At the recent anarchist conference in Auckland, there was a womyn's caucus. We had considerable discussion about issues of concern to womyn in the anarchist communities around the country, in particular issues to do with abuse and support, as well as more broadly of liberation and activism in our wider communities. Many womyn felt that it would be a great benefit to revive the existing a-fem networks, both locally and nationally. That is what we would like to do. At present, there is a national anarcha-feminist email list that you can subscribe to if you are interested in networking with other womyn. There are some other local lists and details for subscribing to these is at the end of this post.

If you are new to anarcha-feminism, it is a movement towards women's liberation based on anarchist principles. Anarcha-feminists believe that women's liberation means liberation for all women. Having a small minority of women in positions of power, such as politicians and CEO's, does not guarantee a better deal for the majority of women. Throughout history governments and states have been responsible for some of the worst atrocities against women. This is why anarcha-feminists see the state as an extension of patriarchy. The best way to secure liberation for all women is to eliminate authority and hierarchies whenever possible, including government. That's why we believe in anarchy as a way of structuring our societies. By anarchy we mean a system of direct democracy, without rulers or leaders but based on principles of self-determination and mutual aid.

We also believe that it is important to recognise the links between different kinds of oppression. In order to fight the oppression and exploitation of women we must fight the oppression of all people, whether because of gender, class, ethnicity, sexuality or disability and we must fight the exploitation of animals and the earth.

Because we challenge all authority we advocate direct action as the best means for change. This means fixing problems directly and doing things ourselves rather than appealing to an authority to fix things, for example by writing letters to an M.P or boycotting a company's products.

To subscribe to the national a-fem list or to the Wellington-area specific list, please email:
anarkalilith (at) hotmail.com

If you have details about other a-fem lists that exist, please can you post them on this story if you are comfortable doing so? Thank you.

Agitate. Activate. Revolt.