First person politics

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First-person politics is a political concept that rejects so-called proxy politics , rejects the dividing line between “private” and “public” and involves the politicization of privacy .

The private is political

The policies of the first person was especially in the second women's movement developed in the 1970s. In contrast to the first women's movement, it was not just about questions such as the right to vote or the involvement and participation in political decision-making processes. With the slogan “The private is political” or “The personal is political”, a new field of politics was opened up in which the fighting took place immediately.

By speaking in consciousness-raising groups about their personal relationships with men, about sexuality, pregnancy, child-rearing and violence, women began to politicize these areas since the late 1960s . It is said in the book Sexual Politics by Kate Millett from 1969:

“The word 'politics' is used because it is the only appropriate one in an attempt to examine the true nature of gender hierarchy from both a historical and a contemporary perspective. Our historical situation demands that we develop a psychology and philosophy of power relations that are tailored to the present day and that go beyond the simple conceptual categories of traditional structure. One must try to define a theory of politics that looks at power relations on a less conventional basis than we are used to. It therefore seemed to me appropriate to define the personal relationships and interactions of these relationships, as they arise between members of clearly defined and distinct groups, be these groups races, castes, classes or the sexes. Because precisely because certain groups have no representatives in various political structures, their position is so stable, their suppression so effective. "

These women's groups were initially limited to universities in the USA, Great Britain and the FRG, but gained a large audience through campaigns against the abortion ban in the 1970s. Other campaigns followed such as movements against violence against women, rape, violence in the media, in advertising and pornography. These movements usually started out from autonomous women's groups, some of which were also able to anchor themselves in institutions. For example, the women's movement in West Germany implemented autonomous women's departments in student councils.

Political approach in social movements

The politics of the first person emerged parallel to the establishment of the new social movements and had a great influence on the citizens' initiative movement, the alternative movement and initially also on the Green Party , as well as on grassroots democratic concepts. The autonomous movement also largely adopted the concept of first-person politics .

At the epistemological level, first-person politics is related to point of view theory . It also followed from this that paternalism was strictly rejected and support could always only be “ helping people to help themselves ”. The approach here was that political actions should be initiated by those affected or at least in close coordination with them and not over their heads.

See also

literature

  • Sebastian Haunss: Topics, strategies, actions: The politics of the first person. In: Sebastian Haunss: Identity in Motion. Processes of Collective Identity in the Autonomous and Gay Movement. (Civil society and democracy series), VS Verlag, 2004, ISBN 3-8100-4150-5 , p. 115f.
  • Hilge Landweer: Politics of Subjectivity - Practice without Theory? In: Ruth Groß Maß , Christiane Schmerl (Hrsg.): Philosophical contributions to women's research. Germinal, Bochum 1981, ISBN 3-88663-104-4 , pp. 13-34.
  • Ilse Lenz : The New Women's Movement in Germany. Farewell to the small difference: a collection of sources. 2nd updated edition. Wiesbaden, VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, 2010, ISBN 978-3-531-17436-5 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Ilse Lenz: The new women's movement in Germany. 2nd Edition. VS Verlag, 2010, 47f.
  2. ↑ German: Awareness raising. A method in which, based on the subject, one's own biography is remembered and reflected as a chain of situations. This creates 'consternation' which becomes intersubjective when it coincides with that of other women. Compare Voichita Nachescu: Becoming the Feminist Subject. Consciousness-raising Groups in Second Wave Feminism, 2006.
  3. ↑ Quoted from: Sexus und Herrschaft. Munich 1974, ISBN 3-423-00973-X , p. 38.
  4. ↑ Kristina Schulz: The long breath of provocation: the women's movement in the Federal Republic and France 1968 - 1976. Campus, 2002, ISBN 3-593-37110-3 , revised PDF version from 2012 ( Memento from February 24, 2013 on the Internet Archives ).
  5. ^ Roland Roth, Dieter Rucht: Autonomy and the politics of the first person. In: The social movements in Germany since 1945. A manual. Campus Verlag, 2008, ISBN 978-3-593-38372-9 , pp. 459f.