The Scarlet & Black. February 25. 19717page s

 

Viewing the European
“ ‘Women’s Movement

by Vicki Fontanini

One of the valuable beneIiB I
enjoyed by living in London last
semester was the opportunity I had
to become acquainted with the
British Women’s movement. I
became involved in various
socialist and ieminist groups
around the city, such as the In-
ternational Socialists Sexual
Politics discussion group and
Lesbian Left. an active group
organized in reaction to the 15’s
strongly heterosexual, strongly

' t discussion .group. i also
i uented the pubs, and one in
particularemthe Festival Inn in
Vauxhall, South London—I
‘scovered to be the meeting-place

many lesbianrfeminist activists
and musicians.

It was at the Festival Inn that I
met one of my iuture “squat--
mates," J.P., who was a drummer
for a fairly well-known women‘s
band in London called the
“Stepney Sisters.“ Stepney was
the area in East London where I
squatted during Phase II. oi my
three squatmates, two were on the
dole (unemployment). while the
third was on a zrmonth holiday
from Munich, in London to im»
prove her broken English It was

’te an unusual squat, as squats
$1 London. in that all four of us
were originally foreigners. One
"Aussie’lturnedBriton, two
Germans, and me, the “Yank."

physical standards, our squat
w hug%bet\veen the four 01 us
we shared five rooms, a kitchen
and an ”Outhouse” toilet facility, A
flat of comparable size in London
would have cost around $550 per
month to rent, Luckily, though, the
local town council had decided a
few years ago that the flat I lived
in, and a number of vacant ﬂats
around Where I lived, should be
designated “squats," for low
income dwellers unable to pay
erally exorbitant London rents,
ﬂ‘reasoned that not only would
these squats help lessen the
housing shortage and eliminate
rent subsidies for welfare
r ~',ients. but that squatters
\ a d be doing the local govem.
mcnt a service by maintaining and
improving the condition oi vacant
flats.

Recently, however, as Britain’s
economic situation has been
growing steadily worse, opposition
to squats has been steadily in-
creasing among certain reac-
tionary organizations and lawless
individuals. The organization
which most fervently opposes
wing, primarily because it

pm...

by Mark s. Anderson
Today, I would like to turn this

over to A. Richard Turnstile, who
has something to say to all of us
involved with Grinnell College.

“In all of this confusion and
muddling of ideas and ideals, I feel
it necessary to strictly define what
I consider to be the porpoises of
this college, I know the porpoises,
You the student; you the parent;
yo e trustee; you the faculty;
you all are overlooking the real
porpoises. These can be found in
secret tiny tiny little itty bitty pools
that I have hidden all over the
ca us

- . .c reason why nobody knows
about them is because I didn’t
want anyone nosing about my
porpoises. These are MY
porpoises, mind you, and they are
not yours to play around with,
These are very well trained, and
they’ll only respond to my coma
mand. Mine, Not yours, not
anyone's but mine.

“You know, one day, one day

disagrees with the politics of the
squatters themselves (many
squatters are members of leftist
groups and many are lesbian), is
the fascist National Front.

I recall taking a taxi one of my
first few weeks in London, and
speaking to the cabbie, who
proclaimed his membership in the
National Front party. Then
ignorant of what sort oi ideologies
and principles the National Front
advocated. I soon realized a great
deal about mat man's politics and
the type of party he might belong to
by the statements he made in
support of Richard Nixon: “He
was a good man , . . my favorite
President!" And he was so
astonished and bafﬂed to hear my
“Americanized” opinion of Tricky
Dick.

After the GrinnellrinLondon
program was over, I traveled by
train throughout Europe for a
month. In Denmark, Germany,
Italy and France I discovered
signs of organized women's
movements.‘ Copenhagen in par-
ticular has a very strong
movementia large women’s
house and center. similar to the
London Women’s‘ Liberation
Workshop, serves as a meeting-
place for activist and discussion
groups, and the Copenhagen
women also manage an all-women
island community on Femor. a
small island north of Copenhagen.
In Germany and Italy the women's
movements are more suppressed
and, as a result, are basically more
cautious, “underground“
movements. The French
movement also appeared to be
“buried" amid supposedly “more
important” male left issues, exv
cept at certain universities such as
Strasbourg,

The British women’s movement
is certainly the strongest, most
developed and organized feminist
movement in Europe, There are
countless organizations throughout
London, much less the country,
which appeal to every iacet oi
contemporary ieminist thought.
And all of these organizations are
linked together by one women’s
news service, Wires, its primary
goal being to share ideas and rally
support ior individual causes when
needed.

In comparison to the American
women's movement, which as a
whole is disorganized and divided
by various and conflicting
ideologies, the British movement is
much more tightly-woven and

 

concentrated around some very
basic socialistrfeminist goals.

very soon, I am going
to present my porpoises to
everyone in such an extravagant
performance. that all at you
Grinnell people will want to gather
in small silly groups and rave
about the porpoises for months.
MONTHS! Extravagant, yes. I feel
that this is important, IM-
PORTANT (perhaps more so than
a few measly underlings who may
be shelved in order to finance this,
but, er . .l—yes, important that
the presentation be big. Don't ask
me why, don’t question me, I am
the president

“I see that this school needs dif-
ferent and better students than we
have. At present, we haven’t got
enough people who can appreciate
the capabilities oi my clever
porpoises; my nice little moist and
muscular denizens oi the deep, who
not only are good swimmers, but
are fast becoming excellent
computer programmers. Aha!
This is where they have it over all
of you, They know that the future

These goals. or “demands. as
amended at the Edinburgh
Women’s Conference in 1974 are:
(1) equal pay for equal work, (2)
equal education and job tips
portunity, (3) free 24rhour child
care, (4) free contraception and
abortion on demand, (5) legal and
financial independence for all
women. and (6) an end to
discrimination against lesbians
and the right oi women to a self—
deiined sexuality.

