Women strike around the world for equal rights

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12 SOCIALIST ACTION NOVEMBER 2016 Mass protests linked with strike activity by women have taken place in several countries over the last month, and the movement appears to be spreading. The feminist strike demands have been unique to each country and an indication of increased militancy around demands that address issues women have been fighting for year after year. In one of the latest actions, on Nov. 7, women in France walked off the job at 4:34 p.m. to protest being paid less than men for equivalent work.

Poland: Abortion On Oct. 3, seven million women throughout Poland turned out to defend their basic reproductive rights. They were protesting a proposed law that will force women to give birth and will include a prison sen­ tence of up to five years for any woman who termi­ nates a pregnancy. There could be a formal investiga­ tion of any woman who has a miscarriage.

The introduction of this legislation in March sparked a massive women’s rights movement that is the largest movement focused on women’s rights in Polish history. Besides opposition to this oppressive law, there has been a strong wave of support for the liberalization of the present abortion law, which was passed in 1993.

Tens of thousands of women went on strike and students boycotted classes throughout Poland. Some 30,000 women dressed in black gathered in the rain at Warsaw’s Castle Square, chanting, “we want doc­ tors not missionaries!” and carrying signs, “My Uter­ us, My Opinion” and “Women Just Want FUN-damen­ tal Rights.”

Activist Agnieszka Graff was ecstatic. She told the British Guardian, “The protest was bigger than any­ one expected. People were astonished. Warsaw was swarming with black. It was amazing to feel the ener­ gy and the anger, the emotional intensity was incred­ ible.” Since the rally was too large for the square, orga­ nizers led the march towards parliament, paralyzing traffic in the center of the city for two hours.

As a result of the strikes and mass marches, the rul­ ing Law and Justice Party (PiS) urged their MPs to vote down the controversial bill. Former Prime Minis­ ter Ewa Kopacz told reporters that the PiS had “back­ tracked because it was scared by all the women who hit the streets in protest.” Recent polls show that pub­ lic opinion has shifted since the protests with nearly overwhelming opposition to the proposed ban and increasing support for the liberalization of existing laws.

Krystyna Kacpura, an organizer of the actions, re­ flected, “This victory on abortion has empowered Polish women—we’ll never be the same. After our Warsaw protest, something has snapped in us. Our struggle with politicians and the church is not over, but we’ll keep fighting for our right to choose. There is so much solidarity among Polish women right now. I have never been so proud of all the empowered wom­ en. We will never be the same again.”

Argentina: Femicide On Oct. 19, tens of thousands of women walked off the job to protest gender violence and economic in­ equality. This was the first women’s strike in Argen­ tina, although Argentine feminists organize massive marches every year in connection with the annual National Women’s Conferences. In fact, a little over a week before this massive action, the 31st National Women’s Conference brought thousands of women together to discuss how to move forward in the strug­ gle for women’s rights.

There were massive marches against gender vio­ lence in 2015 and 2016 under the slogan “Ni Una Menos” (Not One Less). This year the marches and strikes came after a particularly brutal gang rape and murder of a teenaged girl. Women carried signs of missing and murdered women and chanted, “We won’t forgive, we won’t forget.”

The organizers called for women to strike in the streets between 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. and to wear black as a symbol of collective mourning over the killing of (Above) Women walk out in Reykjavik, Iceland, on Oct. 24 to protest the pay gap with men.

16-year-old Lucia Perez and other victims of femicide. The women who walked off their jobs wanted to show the crucial role of women in Argentina’s economy as well as a reminder that they are the first victims of the massive layoffs in the public and private sectors being carried out by the administration of President Mauricio Macri. Feminist activist Maria Florencia Al­ caraz made the connection in speaking with the Bue­ nos Aires Herald, “Behind femicides there is an eco­ nomic frame that makes women more vulnerable to violence.”

Women workers pressured their unions to support the one-hour general strike. It was endorsed by all of Argentina’s major unions. However the CGT (General Labor Federation) refused to call it a “general strike” and just called it a “day of struggle and reflection.” Ac­ tivist Luciana Perker ridiculed this reaction. “While the CGT is drinking tea with Macri, we take to the streets. We are striking because we earn less, we face more unemployment, we are hit harder by precarious life and poverty.”

The march comes as Macri’s government promotes a bill that will eliminate the special prosecutor focused on violence against women and femicide. According to data from human rights organizations, every 30 hours a woman in Argentina dies from domestic vio­ lence.

Iceland: Pay gap In Iceland, women went on strike to protest the pay gap between women and men. Women make between 14-18 percent less than men, and unions and wom­ en’s organizations say that means women basically work for free, starting at 2:38 p.m.

On Oct. 24 thousands of women walked out. Current estimates say that if the pay gap continues to shrink at its current rate, it will be 52 years before men’s and (continued on page 11, in “British Columbia survey shows religion is on decline”)