Männerrechtler unterbinden Konferenz faschistischer Feministinnen in London

Einer heute online gegangenen Pressemitteilung britischer Männerrechtler zufolge muss die Jahresversammlung der radikalfeministischen Gruppe Radfem, die 2013 im Londoner Irish Centre stattfinden sollte, abgesagt werden. Nachdem die Männerrechtler gegen die Veranstaltung protestiert und darauf hingewiesen hatten, dass Radfem sich auch zu Gewalt als Instrument bekennt, um die eigenen politischen Interessen durchzusetzen, und darüber hinaus Eugenik für Männer befürwortet, erklärte sich das Irish Centre nicht länger zur Ausrichtung der Konferenz bereit. Im vergangenen Jahr hatte die damals als Veranstaltungsort vorgesehene Conway Hall die Feministinnen wieder ausgeladen, weil diese mit ihrer Haltung im Widerspruch zu den britischen Gesetzen stehen. Zu der feministischen Konferenz waren explizit nur Frauen eingeladen und außer Männern auch Transsexuelle ausgeschlossen worden.

In der Pressemitteilung der britischen Männerrechtler heißt es im Einzelnen:

Radfem, the radical feminist group whose members espouse a fascist, sexist and violent ideology have been ousted, yet again, from their planned convention centre. Last year, Conway Hall banned Radfem 2012 by citing that their exclusionary policy was at odds with UK legal obligations. This year, it was the London Irish Centre's turn to reject Radfem after they were awoken to the reality of inviting the pro-violence group into their venue when MRA London, a male human rights activist group and part of "A Voice for Men", mounted a protest on their doorstep.

MRA London is a peaceful group comprising both male and female members who stand up for the human worth of men and boys. It is also mixed race and includes gay members.

When hearing of Radfem's rejection, the group's co-founder, Andy Thomas said, "We don't believe in shutting down debate. However, it is vital that there is someone speaking up on behalf of men and boys. And for the first time ever, they now have a voice."

He adds, "This is a victory for men and boys everywhere because the message is clear—the time when their human rights can be trampled on with impunity is now over."

The Radfem 2013 conference was to feature Cathy Brennan, a prominent radical feminist and a US attorney in Maryland. Until February, 2013, she was also the owner of the now defunct website, Radical Hub—a site which featured calls for child murder, extermination, and male eugenics.

In 2011, A Voice for Men in the United States offered a $1,000 reward for the real identity of a Radical Hub contributor "Vliet Tiptree", who was duly identified as Pamela O’Shaughnessy from California—an author of crime novels published by Simon and Schuster. O’Shaughnessy had written a lengthy piece detailing a plan for the "extirpation" of half the human race—the male half.

Sheila Jeffreys, who was to be a keynote speaker at the event, was also a regular contributor to the "male eugenics discussion group" on the Radical Hub website. Jeffreys teaches sexual politics at the University of Melbourne, Australia, and has been accused by Dr. Greg Canning of A Voice for Men in Australia, of teaching "hate" across Australian universities.

All prejudice is seen as fashionable and virtuous in its time, and we've had 40 years or so of anti-male sentiment in the media and wider culture, so much so that it has become normalised. However, MRA London and A Voice for Men believe that we are witnessing the start of a sea change were, for the first time, radical feminist rhetoric will become universally recognised for the toxic bigotry that it is.

Der Darstellung der britischen Männerrechtler zufolge war es das Ziel ihrer Proteste, auf die faschistoiden Inhalte dieser Gruppe aufmerksam zu machen, nicht deren Treffen zu unterbinden:

I don't actually believe we have any right to shut-down an event, such as Radfem 2013, simply because we disagree with certain views, even if such views are extreme. We would actually prefer for the Radfem conference to go ahead and to attend the damn thing! That way we could take notes and record video, and publish what was went on there so that everyone can see judge for themselves. I would suggest that it should be a matter of concern that the organisers of Radfem 2013 regard such openness as a threat. (In any case, issues of personal safety aside, I could not attend the Radfem conference because they exclude me because of my gender.)

Über die für 2012 geplante Veranstaltung der radikalen Feministinnen hatte damals die Transgender-Aktivistin Roz Kaveney für den britischen "Guardian" unter der Überschrift "Radical feminists are acting like a cult" berichtet. In ihrem Artikel heißt es unter anderem:

To be clear, I know no trans women, still less trans men, who want to spend time in a space organized by people who slander us. However, one of the main speakers at the conference is Sheila Jeffreys, who has a forthcoming book critiquing trans medical care. In much of her earlier writing (see, for example, page 71 of this journal), she calls for "transsexualism" to be declared a human rights violation and then surgery banned by international law, so it's fairly clear that we have an interest in the debate. What Jeffreys proposes has, of course, other implications for all women – the Vatican would love to make similar declarations about reproductive freedom.

There is also, more importantly, the question of whether what Jeffreys and her supporters say about trans people constitutes hate speech. As of two days ago, the Conway Hall expressed their concerns about the legality of trans exclusion, and about hate speech, to the conference organisers.

(...) Of course, the trans issue is only one aspect of the conference. Its mission statement makes it clear that this is a "female-only, activism-focused conference with a radical feminist agenda". Space will not be given to anti-feminist sentiments, which is arguably another way of saying that, on most crucial issues, the party line is predetermined and that any dissent from correct "radical feminist" thinking will be stigmatised and driven out. Jeffreys makes it clear in many of her writings that post-modernism and queer theory are the enemy, and that piercing, tattooing, BDSM and role play are all pollutions of a feminism that is nothing to do with choice or preference, everything to do with commitment. Indeed, the Radical Feminist Hub, to which she contributes regularly, links to resources arguing that what it calls "penis-in-vagina" sex is a bad idea, from which women should choose to refrain.

Es ist bemerkenswert dass das, was in der britischen Presse als Anzeichen für eine "Sekte" bewertet wird, nämlich die Stigmatisierung und Ausgrenzung von antifeministischer Kritik, in den Hochburgen der deutschen Genderszene, von der Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung bis zum Bundesforum Männer, die gängige Haltung ist. Gibt es etwas in der politischen Kultur unseres Landes, das uns zum wiederholten Male anfällig für totalitäres Denken macht?

Faschistische Tendenzen jedenfalls waren und sind auch über die erwähnte britische Gruppe hinaus ein Bestandteil feministischer Ideologie. Vergangenes Jahr hatte ich diese Problematik in einem eigenen Artikel angerissen. In den Genderstudien, der offiziellen Geschlechterpolitik und den traditionellen Medien hingegen kehrt man diesen Makel der feministischen Heilslehre unter den Teppich. Männerrechtlern, die diese Problematik benannt hatten, war in den vergangenen Jahren von umstrittenen Publizisten wie Andreas Kemper, Hinrich Rosenbrock und Thomas Gesterkamp wiederholt unterstellt worden, sie stünden mit ihrer Kritik am Feminismus politisch "rechts". Distanzierungen zu tatsächlich existierenden faschistischen Tendenzen in der feministischen Ideologie gibt es von den genannten Personen nicht. Stattdessen finden Interviews und darüber hinausgehende Zusammenarbeit mit deutschen Radikalfeministinnen wie Alice Schwarzer statt, die faschistoide Veröffentlichungen wie etwa Valerie Solanas "Manifest der Gesellschaft zur Vernichtung der Männer" in ihrer Zeitschrift "Emma" bewirbt. Solanas beschreibt in ihrer Schrift Männer als unwertes Leben und schlägt ihre Vergasung vor.