Radical Women: Socialist Feminist exist today!

[meshinda]

I don't know if I have mentioned this group in my journal but I'm in conflict about them. First of all they want me to join. They are a great organization. Wonderful women and men (their associated organization, The Freedom Socialist Part, includes men and so many of the events are inclusive). It's been fun being apart of the group. But though

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[meshinda]

I've been thinking that women's health is more of my thing. I think it's why I've always been interested in planned parenthood and breast cancer awareness groups. I confess that if I know what I know now about komen it wouldn't have been my first choice of places to volunteer. I love the people I volunteer with and the full time employees of the organization but I don't always like where they get there funding from. Same for planned parenthood. As political as health is it's not the same as lgbtq civil rights. I think that because health is an everybody issue that many times progressiveness or conservativeness are non issues which is what bothers me. I'm not trying to work to make sure that people with money have access to services they would have regardless of whether it's legal or not (or whether information is out there or not).

I know that what I really want is more in the line of janes. I want health care that is self care. I want wise woman healing. I know that it sounds new age-ish but i believe that the disconnect that women have from their bodies is dangerous. Yet I also want to make sure that I locate this politcal interest within a larger movement. So I feel that in many ways I'm just shopping around to see what's out there and how I fit.

I think that what challenges me about Radical Women is that I always feel like I'm running up against the idea of what would I give for a better society. Would I physically fight for it? Would I take up arms? Would I break the law? Would I go to jail for it? Would I lose my job for my beliefs? What would I do for "the movement"? Revolution or radical change is not going to happen without major sacrifice on the part of the revolutionaries. But I can't say that I'm willing to sacrifice for a movement.

I may be anti-capitalist but I am completely embedded within the system. i'm a relatively happy consumerist, and though I would like to be less of a consumer, I also love it. I also KNOW that a major revolution won't happen in my life time. Do I care enough about future generations enough to fight for a better future for them? I have all these kinds of thoughts in my head and it's crazy and overwhelming sometimes.

Oh I talked with one of the women from Radical Women about my questions about socialist feminist and I'm not sure I got what I needed or wanted from the conversation. Basically my question was about whether humanity as a whole cares about the collective. If you look at the repetitiveness of history, it seems obvious that humanity hates itself. All of the violence, wars, slavery, holocausts, and imperialism does not promote the goodness of people caring about other people. How can socialism work if people don't seems to love/care about other people? Her response was that recent (the last 1000 or so years) history has been so violent because of capitalism. That in matriarchal societies this wasn't the case especially in the societies that predate surplus production. While I understand this, do I believe that socialism can work in a time of massive surplus production? It does occur to me that I'm taking things too literally. It seems that I search and search for answers and only end up with more questions. You were right about me in one respect, i do seem to be searching for definitive answers to philosophical questions.

I did go to a direct action reproductive rights meeting and met this other woman who is interested in herbal reproduction methods which I found intriguing so I'm still talking with her to see what other resources are out there.

I'll keep you posted on my process...

[zeefeminist]

those radical women sound pretty hard core. i am just completely facinated by all of the different paths out there...

but i am so thrilled that you are in such a rad location that you can come across all of these different and amazing people!

like i said before - um, i am totally jealous of your pdx life!

whenever we (finally) get a chance to get together we are gonna have some rad discussions!