When we discussed the women of the Soviet Union and their roles in Communism it was an area that I hadn’t put much thought into, and subsequently found it interesting. The pressure put on the women to join the clubs and be the “good” communist woman was something that I feel like we in some ways still see today. Not in the sense of being communist, but in America women are encouraged to do certain things and act a certain way. The reaction of the Bolshevik working women to the women’s departments was something that women still do today. These women wanted to be seen as equal to men, they wanted to be able to work without being harassed, and they wanted to be valued as workers. These women were women who didn’t want to be associated with a “promiscuous” crowd, they wanted fair treatment in the work place, and they wanted protection.
As we talked about in class - the perception that was associated with the Komsomal group was not a good one. If there is a group that people associated with being promiscuous and a place to get pregnant, who wants to be part of that? Not the upright women, not the moms, not the girls who want to get married and become the upright moms. I can see that being applied to girls and women today. Rarely do you see girls that want to have solid reputations working in strip clubs; not because they wouldn’t be able to do it, but because they don’t want the stigma that comes with that line of work. I am in no way bashing the girls that do that for a living, but the connotations from society are not good when this is your line of work. Therefore, why would the women in Russia want to be associated a group who has the same connotations attached to it? I would do the same thing as those women and start sewing circles and groups that taught the things necessary to be a contributing part of the home. As a young woman it would be better to be seen doing the wholesome activities as a potential wife, rather than hanging out with the “rough” crowd.
These women also wanted to be treated fairly in the work place. Women of today want the same thing, this is a struggle fought today in many work environments. The average women in 2007 made 11 cents on the dollar less than a man doing the same job. In 1988 women made 28 cents on the dollar less than men. The difference has lessened, but the gap is still there simply because it is a woman doing the job. It was the same for the women working in Russia; they wanted to be seen as equal works to the men. The women wanted the women’s department to defend their rights as women to be paid equally and not get sexually harassed in the process, but the departments failed. I think the communist could have gained the support of so many more women if they had been there to support these women when they needed it. When they were raped and when they couldn’t feed their children; that is when they needed help, and that type of help would have earned the communist the support of the working woman. Today, women have greater influence and they are able to defend themselves with greater support, but the work environment is still in many ways a man’s world. I understand the frustration of the Bolshevik women when they are so strongly encouraged to participate, but when they do, there are no benefits. They didn’t get the help they needed, so why should they support the communist?
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Rachel you are right that women had and have very little support in the many political systems around the world. Unfortunately, this has not changed much in this country either. The changes that have taken place over the last 100 years have been a quantum leap from where gender roles had placed women just 100 years before the real changes started. I can relate to plight of women in my own life as it relates to custody of children. After my first marriage disintegrated I had to fight to gain primary custodianship of my children. Until recently a father gaining custody was rare. I fought and have my kids. I believe that continuing to fight the good fight will allow us all achieve a social status were we only have the limitations that we put on ourselves.
ReplyDeleteI definitely hold the same sentiments you do and think your analysis of the womens' psyches of the time is good and an interesting one. While we can see the change over time, like you said, it is interesting to see what hasn't changed. It deeply saddens me to see that so many of our gender roles are still in place that one would think would be outdated by now. Women are making themselves known and heard, and many men are even seeing the inequality and doing something about it, which I think is awesome.
ReplyDeleteAnd with reference to custodianship and custody-- women being the dominant sex and receiving jouint or even full custody of children is a recent phenomenon in western history. Going as far back as the Romans and up until the first quarter of the 20th century, women would absolutely not have custody of their children in the event of divorce andt he man would receive full rights to the children. As far as contemprory history goes, yes, women are more predominantly deemed the care-takers of their children, but this practice is less than a century old in the grand scheme of a millenium of history.
What is most interesting to me about the position of women in Communist Russia is the great discrepancy between Communist rhetoric that emphasized equality and sought transform women into workers and the actual facts of Communist life that re-created the same gender roles and discrimination that so many Communist theorists had condemned and criticized in the capitalist world.
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