ABSTRACT
The events of May 1968 spawned new ideas about political activism. The new movements (such as the Front homosexuel d’action révolutionnaire) which emerged in the wake of the student experience of the period and within the ultra-left’s sphere of influence, rejected institutions and hierarchies and practised direct democracy. Although women were active in May 1968, they became increasingly aware of the male dominance of the movement and the division of labour within it, which accorded women subordinate tasks, while men took control of debates and strategy. Disillusionment with their role in mixed movements led to the creation of an autonomous women’s movement, which, heavily influenced by the ideals and practices of the student movement, represented an alternative to traditional political activity. The women’s movement will be examined in detail in Chapter 7. However, not all women abandoned mixed movements, and the aim of this chapter is to examine their participation in ‘new social movements’1
other than the women’s movement, in order to demonstrate some of the ways in which women participated in alternative political activities. Two different social movements are considered here: the ecology movement and coordinations.
