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This Women’s Day, The Left in the European Parliament is asking: what would a feminist world look like? With elections happening in over 80 countries, half of the world’s population will take to the polls this year. Could a feminist utopia be closer than it seems?
A world where patriarchy is dismantled
Patriarchy harms all of us. It imposes impossible standards on women, fuels transphobia, and damages men. Capitalism thrives on this oppression, exploiting women’s labour for its own gain. Our fight for justice targets all oppressive systems: patriarchy, racism, (neo)colonialism, classism, capitalism, and heteronormativity. These systems reinforce each other, enriching elites while exploiting the marginalised and the planet. A world free from the shackles of patriarchy would be the first step in demanding systemic change for our collective liberation.
A world where equal work means equal pay
On average, in the EU, the gender pay gap is 13%. The gap is not based on education or skills and in general it widens, instead of narrows with age, for example, the pension gap is 26%. A world with equal pay would lead to greater financial stability for women. Its implications would be far-reaching, and could mean everything from reducing gender-based poverty and precarity to greater representation in politics or boardrooms, to freedom to walk away from abusive relationships.
A world where healthcare is free and universal
Your health should not depend on your wealth. Free, universal and publicly funded sexual and reproductive healthcare is crucial to our feminist world. Restricting abortion rights is subjugating women. A world with free healthcare is a world where women have the right to decide over their bodies. It’s a world where women have full self-determination, sexual freedom, social and economic freedom. It’s a world where diseases and illnesses that primarily affect women are properly researched and treated. It is a world of equality and choice, where every person is respected as the ultimate arbiter of their own destiny.
A world where nature is thriving
Our natural world needs feminism to survive. Climate change is not going away and while it disproportionately affects women, and marginalised and racialised women in particular, defending nature is an integral part of the feminist struggle. The fight against climate change is a fight against patriarchy, capitalism and dirty systems of oppression and extraction. A feminist and healthy planet is one where we have sufficient food, where our rainforests and oceans are protected, where the air we breathe is clean and where feminist politicians make and enforce laws that will actually reverse climate change, instead of buckling to the power of multinationals and corporate interests.
A world free of discrimination and gender based violence
One in three women in the EU experiences physical and/or sexual violence in their lifetimes. A feminist world would see an end to toxic masculinity. A world where consent reigns supreme. One that is free of victim-blaming, where perpetrators are held to account and survivors have access to free legal aid, support and healthcare. It would be an end to policies like austerity that are structurally violent towards women. A feminist world would be a world where solidarity and empathy prevail, fostering communities where everyone feels safe, valued, and able to thrive.
A peaceful world, where we live in solidarity with one another
War, conflict, authoritarian regimes and militarisation ravage women’s lives. Forced migration and displacement create untold pain – from the breaking of family structures to the reality of sexual violence being used as a weapon of war. A feminist world is one where peace is at the heart of everything that we do. It is an end to intense profits for arms companies. An end to violent borders. It’s a world of compassion for people seeking refuge, safety or simply a better life. It is an end to inequality. Bringing care to the fore, a feminist world is a world of diplomacy, understanding and solidarity.
We believe this feminist world is possible. Will you join us?