Ženská národní rada

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Františka Plamínková, activist of the Ženská národní rada

Ženská národní rada , abbreviated ŽNR , German "National Women's Council", was an umbrella organization founded in 1923 for the emancipatory women's movement in Czechoslovakia . It brought together numerous women's associations and initiatives and coordinated their activities. The founder was the women's rights activist and feminist, senator and journalist Františka Plamínková . During the German occupation of the country after 1939, the activists joined the resistance. They were persecuted by the Gestapo and many of them were executed.

history

At the turn of the century there were many associations of the women's movement in Bohemia. Examples include the “Czech Women's Club ” ( Ženský klub český , 1903–1950, an educational institution that also campaigned for equality in elections) and the “Committee for Women's Suffrage” ( Výbor na získání volebního práva žen , founded in 1905 by Františka Plamínková), “Women's Production Association ” ( Ženský výrobní spolek český , 1871–1972, an educational association for women and girls from poor families); In particular, the “American Ladies Club ” ( Americký klub dam 1865-1948, the first women's club in Bohemia, which comprised a large part of the female population of the intellectual circles and, after 1918, also had strong supporters in politics).

After the Ministry of the Interior had approved the statutes on February 24, 1923, the first constituent assembly took place on April 8, 1923, at which the ŽNR Council was founded; The women's rights activist Františka Plamínková , who was also elected chairwoman, is named as the actual founder . But it was an initiative that others supported: the “Committee for Women's Suffrage” (Výbor na získání volebního práva žen) , the “Czech Women's Club ” (Ženský klub český) and the appeal of the Women's World Federation . The Women's Council saw itself as a non-political umbrella organization of women's associations, and absolute political neutrality was the cornerstone of membership right from the start - which did not rule out individual membership in other political parties. In 1935, the Women's Council brought together around 50 women's organizations with a total of 27,000 activists; in 1940 there were already 40,000 activists, mostly members of the urban middle class.

The council's acceptance in pre-war Czechoslovakia was high - Charlotte Masaryková , the wife of then President TG Masaryk , was herself active in the women's movement, her husband gave lectures in women's associations. Nevertheless, the women's movement was particularly attacked by right-wing parties: before the parliamentary elections in 1935, the Národní obec fašistická (“National Fascist Community”) recommended that women go back to the stove.

Ženská národní rada published its own magazine, the Ženská rada , from 1925 to 1941 .

Resistance from 1939

Even before the Wehrmacht occupied the country , the council decided to sign the “Věrni zůstaneme” (“We remain loyal”) manifesto of May 1938 (this initiative was reorganized from March 1939 into one of the Czech groups of resistance to the occupation who fought against the National Socialist occupation of the country). This led to persecution of the council's activists. Hundreds of them were arrested and interned in concentration camps and murdered. Chairwoman Plamínková was executed in Prague in June 1942. The club's activity was officially prohibited in September 1942. During the time of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia , the elite of the Czech women's movement was decimated.

The existence of the illegal working committee of the council, which existed until 1945 and made preparations for the renewal of the women's movement in Czechoslovakia, is relatively little known. Only sparse reports have survived, but some groups involved can be identified: “Czech Women's Club ” (Ženský klub český) , “Revolutionary Women's Movement” (Revoluční hnutí žen) , women's groups of the CPC, “Syndicate of Working Women’s Intelligence” (Syndikát ženskí pr inteligence) or “alliance of women and girls” (Jednota žen a dívek) .

The women's association after 1945

Milada Horáková, activist of the Ženská národní rada

After the country was liberated, efforts were made to revive the women's movement in Czechoslovakia. On August 16, 1946, the Rada československých žen RČŽ (Council of Czechoslovak Women) was founded. Milada Horáková , who already held a leading role in the women's association ŽNR in the 1930s and therefore represented a certain continuity, was elected chairman - not least because of her participation in the resistance movement. However, the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia CPC feared that control over the women's movement could slip away from them. Many activists of the party joined the women's association and founded a so-called action committee, which immediately requested that Horáková and other social democratic women resign. They were accused of subversive activity. Over the next six years, a total of 2,238 women from within the women's movement were convicted.

On the fate of the women's rights activists Plamínková and Horáková

The two women who worked together for the women's movement in Czechoslovakia, Františka Plamínková (chairwoman of Ženská národná rada ŽNR) and Milada Horáková (chairwoman of Rada československých žen RČŽ after 1945), suffered similar fates, albeit different in some respects Sign.

Františka Plamínková, who led the ŽNR to resist the Nazi occupation forces during the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia , was arrested by the Gestapo and executed on June 30, 1942 in Prague.

Milada Horáková, who wanted to protect the RČŽ from being taken over by communist activists, came under suspicion of conspiracy, she was arrested, accused of espionage and high treason and sentenced to death in the largest political show trial in Czechoslovakia in 1950 and on June 27, 1950 executed in Prague.

Remarks

  1. ↑ In the linguistic usage at the time, the attribute “American” meant “modern”, “progressive” (cf. cesky-dialog.net / ... ; accessed on March 7, 2019).

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Kristýna Pešáková: Ženské spolky jako cesta k ženskému vzdělávání , Masaryk University Brno, Brno 2006 (online at: is.muni.cz / ... ; accessed on March 7, 2019).
  2. ↑ Výbor pro volerbní právo žen (1905–1938) , short entry in the badatelna.eu archive (online at: badatelna.eu/fond/.../uvod/ ; accessed on March 7, 2019).
  3. ↑ Ženský výrobní spolek český (1871–1972) , contribution to the project “Knihy znovu nalezené” (online at: knihyznovunalezene.eu/cs / ... ; can be switched to English; accessed on March 7, 2019).
  4. ↑ a b Genderová rovnost. Nechci plnit očekávání společnosti, říká šéfka feministek , Interview Aktuálně.cz with Jana Smiggles Kavková (Director of the Forum 50% ), in: Česká ženská lobby , 25 February 2015 (online at: czlobby.cz / ... ; accessed on 7 March 2019).
  5. ↑ Národní archiv - Ženská národní rada , material from the badatelna.eu archive, completed in 1963, 45 pages (online at: badatelna.eu/.../1159811 ; accessed on March 7, 2019), page 2.
  6. ↑ a b c Eva Gatialová: Ženská národná rada , web of the feminist educational organization Aspect, Slovakia (online at: aspekt.sk / ... ; accessed on March 7, 2019).
  7. ↑ a b c d e Květa Jechová: Emancipace shora , in: Paměť a dějiny 4/2013 (Publications of the ÚSTR ; online at: ustrcr.cz / ... ; accessed on March 7, 2019).
  8. ↑ Milena Secká: Americký klub dam , in: Český dialog 6/2005 (online at: cesky-dialog.net / ... ; accessed on March 7, 2019).
  9. ↑ Ženská rada , digitized years 1925–1941 of Moravská zemská knihovna v Brně (online at: digitalniknihovna.cz / ... ; accessed on March 7, 2019).
  10. ↑ Eva Uhrová: Rada československých žen , Editor Gender Studies / Portal Feminismus (online at: feminismus.cz / ... ; accessed on March 7, 2019).
  11. ↑ Sibylle Duda: Milada Horáková , short curriculum vitae of FemBio - women's biographical research (online at: fembio.org / ... ; accessed on March 7, 2019).

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