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Hello philosophy/pol theory/feminism twitter! I’ve been following many of you and would like to say hi—but instead, may I bring your attention to the popular women’s strike current under way in Poland? We could really use some right now. A thread. @strajkkobiet #WyrokNaKobiety
On Oct 22nd a hollowed out constitutional court made a ruling that effectively ended legal abortion in Poland. You can read about the ruling, its legal basis and what it entails eg here: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/27/world/europe/poland-abortion-ruling-protests.html
Since the ruling, people have taken onto the streets to protest on a scale unseen for a long, long time—certainly not in my lifetime. Warsaw and other big cities are swelled with protesters day and night. But crucially, the same is happening in small cities and villages that, for
many reasons, do not usually offer signs of visible popular dissent. What began as a women’s strike was joined by taxi drivers, farmers, unions; talk of revolution is now widespread, and people are standing in solidarity that just last week seemed utterly impossible in the
topsy-turvy world, glimmering with phone screens and muffled by physical exhaustion, that we have come to live in. The ban on abortion coincided—purposefully or not, the rationale of the government is anyone’s guess at this point—with a sharp increase in coronavirus cases,
steadily rising for the past weeks and already past a point where the govt could control the situation. The medical system is beyond capacity, or, in doctors' own words, “dead”. (See here https://oko.press/az-16-tys-przypadkow-zapasc-ochrony-zdrowia/)
For the days immediately following the abortion ruling, the govt was silent. Yesterday, 5 days into strike, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the de facto leader of the ruling party and the person singlehandedly responsible for the dismantling of the fragile social order under way since its
electoral victory in 2015, made a speech. You can watch it here: . And a translation is here: https://notesfrompoland.com/2020/10/27/abortion-protests-aim-to-destroy-poland-and-end-the-history-of-the-polish-nation-says-kaczynski/
Here are some excerpts (I quote from the @notesfrompoland translation): “These demonstrations will most certainly cost many lives … Those who call for them and participate in them cause a threat and are committing a serious crime. The authorities not only have a right, but
an obligation to oppose such events.” “[churches are] not being attacked by accident … [the Catholic Church is the] repository of the only moral system commonly known in Poland … Rejection of [the Church] is nihilism, and we see this nihilism in these demonstrations.”
“We must defend Polish churches at any cost … I call on all PiS members and all those who support us to take part in the defence of the church.” “This attack … is intended to destroy Poland, to lead to the triumph of forces [whose] authorities will end the history of the Polish
nation as we know it … in the attacks one can see an element of preparation, maybe even training”. Today, he doubled down on these words suggesting, in a speech in the Parliament, that
those who are calling for demonstrations may be punished to 10 years in prison for posing a threat to public health and safety. And just now, self-proclaimed fascist militias are "patrolling" the streets of Warsaw.
Here is a statement from ONR ("The National Radical Camp"), a far-right movement with which the ruling party @pisorgpl sympathises, from earlier today.
As we take to the streets to protest, peacefully, we are frightened that we have finally arrived at a point where we are truly living in a reckless, authoritarian country—sth we have been warning each other about for months, but that only now feels heavily and inescapably true.
We have hope that there is enough sanity, kindness, reason and, most importantly, a capacity for standing in solidarity with each other, resilient to threats, provocations, and just fatigue, to see us through this and translate this mobilisation into lasting change.
But a lot is on the table, the social contract is fragile, emotions boiling hot, and our government led by a determined demagogue who seems beyond the point of no return. This is why we really need your attention right now: international vigilance may very well prove
to be our hope of avoiding a catastrophe. HERE IS WHAT YOU CAN DO: https://docs.google.com/document/d/19z2yQBQLzPCBN4I-Um24hAAHDppH9MMGw0PVF8iAdm0/mobilebasic (courtesy of @nadomagala) Please help us make @pisorgpl @PremierRP @prezydentpl feel that their hands are being watched.
Here is what I will be *taking a spontaneous walk* with around Warsaw tomorrow:
These may be translated as: “You will never walk alone” & “We are foreshadowing better times." I very much hope it is indeed so.
@DrSJFine @amiasrinivasan @DrSophieSmith @jasonintrator @alixabeth @kate_manne @RebeccaBuxton @zucchiara @klaraanderss @lolaolufemi_ @DanaNaomyMills @katforrester @ProfessorShaw
