Women’s movement(s) in the GDR before 1989
Was there a “women’s* movement in the GDR?
A question that is asked again and again. From our point of view – which is based on our own experiences and active actions – the most correct answer is: Yes. But not in the format of the Western or West German women’s movement with large public protest demonstrations and joint, clearly visible activities. The conditions in the GDR were different. Among other things, there was no right to form associations; there was no right to demonstrate and no freedom of the press.
In the GDR, free civil society activities such as non-governmental projects were officially not possible. But how could women* become publicly active in opposition under these social conditions? What did committed and actively acting women* experience and demand before/during/after 1989/1990 in the GDR? Which projects, associations and initiatives developed from this – and which questions are still relevant today… These questions are the focus of this online project – with the concern: to give an overview of the emergence of the non–governmental women’s Movement in the GDR and, among other things, to show developments and connections.
The visibility of the history of women*, of activists* of the former GDR in the pre- and post-reunification period is almost imperceptibly lost for quite a few. The online project “www.frauen1989-leipzig.de“ is also an offer against forgetting our history(s) – and a public testimony of the active participation of women* before, during and after 1989. And it is, unfortunately, a fact that in the cross-section of the public processing of the Peaceful Revolution in the most diverse contexts and interpretations, the active actions and the civil society indispensability of women* in this time * have not been or will not be depicted.
The actions of activists in the former GDR had an equal share in all areas of society in the changes that began before 1989 – and continued after 1989.
In these references, women* are presented who were active in the most diverse areas of life and society before, during and after 1989 in socio-political terms – representing all the activists* who have not been named. Similarly, women come to words that tell of their “everyday 1989”. And even if the overall social perspectives and connections of the time are named, the regional reference in terms of content is to Leipzig. Connections, networks with activists from other regions as well as references to research and initiatives can be found in the individual texts and in the links. With this website we want to reach interested people with and without GDR socialization – especially younger people who have not experienced this time due to their age and usually know very little about it. To share individual knowledge and experiences – _increases the understanding of the history(s) of a country or the people who live in this country – and thus the background of our present…
It is planned to expand this website continuously.
…more general everyday perspectives on the women movement in the GDR
Due to the real socio-economic equality of women and men in the GDR, there were only relatively small groups of people on a cross-section who dealt with gender-specific social re-enactments (mostly in private).
Through out–of-state information media of the 1970s and 1980s – such as “West–Fernsehen, West-Rundfunk and especially German-language literature from non-socialist countries” – politically interested or mostly system-critical women* in the GDR participated in the women* movements in the USA, France or the FRG in very different contexts. Feminist literature by Western authors (was brought to the GDR in private by travellers or visitors from the FRG and passed on in private networks) – and also certain works by GDR authors who critically dealt with the social situation of women contributed to questioning the gender relations in a differentiated way – such as e.g.
- 1966 The Femininity Craze or The Self-Liberation of the Wife by Betty Friedan
- 1970 our bodies ourselves | 1980 in German: Unser Körper, unser Leben
- 1974 The Life and Adventures of Trobadora Beatriz by Irmtraud Morgner
- 1974 Franziska Linkerhand by Brigitte Reimann
- 1975 molting by Verena Stephan
- 1983 Kassandra by Christa Wolf
With increasing social tensions in the 80s – among other things in the context of everyday economic problems, serious environmental damage in the GDR and worldwide nuclear armament – the first citizens usually developed “under the roof of the church”: opposition movements under domestic law. The Evangelical Church in the GDR bot the opportunity to gather, to work thematically in groups. This was also used by atheist people who wanted to get involved.
Numerous people organized themselves in the movement for the “Preservation of Creation” on the topic of environmental protection: in 1979, the first tree planting campaigns started in Schwerin, which spread throughout the GDR – with the participation of especially young women* and men*. In 1981, the first World Environment Day was held under the motto: “Mobile without a car”. From 1982 to 1984 there were church “cycling tours” – themed weekends with 500 to 700 young people. Numerous protests were organized against the deforestation, against nuclear power; in the Halle/Leipzig region against the consequences of lignite mining and the chemical industry. Women have always been equally active in the preparation and implementation.
In order to comprehensibly outline the GDR women’s* movements, it is necessary to address these various forms of active action and participation of women in the GDR* – on the one hand, because committed Akivists* of the GDR women* movement emerged from the peace and environmental movement. On the other hand, because many people are not or no longer aware of the contribution women* made – before and during the time of the Peaceful Revolution: at that time, women* quite naturally participated in all processes of social change in a variety of and decisive ways.