Resources
middle east
The Great Health Robbery Dianna Melrose OXFAM 274 Banbury Road Oxford 0X2 7DZ England. 1981.JC1.30.
Subtitled "baby milk and medicines in Yemen", this wellwritten and nicely presented study describes the health situation in Yemen, placing it in a clear political context, and
shows how efforts to improve health are aggravated by the promotion of artificial baby milk and medicines in conditions that make their safe use impossible. An excellent case-study of the health / sickness situation in developing countries, with suggestions for action that can be taken at various levels
latin america
Women in Peru and Women in Chile, Change International Reports Parnell House 25 Wilton Road London SW1V US England. 1981. £1.25 each.
Both these reports attempt to give an overview of the country in question and describe the situation of women firmly within the socio-political context of that country. Written by Blanca Figueroa and Jeanine Anderson of Asociacion Peru-Mujer, Women in Peru looks at areas such as education, health, legal protection, employment and access to services, showing that statistics are of little help, since they tend to leave women out. It goes on to give brief case studies of different kinds of working women — the commerciante, the domestic worker, the middle class woman and the outworker — and discusses women's organisations in a rather general way.
Women in Chile is also entitled "military ideology and the dissolution of democracy" indicating the clear historicalpolitical perspective which the author — a Chilean exile
living in Britain — takes in elaborating the situation of women. She covers the social image, looking at the Catholic Church and Hispanic Literature, law and women's place, education, economic activity, women's organisation, and politics. This last section shows how Chilean politics have been immesurbaly changed since the overthrow of the Allende Government in 1973 and that this had a major negative effect on women It shows too how the Junta-controlled mass media is decisive in distorting the image of women, relegating them to a secondary status.
First Meeting of Latin American and Caribbean Feminists available from : Match 401-171 Nepean Ottawa, Ontario Canada K2P 0B4.
This is a 15-page manuscript written by a member of Match (see elsewhere in this Bulletin) who attended the meeting of Latin American and Caribbean feminists which took place in Bogota in July 1981 (see our report of this in this Bulletin). A lengthy and sensitive acount of the meeting with considerable discussion of the feminist movement in Latin America.
Mulherio Fundapao Carlos Chagas Av. Prof. Francisco Morato 1565 CEP 05513 Sao Paolo Brazil.
A Brazilian feminist bi-monthly newspaper which began in May this year. Covers national and some international news, and carries usually one main feature series, for instance "daycare" in issue No. 4 (November-December 1981). Reviews, views and letters. In Portuguese.
UNME - Union Nacional de Mujeres del Ecuador Versalles No. 1103 y Carrion Quito Ecuador.
A women's organisation (approved by the Ministry of Education and Culture) which promotes Ecuadorian women's education to enable them to participate fully in the nation's development. Particularly concentrates on hygiene and nutrition education with rural women, and acts at government level also to fight for women's equality.
Europe
Krystyna Kowalewska c/o University Warszawski Klub Sigma u. Krakowskie Przedmiescie 24 00-325 Warszawa Poland.
A feminist group founded in November 1980 which plans to publish a women's newspaper and to start a women's theatre. Sigma has made a list of demands which it is discussing with Solidarity, the independent trade union. These demands include equal pay for equal qork, time off for childcare for both parents, equal rights for married and unmarried couples, increase in men's responsibility for their children and for abortion, abolishing stereotyped images and harmful myths about women. The women of Sigma ask for any material available on the women's movement and women's problems to be sent to them.
Women's View National Women's Committee of Sinn Fein 30 Gardiner Place Dublin 1 Ireland
A quarterly magazine covering a variety of issues such as health, transport, history, women's right in the EEC (European Community), day-care. Well produced.
Irish Women's Diary and Guide Book 1982 Irish Feminist Information Publications c/o Books Upstairs 25 Market Arcade Dublin 2 Ireland. IR£2.10 (IRJC2.40 outside Ireland and England).
Similar in style and format to the Spare Rib Diary, this Diary of course gives information more specifically for Irish women - useful addresses and contacts etc. - with more elaborated sections on justice and law, health, violence against women, and an extended piece on women in Northern Ireland. Handy pocket size.
Status 14 Merrion Row Dublin 2 Ireland
A monthly magazine covering a vaste number of issues on women concentrating on women in Ireland, but including some articles on women in Third World, book reviews etc. August 1981 issue deals, for instance, with the Hite Report on male sexuality, women office cleaners. Mother Teresa, news, health notes, legal advice.
