Feminist movements are the engine of progressive change in Poland and in all regions of the world. Feminists they are the first to see injustice and the needs of groups that are systematically marginalised, and they are taking corrective action. Thanks to feminists, we not only exercise electoral rights, but besides recognise reproductive, social and labour rights. Care, common assistance, the culture of consensus, solidarity – these are values that feminists implement in practice. Feminism is the tool of critical reflection on the world, as well as boldness in imagining a strategy organized in a better way: 1 that puts the welfare of all people, animals and planets at the centre, alternatively than capital.
The current crisis of democracy and the increasing influence of the far right across Europe and beyond is based, among another things, on the deepening economical inequality – and these arise from neoliberal paradigms and uncontrolled corporate dominance. Giorgia Meloni in Italy, the Austrian Free Party, an alternate to Germany, which first won mandates in the European Parliament, Marine Le Pen in France or yet the triumph of the utmost right in the Kingdom of the Netherlands – all these are examples of utmost right-turn.
The situation is even more alarming in Georgia and Bulgaria, where regulations have been introduced in fresh months to hit progressive social movements. Mama Cash, the world's oldest women's fund, who has supported feminist activities throughout the globe for over 40 years, may have a problem with government backing for the first time in herstoria.
Sister self-organization in practice
Feminists frequently faster and better than the state responds to the needs of those in discrimination groups and to problems in their environment. Bottom-up feminist organization usually precedes strategy solutions. This includes, for example, abortion, menstrual poverty is humanitarian aid on the Polish-Belarusian border. These are current and only any of the many examples in Poland. Currently, access to abortion, under the harshest ban in Europe, is most likely better than always before. An independent network of activists across the country helps abortions to those who request it. Supported by Abortion Without Borders around 44,000 people per year. all day, the network receives hundreds of calls and messages from people who want to halt their pregnancy.
Through the initiative Pink Box The full of Poland heard about the problem of menstrual poverty. The box began as an informal group of 3 people and a start grant was received from the Feminist Fund. In the first year, the initiators' actions led to the creation of 700 pink boxes with free menstruation products, specified as tampons and pads, in toilets in public spaces. present there are respective 1000 of them, besides in public schools. The group's dream is to make menstrual hygiene as widely available as toilet paper. The organization convinced the Ministry of National Education to conduct a pilot task of pink boxes in selected educational institutions.
Since 2018, the Feminist Fund has supported 335 initiatives and contributed over PLN 5 million in grants. This led to a group of support for erstwhile spiritual sisters who experienced force in spiritual institutions. Girls surviving in the countryside led to a bicycle acquisition so that their friend could find a occupation outside the village and become financially independent. Women from the village of Sułkowice organized educational meetings with gynecolóżka, transgenders run a community run on the safe administration of hormones, and Queer Without Borders provides intervention support for non-heteronormative refugees.
In many cases, the strategy responds at the latest and least efficiently (or at all), and social change occurs thanks to the determination, courage and empathy of activists.
Chronic conflict for endurance
At the same time, feminist movements stay chronically underfunded, and access to flexible, friendly grants, tailored to the needs of feminist groups and organisations, is very limited. In Poland, we are mainly dealing with grants for projects whose service can be demanding, not flexible funds that would let us to do their own work on their own terms. Poland most likely does not stand out especially against the background of global statistics, and these are shocking. Only about 1% of all improvement cooperation grants and private donors goes to feminist organizations. If we look at the disparity between access to grants for LGBT+ groups and utmost right-wing groups, which their mission describes as a fight against "gender ideology", then the situation becomes even more worrying – in 2013–2017, they received 3 times more money ($3.7 billion) than non-heteronormative support groups.
As for groups and feminist organizations in Poland, we deficiency reliable data on their financial condition. From the investigation of Klon Jawor, which covers the full non-governmental sector, we know that the average revenues of registered associations and foundations in Poland amounted to PLN 28 1000 in 2020. Only 29 percent of all civilian society organisations had revenues above PLN 100 thousand. Revenues over PLN 1 million had only 6 percent of organizations. Associations and foundations trust primarily on targeted grants (from government, local and abroad public funds). They account for 55% of revenue. We besides know that specified funds are the most restrictive, hard to operate and entail the top administrative burden. In a survey on the fitness of the sector, which Klon Jawor has been conducting for over 20 years, the organizations consistently indicate financial stableness as 1 of the biggest challenges in its action.
