Global event 250 people demonstrate on International Women's Day in Bonn
Bonn · March 8 was International Women's Day, with around 250 people in Bonn participating in a demonstration and women’s strike to call attention to the unequal treatment of women. The global goal is to accelerate gender balance.
For exactly 100 seconds it became very loud at Bonn’s Marktplatz. Hundreds of women were cheering, shouting and clapping. 100 seconds for 100 years of women's suffrage in Germany. On International Women's Day, many people joined forces to call attention to the widespread unequal treatment of women with their so-called "global cry".
In December, an initiative that organized the women's strike and protest joined forces in Bonn. One of the founders was Carlotta Grohmann. The student has been active as a feminist for some time now. After a Germany-wide meeting in Göttingen, the 23-year-old decided to begin an initiative in Bonn. "I was impressed by how many different women came together there," said Grohmann. "Despite our differences, we agreed on the problems."
Some of the problems: Low wages for typical "women's jobs" and excessive taxes on monthly hygiene. "Women belong in parliaments," adds Julia Schenkel, a member of the initiative. This opinion is also shared by Lea Brandes, a city councillor for the left-wing parliamentary group. She hopes that more women will decide to run in the local elections. "That would be good for political decisions. Bonn, for example, urgently needs women's shelters," said Brandes.
In Bonn, women earn 16 percent less than men
"We've achieved a lot in 100 years, but we can't rest. We need movement," says Schenkel. Around 250 demonstrators took part on Friday and demanded, among other things, equal pay for equal work.
In Bonn, women who work full-time earn 16 percent less than men. This is shown in statistics from the Federal Employment Agency. "In addition, many women work in the background," says Schenkel. "The unpaid work in the household is hardly valued.” And housework forces some women to work less outside of the home. This is also reflected in the figures of the Employment Agency: 69 percent of all part-time jobs in Bonn are filled by women. "We women also do emotional work, we are always on our toes," says Schenkel. The 26-year-old learned about the idea of founding the Bonn initiative by word of mouth last year. "I was immediately enthusiastic," she says, "I waitressed all my life and heard sexist sayings all the time. I would like to do something about that."
About 15 women appeared at the first meeting in the Frauenmuseum (Women’s Museum). They had heard about the meeting through various Facebook groups and e-mail distributors. "We immediately had a mixed audience and decided to organize weekly meetings," said Schenkel. "Everyone is welcome."
Since January, the women have been planning the program for International Women's Day. In addition to the demonstration, which took place in Bonn's city center in the evening, other institutions such as the Women's Museum, the Francais Institute and the "ENDviolence" organization took part with various activities on World Women's Day. On International Women's Day, the initiative set up a “strike café” on the market square. "It should be a contact point for women," explains Grohmann. Only men were in charge of caring for the children.
The strike movement and the idea of involving men came from Spain. Last year almost six million women there took to the streets. Even if the members of the initiative are aware that this is hardly possible in Germany, they consider the initiative in Spain as a model. "We can ensure that the movement grows," says Grohmann. "If women stick together, we can change the world. Because if we strike, the world stands still." Orig. text: Nathalie Dreschke Translation: Carol Kloeppel