LUA Revista Feminista, Rua Filipeda Mata 115 A Lisbon Portugal.
A quarterly bulletin in Portuguese, published by I DM - Centro de Informacao e Documentapao de Mulheres (Women's Information and Documentation Centre). No. 5 (summer 1981) has "violence against women" as a theme, and contains articles on women in prison, the biblical treatment of violence, rape, whether there is an 'aggressive instinct', women and madness, contraception, fashion (as violence against women), and selfdefense. Also news from other countries. Always has original articles and interviews.
I DM is open every evening and offers information on such things as law, health, support groups etc. Also has a collection of more than 400 books and hundreds of periodicals, in Portuguese, French and English. For time to time IDM organises debates and discussion groups.
Poder y Libertad Partit Feminista de Catalunya C/Bailen No. 18-30-1 a Barcelone 10 Spain. 500 ptas.
Second number of the theoretical review of the Feminist Party of Catalunya. 208 pages long, it makes a resume of activities of the Party, including a theoretical and ideological debate, dealing especially with strategy and tactics of the Party, its identity vis-a-vis other political parties and feminist organisations, and a discussion of "feminist power".
"Herstorles" 1982 Calendar Stramullion Cooperative L t d . 43 Candlemaker Row Edinburgh EH1 2QB Scotland. £2.50.
A wall calendar with information on women and events affecting women's lives in Scotland. Photos and graphics.
Centre F. Information 1, rue des Barrieres Case postale 757 1211 Geneva Switzerland.
A recently opened information centre for women in the French-speaking part of Switzerland. The aim is not only to act as an information centre on a whole range of women's issues - status of women, legal, professional, cultural, health etc. — but also to organise workshops, consciousness-raising and study groups. Open Tuesday-Friday 2.30 - 6.30, Saturday 12 - 4 pm.
Reelles c/o Marcelle Hochstaetter 27, rue Lamartine 1203 Geneva Switzerland
A new periodical in French on feminist imagination, creativity and reflection. First issue (October 1981) covers women and politics, women and money, the economic situation.
Mais qu'est-ce qu'elles veulent ? (But what do women want ?) Film in French (1975, 16 mm, 1 1/2 hours) Produced by Coline Serreau Available from : Centre d'Animation Cinematographique (CAC) Rue Voltaire 27 1201 Geneva Switzerland.For distribution in other countries call Centre National Cinematographique in Paris, France,
Tel. 505 12 40.
Although Coline Serreau had originally planned to do a film on women describing their visions of Utopian society, she soon discovered while filming the interviews that the
women really wanted to speak of the realities of their own lives and struggles — both as individuals and as members of society, as mothers, wives and most often workers. In this film, Coline Serreau listens and films with compassion as seven women from various walks of life describe their lives. The result is a very moving and authentic film. She never interrupts them and is especially respectful of their silences which are particularly meaningful, conveying as much as their words.
We are moved as each woman speaks : a peasant from a mountain farm, a factory worker on a fast-moving assembly line, a textile worker, a young woman acting in pornographic films, a woman obsessed with being thin, a well-to-do bourgeoise, a theologian-mother of 7 children and a widow-concierge. Each woman is seen - not only herself, but also in the environment in which she lives and works. And between each sequence there is the ever constant presence of water, thrashing up against the rocks quite violently. Each person viewing the film is left to interpret this in her own way.
AGENDA 1982 der Schweizer Frau - de la femme suisseed. Groupe de travail Agenda C P . 50 ... 1231 Conches (Geneva) Switzerland. SFr. 12.50.
1981 was equal rights' year for Swiss women and they won ! This makes doubly interesting the fifth edition of their bilingual diary (French and German). It is a handy combined diary-almanach with original graphics, useful addresses in Switzerland and lots of information. Every aspect of social living (politics, work, science and technology, theology, education, health, architecture and urbanism, media and culture) is analysed in order to point out feminist actions and women's contributions to it.
Spare Rib Women's Liberation Diary 1982 Spare Ribs Ltd. 27 Clerkenwell Close London EC 1R OAT England. £2.50.
A very useful diary for British and Irish women. It has a section called Useful Information which starts with the Women's Liberation Movement, Centres and Local Groups,
Publications and Useful Readings. Contacts are listed from A-Z under headings like Arts, Battered Women, Child birth. Child Care, Women's bands, theatre groups and other specific topics.
