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Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

International women's day-all genders

93 replies

FemaleAndLearning · 17/02/2020 19:01

Does anyone have a local International Women's Day that is not for all 'women'? This is the Derby one.
www.facebook.com/411927508843991/posts/2653394331363953/

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Lordfrontpaw · 24/02/2020 13:31

Should be for women who have had a lifetime experience of wimmining. I can't relate to having gone through male puberty, being brought up to 'be the man', to understand how it feels to be treated 'like a boy' - how can I?

And our experiences shape us - so all women either have periods - or are shaped by NOT having periods (for whatever reason). A male cant relate to that - its not like cutting your finger or having indigestion! When one of my males gets knocked in the crotch they tell me that I could never understand the pain involved as it is spectacularly unlike say stubbing your toe or getting stitches for example.

stumbledin · 24/02/2020 14:19

International Women's Day was in orgins a socialist / trade union event. The first one was in New York in support of garment workers, in fact in February.

The growing communist movement in Europe / Russia adopted it and it was called International Working Women's Day.

that's why many TUs saw it as their day. Ironically in Russia it then turned into a sort of sentimental day like Mother's Day. Many women in communist Russia had to work, but as elsewhere then went home to do all the unpaid work in the home. So they were given a day of recognition, and at most got handed a rose. (I suppose from what had become the famous song of women's suffrage, Give Me Bread and Give Me Roses).

It was recognised or became a global day when the UN said that 8 March should be IWD each year. That was in 1975 - whether because of second wave feminism I dont know.

So in fact the history of the day is not exactly about autonomous women's organisation although the WLM tried to make it that.

But I very much doubt that either 70s feminists, let alone TU women in the early 1900s ever thought it would be coopted by big business to make money and tell women their sucess should be measured by how far you have made it in the capitalist world, despite being a woman. Angry

(Mother's Day is again a commercial event, in contrast to Mothering Sunday which is tied to the church calendar.)

I think we need to not worry about what someone else is doing, but think what can we do on that day. Whether leafleting or starting a hashtag or raising money for your local refuge or rape crisis centre.

Lordfrontpaw · 24/02/2020 15:12

Yes - let's do something grassroots and positive - and not let it turn the focus into a Trans bun fight.

We need an ideas bank...

SirVixofVixHall · 24/02/2020 15:18

I don’t understand why JM hasn’t asked to be removed from the list actually.

nettie434 · 24/02/2020 15:27

I thought Jan had shifted over a bit to the twaw side recently (apologies to Jan if I’m mistaken)

Maybe - that interview is quite old Lordfrontpaw. I think it is possible to do international women’s day/women’s history in an way that includes trans women along with other groups. For me, the problem is when it is done in a way which devalues other women’s experiences and presents them as less important. Women like Elizabeth Garett Anderson or the Dagenham strikers faced huge amounts of discrimination. They were also focused on the collective good.

Lordfrontpaw · 24/02/2020 15:37

Get involved - why not. Share your current experiences of ‘living as a female’ - interesting. But have a back seat - you don’t lead or make speeches, you don’t take the space of a woman who has lived a life as a woman, you don’t tell women how to ‘do it’. You are a guest.

nettie434 · 24/02/2020 15:50

Good compromise Lordfrontpaw.

Lordfrontpaw · 24/02/2020 16:46

(You should see how I treat guests...Grin)

Emmuvva · 24/02/2020 16:53

Just want to say what a relief it is to find women who feel as upset about all this as I do. I've ignored Mumsnet for years, thinking it was all nappies and childcare stuff. What a joy to find out it's such a stronghold for feminist sanity. Thanks, guys.

SirVixofVixHall · 24/02/2020 17:50

But a transgender person is not living as a woman.

Lordfrontpaw · 24/02/2020 18:04

It’s like me saying I’m a cat - I can curl up in a basket and poo in a sandpit (I could even get some crazy plastic surgeon to give me tail) but that’s as close as I’m going to get as ‘living as a cat’.

It won’t give me fur balls though. But I could tell you my thoughts on my experience of my facsimile ‘cat life’.

SirVixofVixHall · 24/02/2020 18:24

I would love to hear about your facsimile cat life Lord 😁😁😁

Lordfrontpaw · 24/02/2020 18:26

Purrrrrrr...

l licks my bum then kiss you on the lips... gonna kill you all and eat your face ain’t I cuuuute?

HorseFlyOfExtraordinaryLength · 24/02/2020 18:34

T-shirts, flags, posters, banners with International Women's Day on them and a female sex symbol underneath in the suffragette colours?

Is it too late in the day?

There should be a symbol for exclusive.

SirVixofVixHall · 24/02/2020 21:15

Lordfrontpaw uggh.
I have decided I am a dog person.

Lordfrontpaw · 24/02/2020 21:22

You don’t want to hear my facsimile dog life. It’s grim... (I sniff your bum, lick someone else’s, and eat my own vomit wuff wuff).

stumbledin · 25/02/2020 00:24

This should be interesting.

Looks like the Global March for Women is going to meet up and take the same route of the March4Women www.careinternational.org.uk/march4women which coopted IWD for the approved feminists who also indulge in tea party politics at WOW.

Interesting stand off between mainstream feminist groups like Fawcett etc., and the woke brigade of Global women's Strike. www.careinternational.org.uk/march4women/march4women-partnerships

Quite a few women's groups have been p*ed off by Care International colonising IWD. In the past they have opted out of direct competition by usually holding their event the week before eg 1st March.

I wonder what the political differences are between Womankind Worldwide and Women for Refugee Women. Wink

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