“It cannot be overstated: there are no feminist bombs, feminist prisons, feminist cops, or feminist wars. There are only paid actors who have convinced people that their eventual demise and the demise of the planet is what will empower their lives today.” – Nour Jaghama and Grace Siegelman [1]
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In November of 2001, Laura Bush, the First Lady of the United States indicated the War in Afghanistan, Operation Enduring Freedom was to “liberate Afghan Women.” Before long, leaders of the Feminist Majority Foundation, joined forces with the U.S. government in promoting the war as part of a coalition of hope for the women of Afghanistan.[2]
It should be pointed out that an organization of Afghan women fighting for human rights and for social justice in Afghanistan since 1977 opposed the attacks and the U.S. backed government set up to replace the Taliban. [3]
Women’s marches across America in advance of last year’s presidential election determined to “show the strength of our feminist movement” were strangely silent about the women of Palestine who together with children which according to a poll released 3 days after the election made up nearly 70 percent of verified deaths. [4][5]
While one can’t deny the spectacular achievements of women’s groups throughout the 20th century, divisions within the movement connected to class and race are visible.[6][7]
More significantly, it seems as if feminism is now entrenched in the beast of Western imperial control, just as it can be argued other forms of activism, like environmental activism, is secretly and probably unwittingly servicing financial elites.[8]
But there is an even more stunning revelation in play. The broader system that encourages and propels humanity in favour of antagonism toward women and life generally has been left untouched by today’s major feminist movements.
Today feminist movements by and large seem more concerned with the more narrow but agreed upon concerns around attaining gender equality. This is in fact the stated theme for this year’s International Womens Day – “Accelerate Action,” emphasizing the urgency of expediting progress toward gender parity. [9]
In a nutshell, it can be argued, women’s organizations today are proceeding to pluck the noxious weeds of the visible assailants at the stem. But, this radio program is endeavouring to pluck them out at the root and stop the patterns of oppression from continuing to devour the women, the communities and the very life from our planet. On the Global Research News Hour, this good gardening tip will be the focus of our examination of women’s rights on the Golden Anniversary of International Women’s Day.
In our first half hour, we have a conversation with Dr. Claudia von Werlhof, an academic currently focused on the critique of patriarchy, about what patriarchy is and how it can be fought. In our second half hour, we are joined once again by award-winning journalist, broadcaster and author Sonali Kolhatkar about the rise and fall of women’s rights in Afghanistan BEFORE THE TALIBAN CAME TO POWER. And then later we speak to CODEPINK’s Palestinian-American campaigner Nour Jaghama about the little spoken and unacknowledged defiance and resistance among Palestinian women and what needs to be done to ensure that the feminism we practice today is not used as a vehicle for military and capitalist gain.
Claudia von Werlhof, born in 1943 near Berlin, Germany, is a University Professor of political sciences and women’s studies in Austria at Innsbruck, mother of a sun. She co-invented the “Bielefeld School” in Germany, worked at the grass roots in Central- and South America, developed the “Critical Theory of Patriarchy”, co-founded FIPAZ (Research Institute for the Critique of Patriarchy and Alternative Civilizations), the “Planetary Movement for Mother Earth” and “BOOMERANG – Journal for the Critique of Patriarchy”. She is a Research Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization, Montreal.
Sonali Kolhatlar is a Journalist, activist, and artist, and the founder, host, and executive producer of Pacifica’s popular weekly program Rising Up With Sonali which airs on Free Speech TV and Pacifica radio stations. She is also the founding Co-Director of the Afghan Women’s Mission, a US-based non-profit solidarity organization that funds the work of RAWA.
Nour Jaghama is CODEPINK’s Palestine and Iran Campaigner. Nour graduated from DePaul University with a bachelor’s degree in International Studies in June 2022. She has been advocating for Palestinian liberation for over 5 years, including organizing within her university. She also organizes around related issues, such as abolition. She is co-author of the article Does Your Feminism Include Palestine?
(Global Research News Hour Episode 464)
LISTEN TO THE SHOW
Click to download the audio (MP3 format)
Transcript of Dr. Claudia von Werlhof, March 6, 2025
The Global Research News Hour airs every Friday at 1pm CT on CKUW 95.9FM out of the University of Winnipeg.
The programme is also broadcast weekly (Monday, 1-2pm ET) by the Progressive Radio Network in the US.
The programme is also podcast at globalresearch.ca
Notes:
- https://www.globalresearch.ca/feminism-include-palestine/5870276
- https://www.defenddemocracy.press/white-feminists-wanted-to-invade/
- ibid;
- https://www.globalresearch.ca/feminism-include-palestine/5870276
- https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/11/8/nearly-70-percent-of-deaths-in-gaza-are-women-and-children-un
- https://www.unwomen.org/en/news/stories/2019/3/compilation-womens-activism-thats-changed-the-world
- https://sociology.iresearchnet.com/sociology-of-race/multiracial-feminism/#google_vignette
- https://www.globalresearch.ca/promoting-a-new-tyranny-under-the-guise-of-saving-the-planet/5760178
- https://www.internationalwomensday.com/Theme
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