The first two demands have
already been achieved in theory,
with the passage of the Equal Pay
and Sex Discrimination Act (SDA)
of December 1975, This act
represents Britain's counterpart to
the American Equal Rights
Amendment, which has yet to gain
passage in this supposedly
“progressive” country. However,
like all new laws, especially those
which aiiect oppressed groups, it
will take a iew more years beiore
the SDA effects fundamental
changes in the essentially sexist
social structure of Britain

Thus iar, the SDA has proved
most effective when coupled with
women organized to defend their
interests and assert their rights.
For example. recently it took 400
women on strike at an American-
owned windscreen wiper factory
called 'l‘rico in West London six
months to win equal pay under the
new law. Women's Charter, the
paper oi the Working Women‘s
:harter Campaign in Britain,
hailed me Trico settlement as “A
Victory for Equal Pay!” Better
yet, it was a victory for the strong
organization and perseverance oi
the women involved. and ior the
3ritish women’s movement as a
whole, which supported the strike.

Although Britain lacks certain
nstitutions that American women
are able to finance and enjoy, such
as women’s restaurants,
bookstores and recording com-
panies, the American women‘s
movement lacks the degree or
organization and eitectiveness
that the British movement
possesses. In due time, as British
women gain equal pay and equal
employment opportunities, Britain
too will have women's restaurants,
bookstores and recording com.
panies, But, tor the time being,
their strong base oi organization
proves the most responsive to the
needs oi working-class women, one
very important part of the
women’s movement that the
American movement, sadly,
neglects.

Note: Anyone interested in

 

contributing articles relating to
women should contact Ellyn
Toscano.

Guest Comment

lies in advanced technology and
the sciences.

“PROGRESS! Progress is not
made by singing, or by wiping
paint on a canvas. it is
made by conforming to our proper
social roles, Progress means
change, Change the calendar,
change everything, regress, alter,
ialter. or . . . not simply change ior
the sake of change, but for the sake
of progress. Progress for the sake
of change, progress for the sake of
progress, whatever.

“Anyway, my little lovelies will
show you progress, don’t you
worry. You see, what we really
need is to achieve a joyful com-
munity. and as you will soon see,
I'll show you in complete and utter
vague detail how my pet porpoises
and I intend to ioist that upon you
all "

Uli, excuse me. Mr. Turnstile. I
think what you mean to say is
“purpose." Not “porpoise," but
"purpose."

”Oh .......... nevermind."

COnirary

to

popular ‘
belief.»

by Tom Paltzer

There is always a lot ot talk
around the Grinnell College
campus about the “real world,” It
appears to be a common assump-
tion among the students that once
the Grinnell campus is left behind
life will be somehow more “real."
implicitly, they assume that their
existence on the campus ofa small
midwestern liberal arts college is
“unreal ”

My own opinion is that the life
here is as real as anywhere else,
and that, in fact. there is no such
thing as the real world. At least
there is not one real world, but an
endless number of worlds that all
reflect certain aspects of reality.
Our environment at Grinnell may
be different from most others, but
Students behave in the same basic
ways that people do anywhere.
They are nice to one another
sometimes. They are nasty to one
another sometimes. They make
and lose iriends. They smoke a
little dope, drink a little beer, and
spend a bit of time in bed with one
another. Some things attempted
work out for the best, and others
are regretted for their iutiiity or
iailure. Comfort and sympathy are
usually available, in one form or
another. to those who need them.
Frustration makes its daily
rounds. Dove, hate, anger. and
happiness, whatever they are, all
play a large role in our lives.

These same basic facts of life
applied a iew years ago when I was
out in what Grinnell students call
the real world. The outer aspects of
my life were much_ different;
however, my relationships with
other people were much the same.
The men I lived with in die en
vironment of the real World acted
in the same basic ways as any
Grinnell College student, Specific
actions might differ, but the
emotions and behaviors were the
same as for the typical student. We
laughed and cried just as
ircquently and as much as any
college student Life was tedious
and difficult at times, but at other
times it was very rich and good, In
other words, we muddled our way
through, just as other people do,
regardless of the external setting.

When the student leaves the
Grinnell College campus the cir-
cumstances of life will certainly
change, One must be aware,

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however, that those circumstances
may be even less conducive to a
real existence than the cir-
cumstances here. Just because you
cook your own meals, hold dovvn a
productive job, and feel more
independent does not
automatically ensure contentment
once you leave. Hopefully, most
people will be more content With
their life after school, but it is
unreasonable to hope that it will be
so for all graduates.

We are guilty of a subtle form of
arrogance here at Grinnell when
we talk so blithely about the real
world out there, because by 5:-
Speaking we assume that
something is unique about the
people at Grinnell. Nothing could
be further from the truth. Those
who expect something radically
different from life after Grinnell
may find themselves disillusioned
upon their departure from college.
We should be reminded once
in awhile that Grinnell, for all its
eccentricities. is still a part of the
real world.

S&B

replacements
named

The 5&5 has completed its staii
replacements ior second semester,
Those named to new positions ar
Mark Mayer, associate edit ;
Torn Arenberg, news editor: (‘aleb
Sullivan and Margo Calvetti,
sports editors; and Dean
Mciivainc. advertising inaiingcr.

Deia vu

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