Patriarchy
Meeting Was Held On -
Sunday, September 16, 2018 8:46 PM
Joachim Ostertag is returning ‘by popular demand’, to continue his talk and discussion of Patriarchy.
Another excellent meeting. …Thank you Joachim Ostertag for your stimulating, informative and provocative presentation (Patriarchy II), and to Ruth and Gord Henrich for hosting us so beautifully. And a big welcome to our new members.
Patriarchy is ever-present, pervasive, and embedded in our culture. Therefore, our first task in dealing with it, is noticing it. It effects both men and women, and places requirements and restraints on all of our systems – legal, educational , religious, economic and more.
Patriarchy effects relationships; because everyone needs to feel both physically and emotionally safe, we adhere to rules we may not even recognize. In order to challenge it, we must ‘name’ it, whether in individual encounters, in media, relationships, or institutions. Patriarchy is ancient. Perhaps early women acquiesced, needing to be ‘protected’ during their months of relative disability during pregnancy. Perhaps not. Perhaps it related to the male’s superior upper body strength, and having the role of warrior or hunter. Maybe not. We don’t really know, but the question is important to ask.
Since the Montreal Massacre of 1989, women and men have been paying more attention than ever to these issues. We now have the National Day of Remembrance, Dad’s Groups, studies of violence, and the Me Too Movement. Then there’s the strange and disturbing questions which arise from the popularity (especially among women) of the book Fifty Shades of Grey. What is that all about? Whatever the reasons, how do we acquire the knowledge that we can ‘say our truth and be heard’?
Alas, we didn’t remove the patriarchy from our society during this meeting , nor even the patriarchal princes Trump and Ford, but we have identified important first steps: Notice it and Talk about it! One member suggested “unplug the TV’. (a huge carrier of partriarchal culture) Interesting….