continuation of the Climate - Care - Revolution working group.

Another new aspect is the cooperation with the Solidarisch Sorgen association, which provides comprehensive support for the network's work as a cooperation group. This cooperation was important, for example, when we in the Care Revolution network helped to prepare the 'Let's Socialise' action conference on climate justice and socialisation, in particular the care strand of the conference. The conference gave rise to a network of care centres in which Care Revolution activists are still involved.

Anniversary: 10 years of Care Revolution

In October 2024, we celebrated our tenth anniversary. Over 100 registered participants and day guests attended the three-day event in Leipzig. The anniversary began with a panel discussion on Friday evening. Liska Beulshausen (Wirtschaft ist Care) discussed with Antje Schrupp, Mike Laufenberg and Nadia Shehadeh and the audience what the Care Revolution means to them, what has been achieved in ten years and what has not. On Saturday there were 18 workshops throughout the day, three in parallel. There was a wide variety on offer: readings, discussion rounds on practical political topics such as strikes in care facilities or care centres, as well as background topics such as socialisation or the care terms we use. We were also able to get our heads moving by getting our hands and feet moving - in a handicraft workshop, a care walk and a dance workshop. Then there was a party in the evening. It was lavish and was really lovingly organised by people from the Leipzig regional group.

On Sunday, those active in the network took a few more hours to discuss important internal issues. In particular, we focussed on what is not going as well as we would like. Although the network as such is stable, there are far too many people and groups that we do not reach or lose along the way for various reasons. It is also not easy to fulfil the desire to remain polyphonic and politically diverse while at the same time being visible with clear positions. First of all, this requires a framework in which we can meet, discuss and plan across the groups, a framework in which all this is fun. This will be the topic of the network meeting in spring 2025. Because we still have a lot planned for the next ten years.