The Diary pages give a week at a glance. 1982 and 1983 calendars, a special Menstrual Calendar and Blank pages for personal notes. At the back of the Diary there is also a very good section on Health, which covers topics like Self Examinations, Abortion, Contraception, Alternative Medicine etc., with addresses of organizations and other useful information.
Women in the BO's CIS Report Counter Information Services 9 Poland Street London W1V 3DG England. Spring 1981. 32 pages. 90p.
This report looks at how women in Britain are being affected by the combined impact of government policies and world economic stagnation. In a series of short articles, backed up by photographs and statistics, it analyses worsening conditions for women in the home, at work and as a high percentage of the country's growing unemployed. The report also links these conditions with racism and violence through the government's introduction of new immigration laws and a decline in public services, like transport and street lighting, which makes it harder for women to travel freely, especially at night.
Women, health and development Development Education Centre Unicef Office for Europe Palais des Nations 1211 Geneva 10 Switzerland. 1981. SFr. 10.
"Recognizing that ill-health is often the result of poor socioeconomic conditions, this kit emphasizes that health is a prerequisite as well as a result of human development. It points to the unmet health needs of women, their role in the community, as providers of water and food and as agents of primary health care, and to the fact that their health condition is related to their status as women." This kit is a series of brief papers covering the above subjects — as a kind of "inventory" on women and health and how this relates to development. It is constructed for educational use for local, national and international organisations. Gives suggestions for discussion and action, and contains resource papers and a bibliography. It is the second in a series of development education kits, the first being "Women and Disability" and the third, "Women
and the North-South Dialogue".
Institute of Development Studies University of Sussex Brighton BN1 9RE England.
The Institute is offering a Master of Philosophy course in development studies from 1982-84. The course is designed to provide both an inter-disciplinary understanding of the processes of development and experience in the practical application of analytical tools to policy decisions. The organisers are keen to have as many women as possible on this course. Applicants should have an honours degree or its equivalent, and have studied some economics. Further details from IDS at the above address. Applications have to be received by 1st May 1982.
Decade Network c/o CHANGE International Reports Parnell House 25 Wilton Road London SW1V US England. Tel : 01 / 828 2204.
An informal network set up to provide a forum for discussion and coordination among non-governmental organisations and others prior to the 1985 Decade for Women Conference and to pool and provide information about the issues, objectives and events of the UN Decade for Women, trying to make clear their relevance to British women. The organisers welcome visits and ideas from those coming through London.
africa
To Honour Women's Day International Defence and A id Fund for Southern Africa 104 Newgate Street London EC14 7AP England. August 1981. JEI.
"The women whose lives and experiences are briefly described (in this booklet) have all made outstanding contributions to the struggle for a free democratic and non-racial
Southern Africa. All have endured personal hardship and suffering under apartheid". It is a moving testimony to the strength of women in Southern Africa and to the determination to continue to fight for social justice there.
asia and the pacific
Economic Review NoslOand 11,Jan./Feb. 1981 Published by the People's Bank Sir Chittampalam A. Gardiner Mawatha Colombo - 2 Sri Lanka.
This combined issue of Economic Review features a special report on women and development in Sri Lanka. The report includes articles on the status of women in Sri Lanka, working conditions of women on tea plantations (with detailed wage statistics), community health and devlopment and a brief assessment of the first half of the UN Decade for Women.
Bibliografi Wanita Indonesia (Bibliography of women in Indonesia) National Scientific Documentation Center Indonesian Institute of Sciences Jalan Jenderal Gatot Subroto P.p. Box 3065 Jakarta « Indonesia. 1980.
Although most of the titles included in this bibliography are in Indonesian and therefore unavailable to many of our readers, the annotation or titles are frequently translated
into English, and therefore give a good idea of works available on women there.
Feminist Resource Centre 13 Carol Mansion 35 Sitladevi Temple Road Mahim, Bombay 400016 India.
The PRC is a centre which has extensive documentation of the women's movement internationally; it also organises discussions, workshops, and action-research dealing with topics related to the women's movement, such as sexual oppression of tribal women, violence in the family, contraception. In addition it reproduces certain documents very cheaply, and does translations into Hindi. Open Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday 1 - 5 pm.
Asian Women The Asian Women's Institute 37 Nazarbagh Lucknow 226 001 India. US$8 annually.
