Anna Karamanu: “March 8th, National Anniversary, #MeToo & the Pandemic”

This March, along with International Women’s Day, brings the significant national anniversary, the explosion of the #MeToo, and the surge of the pandemic. Are these issues connected? Of course.

1) The feminist movement began in 1821, with the women who participated in the uprising against the Ottoman Empire, uninvited! Without being enlisted by any authority. On their own! Without any prior recognition of rights. They eradicated gender inequalities on the battlefield! They gave away their fortunes and sacrificed their lives. However, the Liberation denied them fundamental rights: education, freedom, paid work, public office. Manto Mavrogenous, having spent her entire fortune on the struggle, begged for a small survival pension. The heroines of 1821 were sidelined and placed under the authority of male sapiens. However, on March 8, 1887 (Greek March 8!), “I Efimeris ton Kyrion” (The Ladies’ Journal) shook the nation of patriarchy. The message was clear: Rights and participation in the construction of the modern Greek state! “Men do not have the monopoly on thinking rightly and judging,” wrote Kallirroi Parre, the first feminist, journalist, writer, and publisher. Later, feminist struggles were written by small groups of educated women, who were ignored by historians. As Konstantinos Paparrigopoulos wrote, “The history of Greece has come to resemble the monasteries of the sacred Mount Athos, where no female of any kind may enter” (Estia, 1876). Even today, it is difficult for women to “enter” public office and male-dominated centers of power. Patriarchy erects walls and taboos for female sapiens. However, the election of Katerina Sakellaropoulou to the Presidency of the Hellenic Republic overturns many outdated stereotypes!

2) The explosion of #MeToo brought to light well-hidden secrets and shattered lives, resulting from the criminal abuses of the patriarchal power structure. The old feminist slogan “the personal is political” resurfaced forcefully in the public discourse, sparking debates in Parliament and among political party leaders. Many measures for preventing violence were announced. Will they be implemented? Will sexual and social education ultimately be integrated at all levels of schooling? Will the laws for real gender equality, the Istanbul Convention, and women’s participation in decision-making centers become a reality?

3) The Covid-19 pandemic has shaken the foundations of our lives, the very functioning of democracy. The gender dimension dominated the health aspects of the pandemic and the rise in domestic violence, which increased everywhere by 20% – 30%. Notably, data show that in countries led by women, the management of the health crisis had much better outcomes, with fewer deaths and lower transmission rates. Are there common characteristics that unite New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who has a total of 26 deaths (as of 3/3/2021), with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-Wen (only 9 deaths in a population of 24 million!), Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin (755 deaths), Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen (2,367 deaths), and Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg (623 deaths)? Indeed, there are common traits. When faced with the pandemic, women leaders immediately took action and addressed citizens not with war cries or shifting blame, but with a language of honesty, empathy, and compassion. For women, the pandemic was a marathon, while for many men, it was a war! Is it time for women to take charge to save the planet?

Anna Karamanou, Dr. of Political Science NKUA, former MEP PASOK.