Thirty-five women representing a range of ages and backgrounds, participated in the first national conference of Feminists In Struggle July 5th through 7th. The beautiful relaxed indoor/outdoor setting with gardens and walkways, and a comfortable breezy conference space, allowed for women to get to know each other face-to-face and to actively participate in growing a multi-issue radical feminist democratically run membership organization.
Aptly named, “Our Radical Roots”, A women’s Liberation Organizing Conference,” both plenaries and workshops provided for plenty of time for everyone to share questions, thoughts and ideas with the group. We heard from Ann Menasche, Thistle Pettersen, Christy Hammer, and Denice Traina, women who have been targeted for witch-hunting for their refusal to deny the material reality and importance of sex. We heard Feminist historian Max Dashu, and Kathie Sarachild, one of the founders of Second Wave feminism, speak about the radical Leftist roots of the Second Wave; listened to ERA lawyer Wendy Murphy explain the importance of the ERA that would place strong sex based rights in the Constitution and advance the status of women across the board; and held an interactive discussion with Merle Hoffman, founder of the earliest abortion clinics and author of a new book, Choices: A Port-Roe Abortion Rights Manifesto” where she argued that we must learn to love the struggle even in the face of setbacks. Hilla Kerner from Vancouver Rape Relief shared her perspective on defending women’s spaces and working collectively to build the movement.
Workshops included strategizing on working in mainstream feminist groups such as NOW where many are not yet gender critical, and a discussion led by Arianne of LGB Alliance and Carol, a de-transitioner, on the homophobia of gender affirming care.
A membership meeting was convened Saturday afternoon in which FIST members discussed and voted to approve an action plan to grow FIST through developing local chapters, planning actions that can gain national media attention, improving our internal functioning, and expanding our coalition work with other feminists. Areas of focus for the future work of FIST that members approved include participating in the Final Impact Campaign to demand that the Biden Administration instruct the archivist to publish the duly ratified E.R.A. into the U.S. Constitution, promoting the Cass Review in opposition to so-called “gender affirming care” for minors; and defense of women’s spaces including women in prison.
Saturday night we were treated to the feminist folk music of Thistle Pettersen and hilarious stand-up comedy of Francesca de la Pense. One memorable line from her routine on those who don’t seem to know what a woman is because they are not “biologists”, was: “I don’t know what a brain is, I’m not a neurologist!”
Kathie Sarachild coined the slogan “Sisterhood is Powerful” many decades ago. Those of us who were fortunate enough to attend FIST’s conference knew what she meant.
SISTERHOOD IS POWERFUL!
Check the Feminists In Struggle You-tube channel for videos of portions of the Conference that should be posted soon.