A quarterly news bulletin, telling of Asian women's struggle for a better quality of life through education, adult literacy, continuing and career education, self-reliance and awareness of their potentials in all spheres of life in Asia. The editors write : "we solicit your support in the struggle which cannot be carried out in isolation. Read Asian Women and know. Subscribe to Asian Women as an explicit guarantee of your faith in this struggle and for the satisfaction of having shared in i t . " Subscriptions to the Asian Women's Institute, Room 439, 475 Riverside Drive, New York, N Y 10115, USA. Indian subscriptions to the above address.
Women and Girls in India Indian Social Institute Lodi Road New Delhi India. 1981. Rs. 5.
Edited by Ngmani Rao and Jessie Tellis, this book briefly traces the history of women, the uprbringing of a girl and the problems encountered by women in India. Short lives of great women from different walks of life are given to show how they have overcome difficulties; also some poems and cartoons. (From the Indian Social Institute press release).
Saheli 10 Nizamudd in East New Delhi 110013 India.
A women's resource center has been set up by a group of women in Delhi in an attempt to break the silent suffering and isolation of women here. By pooling together all their resources, skills and energy they hope to make Saheli "a place where we meet other women, share our experiences and collectively work out solutions to our problems. This will be a place where we can find new hope and strength to rebuild and renew our lives."
The Women's Center Saheli has been informally set up in a garage and will be a resource and contact point for women to meet other women with similar problems, contact a doctor or lawyer, and find someone to talk to. The center is open to any woman who needs help and wishes to give support in any way she can. Contributions of money, books etc. are welcome. The centre is open from Monday to Saturday 10 am to 12 am and 6 pm to 8 pm; and Sundays between 11 am and 1 pm.
Women's Resource Centre P.O. Box 520 Papua New Guinea.
This centre aims to provide a meeting place where women can come to discuss common problems and issues and give support towards a more general women's movement in Paua New Guinea. There are also plans to set up a library containing up-to-date information on local groups and on the legal status of women in the area, as well as a wide range of books, periodicals and catalogues from the international women's movement.
North America
"Women and Trade Unions" Resources for Feminist Research (RFR) Vol X No. 2 July 1981 Dept. of Sociology Ontario Institute for Studies in Education
252 Bloor Street West Toronto, Ontario Canada MBS 1V6
A collection of articles on women within trade unions and those not unionized, covering strategies for equality, social unionism, micro-technology, domestic workers, immigrant women and women in educational unions. Has extensive annotated resources on all aspects of women and Unions including a listing of women's strikes in Canada over the past five years, and an extensive list of films. Also book reviews and listings of feminist periodicals throughout the world. A very complete work and invaluable resource. Annual subsscription $18 outside Canada. $25 for institutions.
National Women's Studies Association University of Maryland College Park Maryland 20742 USA.
NWSA has provided a forum for feminists from many places. 'The organisation is "secondary" for many women as we identify primarily with our daily work as feminist activists and scholars of many persuasions. The "secondary" function of NWSA — communication between groups - is crucial. Without support, both financial and intellectual, there may be no organisation and no conference next year.' Contributions and suggestions for sessions and papers for the conference on 'Feminist Connections Throughout Education' should be sent to NWSA at the above address. For information on the Third World caucus write to : Elizabeth Waters, 620 N.E. Ainsworth, Portland, OR 97211, USA.
There are also plans for a conference by and about Third World women. For information contact : Azizah Al-Hibri, Department of Philosophy, Texas A5M, College Station, TX 77843, USA.
MATCH International Centre 401-171 Nepean Ottawa, Ontario Canada K2P 0 B 4 .
Mentioned before in our Bulletins, Match focuses its efforts on the support of small women's projects in the Thrid World through the financial support of women across Canada. They are currently preparing a number of kits which will be used in Canada and elsewhere for research purposes. Planned to date are : women and agriculture, women and appropriate technology, and women and cooperatives. Write for more details.
Books
Rolling Our Own : Women as printers, publishers and distributors Eileen Cadman, Gail Chester and Agnes Pivot Minority Press Group Series No 4 9 Poland Street
London W1V 3 DG England 1981. 116 pages. £2.25.
This book contains a number of interviews with women involved in different areas of feminist publishing, from producing a local women's liberation newsletter to working in a large commercial company. It shows how they become involved in the different areas of work, the problems they face and how they deal with them. The book, illustrated with cartoons, includes chapters on printing, distribution, writing, the importance of pamphlets, and sexism in the book trade. It also contains a bibliography, a directory of women's liberation newsletters, magazines and journals throughout Scotland, England, Wales and Ireland, and a list of useful organisations.