Internal data from the Feministic Fund show that the average budget of Power Grant applicants (flexible organization grants) in 2023 was PLN 85,642 (as of October 2023). Budgets ranged from PLN 0 to over 2 million. The average budget of registered organizations was PLN 137,352 and informal groups was PLN 33,931. These data are based on information obtained from 81 applicants who applied for Power Grants of PLN 60 thousand.
The Feminist Fund was created to respond to the problem of the deficiency of dedicated funds for feminist change. Despite crucial achievements in this area, the fund's budget allows only any of the needs to be met. Of the 123 applicants of the last edition of Power Grants, only a fewer will receive a grant. The amount of the grant besides remains insufficient. FF is dreaming of giving multi-annual organization grants with a light hand, so that the deficiency of money does not constitute any barrier to a better, more equal tomorrow.
Currently, progressive movements in Poland are at a critical minute in terms of the future of financing. The dismantling of democracy and the promotion of hatred towards minorities by the erstwhile government have made us experience solidarity and support from abroad. Poland then flooded a wave of humanitarian aid in connection with a full-scale invasion of Russia in Ukraine. However, abroad donors lose interest in Poland. We see the gradual withdrawal of grant institutions from Poland after the 15 October elections, as we are no longer seen as a country in crisis. In the meantime, we have a large deal of work ahead of us on many fronts: the rights of non-heteronormative and transgender people, reproductive and sexual rights, and compliance with global standards of exile application.
We know very well that, without constant force from civilian society, the situation of women and minorities in this country has no chance of importantly improving. Prime Minister Donald Tusk honestly acknowledged that anti-abortion law would not be liberalized. Parliament besides rejected the draft law decriminating abortion aid. Despite planet human rights standards, the Prime Minister is reasoning of denying refugees access to global protection. The feminist conflict for rights for all must proceed and require circumstantial financial support.
There is simply a concern that the script from the beginning of the 2000s will be repeated erstwhile the Polish women's rights movement was almost overnight deprived of access to grants from private foundations from abroad, including from the United States, specified as the Ford Foundation or the Hewlett Foundation. Donors felt that if Poland enters the European Union, it would do well in the field of sex justice. present we know it didn't happen. “We hoped that it would be easier erstwhile we entered the Union,” says Krystyna Kacpura, president of the Federation. "In the meantime, it turned out rapidly that projects had to be written under the EU dictatorship and we inactive gotta add our own funds to them. The Union was very conservative on reproductive rights. She did not want any tensions with a associate State with a marketplace as large as Poland. It wasn't in her interest. We stayed on ice, and abroad donors withdrew.
As a consequence of abrupt changes, the feminist movement survived severe weakness. Many organisations, in order to survive, reached for projects that did not always meet their priorities. By the time the Feminist Fund was established, the informal groups that were right out of nowhere could not number on support.
The current political situation in Poland does not make prospects for a crucial improvement in social justice. However, since the triumph of the democratic opposition gives a deceptive sense of security, the script we already know may be repeated. possible withdrawals of financial support for feminism can throw distant the drive for change and energy mobilised in fresh years. The PiS governments were accompanied by a feminist revival, it was a formation time for progressive social movements. Without further fuel in the form of unchangeable backing sources, the possible of civilian society organisations to act decisively and naturally and consequently to influence decision-makers and decision-makers can fall significantly.
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Human rights are an integral part of the democratic regulation of law. The only warrant of their adherence is progressive social movements: feminist, queer, pro-refugee. The governing coalition fails to fulfill its promise to reconstruct full-sized democracy in Poland, treats this task selectively and does not realize its function in the concern of identity, which is systematically stigmatized and marginalized. Without feminist activism, which introduces the voice of the most oppressed, there is no real democracy.
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Magdalena Pocheć – feminist, social activist, intercultural psychologist. The originator and co-founder of the Feminist Fund. active in progressive philanthropy, she collaborated, among others, with FundAction, Solidarity Fund and Phenomenal Funds. Its mission is to support progressive social movements for change.
