March 8 in Austria: For a revolutionary women’s movement!
We publish an unofficial translation of a report by the Rote Fahne on the 8th of March in Austria. We have previously published a report by AGEB which includes activities in Austria on the 8th of March.
On March 8, the International Women’s Day of Struggle, demonstrations and rallies also took place in Austria in various cities. Here we would like to report on the actions in Vienna and Linz and give a brief overview.
Impressions from Vienna
This year there was a rally on Mariahilferstrasse on March 8, organized by the Women’s Center Vienna (FZ), the Red Women’s Committee Vienna and the Frauenhetz. Around 100 people gathered, speeches were made and songs were presented. The speeches dealt with current topics and how these affect women in particular. A large part of the women work in those sectors with lower wages and around half of them part -time. This makes them particularly hit hard by the inflation of the past few years, as well as the wage cuts as a result of the poor KV collective agreements. In this context, the increase of the retirement age of women was also criticized. This increase was planned in the 1990s and should be implemented “if the full gender equality has been achieved”. “Equality” is not a reality today, but the increase in the age of retirement is very well!
The speakers of the rally also opposed the increasing militarization and armament and explained the need to organize themselves for the struggle. In addition, important revolutionary movements in the world – such as in India, Peru, Turkey and on the Philippines – were held up and emphasized that numerous women are at the forefront in fights like this. The speakers also criticized the introduction of the parent-child passport, since its lack of data protection enables social insurance to read, among other things, the number of abortions a woman had.
In addition, it was spoken about the situation of the FZ in Vienna (we reported: FZ remains! – The struggle for the oldest self-managed autonomous women’s center in Europe continues!) and the city of Vienna’s repression was denounced. Leaflets of the “Action for Democratic Rights of the People ” (ADRV) were also distributed (March 8, 2024: For a revolutionary women’s movement)
After the rally, the participants marched to the meeting of the spare-time-pedagogues of “Education at the center” and took part in this.
Demonstration in Linz
In Linz, the demonstration on March 8, the International Women’s Day of Struggle, this year was jointly organized by the “Alliance March 8” and “DIY” (“Do It Yourself: Women’s Day”). The march of around 2,500 demonstrators started at the music theater/Volksgarten and moved via the Landstraße to Hauptplatz. The Rote Fahne was also represented with an information table for acquiring the newspaper and accompanied the demonstration.
Although numerous party-related clubs tried to prevent a combative expression on the demonstration, there were some participants who raised the democratic and revolutionary demands powerfully and combative with their slogans during the march. Among other things, the demands for more childcare and against the closure of women’s shelters were heard here. Furthermore, higher wages, an increase of the unemployment money to 80 percent and the need for a revolutionary women’s movement were content of the slogans raised.
Some participants rightfully criticized the fact that some parts of the demonstration were more of a “party mood” than combative. This in turn shows the need for a revolutionary women’s movement, the struggle and unity for it!