Feminism in Europe Maria Mies and Kumari Jayawardena Institut of Social Studies Badhuisweg 251 The Hague Netherlands. 1981.
Sub-titled "liberal and socialist strategies 1789-1919", this is a lecture series tracing the beginnings of the feminist movement and feminist thinking from before the French Revolution in Europe. The authors point to the importance of such work in "the eroneous or prejudiced notions connected with the concept 'feminism'. Many people particularly in the Third World, following the image projected by the media, think feminism is a craze of disillusioned middle-class women in affluent societies... there is hardly any knowledge about the fact that the feminist rebellion started around the time of the French Revolution and has since accompanied, though in uneven waves, the expansion of the industrial system all over the world." The four lectures presented here (more to be published later) deal extensively with feminist thinking in the context of contemporary ideologies, and with feminist thinkers and their lives. Highly recommended.
"Mean Mothers" and "Wild Women Don't Get the Blues" Rosetta Records Dept. 1 115 West 16St., Apt. 267 NY NY 10011 USA. US$10 each album.
Other blues collections stress woman as victim (My Man Left Me), but Rosetta Reitz has reclaimed a bit of musical herstory with these two albums and their songs of independent women (If You Don't Like It, Leave).
CLIT 007 Centre Femmes 5, bd. St. Georges 1205 Geneva Switzerland.
At Lesbian-feminist quarterly. A mixture of "serious" articles and humour (C.L.l.T. itself stands for "irresistably toxic Lesbian concetrate". In French only.
Of Marriage and the Market : Women's subordination in international perspective Kate Young, Carol Wolkowitz and Roslyn McCullagh (eds) CSE Books
25 Horsell Road London N5 England 1981.202 pages. £4.95.
This is a selection of theoretical papers representing diverse approaches to women's subordination from an international perspective.
However, the authors all underline the need to look beyond economic explanations for women's subordination and examine the significance of sexual relations and the sexual division of labour, both inside and outside the home. Areas discussed include women and reproduction, the politics of domestic budgeting, problems of feminist theory and practice in socialist societies, and women and labour in multinationals. There are specific case studies of women in Morocco and Yugoslavia, as well as examples from all over the world. The book also contains an extensive bibliography.
The Unhappy Marriage of Marxism and Feminism A Debate on Class and Patriarchy Heidi Hartmann and others, edited by Lydia Sargent Pluto Press London, England. 1981. £3.95.
This book contains one lead essay and 12 other contributions expressing different views on marxism and feminism, some advocating a more progressive union, others tending towards divorce.
Marxist, radical and anarchist feminists express their ideas on such topics as patriarchy and capitalism (are they one and the same or different systems ?), heterosexism, hierarchy, male drive to power (social or biological ?), mode of production, control of women's bodies, marriage as basic to women's exploitation, sexual division of labour, the role of men in revolution, action, socialism, etc. The kinds of questions which are raised in less than 400 pages are fundamental ones which women cannot brush aside unless they want to run the risk of being eternally exploited in one system or another. A very fundamental book.
Fat Liberator Publications P.O. Box 7232 Mineapolis MN 55407 USA.
A series of publications whose contents explode such myths as fat people eat more than thin ones (and thus can lose weight by dieting). One focus is on the connection between cultural hostility towards fat and women's oppression, the social dictate of thinness as a form of social control of women.
Common Differences : conflicts in black and white feminist perspectives Gloria I. Joseph and Jill Lewis Anchor Press / Doubleday Garden City New York
USA. 1981. 300 pages. $8.95.
This book, written by a black and a white woman, looks at the differences between black and white women's perspectives, attitudes and concerns on key issues. It presents an overview of women's status through history and discusses some of the main issues where common differences occur : sexuality, men and marriage, mothers and daughters, media images and the direction of the women's movement. Each section is divided into a black / white perspective of these issues and includes interviews with a wide range of women. Recommended.
"Black women ponder : why feminism ?" New Direction for Women July / August 1981 223 Old Hook Road Westwood, NJ 07675 USA.
Substantial part of this monthly newspaper dedicated to feminist thinking in different cultures as perceived by American black and Jewish women, dealing with racism and political thinking within and versus feminist thinking.
