KOLLONTAI AND REVOLUTION: THERE IS NO SOCIALISM WITHOUT FEMINISM!

STUDY BLOCKS: HISTORY, ORGANIZATIONAL THEORY

Summary

Under capitalism, gender oppression and violence is a permanent condition. State violence, domestic violence, femicide, and economic marginalization are real and urgent issues for women both in the United States and internationally, and we must fight for another world! However, we know that no revolution has been possible without the struggle, organization, and leadership of women. For this reason, we must study the legacy of revolutionary women that came before us.

Alexandra Kollontai, writer and revolutionary, was one of the first to clearly articulate a program of working-class feminism. She fought tirelessly to overthrow the Tsar and after the revolution of 1917, worked to introduce essential programs and policies for women’s liberation. Her writing is a gift that both guides and inspires us- her political analyses hold lessons and methods for building working class feminism today, and her novels and short stories help us imagine the liberated woman after capitalism. What can we learn from Kollontai, and what does it mean to build working-class feminism today? Join Professor Jodi Dean for a virtual lecture and discussion.

Jodi Dean teaches political, feminist, and media theory in Geneva, New York. She has written or edited thirteen books, including Comrade, The Communist Horizon and Crowds and Party.