Childcare: Only Trotskyists Offer Necessary Policies

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Final part of a series of articles by nursery campaigner Al ne McKinley.

Previous articles in this series have underlined the inadequacy of nursery provision in capitalist countries of Europe.

But the problem of securing adequate social facilities to lift the burden of: childcare from the shoulders of women is also a major issue in the deformed workers' states and in the Soviet Union itself.

The Soviet Union Providing care for the under 5s and the legislation of equality between the sexes is an economic and political issue..

Lenin stated in 1919:

"Verbally, bourgeois democracy promises equality and freedom. In fact, bourgeois republics however advancedhave not given women, who constitute half of humanity, full equality with men before law, nor have they freed them from the yoke and oppression of men.

Bourgeois democracy is the democracy of pompous phrases, of solemn words, of bombastic promises, grandiose slogans about liberty and equality, but in practice, all of this hides the lack of freedom and inequality of women, the lack of freedom and inequality of workers and the exploited."

At this time, only the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 had managed to lay the real basis for the emancipation of women, repealing all repressive legislation, granting freedoms, faciltating divorce and attempting to socialise a series of enslaving domestic tasks-from the washing of clothes to the education and care of children.

Nevertheless women suffered the same fate as the rest of the working class under the Stalinist counter tevolution. In the 1935 Constitution a series of laws favourable to worner disappearNursery in the USSR ed and in general Stalinism sought to 'reaffirm the family unit as the basic unit of society -with the attendant oppression of women in the home.

Soviet women today do enjoy complete legal equality. 85% of them go out to work and l equal opportunities, in education and jobs are advanced. And yet women remain oppressed, because the responsibility for child care and other domestic tasks remain tirmly on the shoulders of individual women.

The social policy in Russia is not aimed at relieving women of this burden but at making it heavier-by encouraging women to have more children.

Instead of providing more nuiseries, providing longer maternity and paternity leave, and building communal dining halis and laundries to make child rearing a joy, women with large familes are simply given a medal in recognition of the unnecessary drudgery and soul destroying oppression they are enduring! Hungary Since 1967 a 'mother's wage' has been provided. According to official statements it arose from 'concern' that illness was more common among children in nurseries than among those full time at home.

But in reality it was designed to boost a flagging birthrate, It is paid to women with children under 3-provided they stay at home, and it is equivalent to about one eighth of the average monthly wage. *... There are three reasons for this allowance:

1. The fall in the birthrate;

"2. The fear of the growth of unemployment amongst young women if they seek work outside the home;

3. The high costs of creating and maintaining state run child care centres.

In current nursery provision there is only room for 10% of Hungarian children under 3.

The allowance • penalises those mothers who prefer or are obliged to continue their work. but are unabie to find a place for their children in a child care.

Provisions like these reinforce the traditional sexual division of labour.

Cuba Prior to the Cuban revolution, in 1959 most Cuban women were unemployed and ifliterate.

If they had to work the primary occupations open to them were those of domestic servant and prostitute. The only role expected of them was that 'of wife and mother.

In the 20 years since the revolution' the image and role of women has to all intents and : purposes changed radically.

Retraining programmes

set up for women to learn such as child cate, sewing clerical work.

The principle of equal pay for equal work became law, and compulsory education | was established • for all Cuban children.

: As more and more women entered the workforce, a serious problem became glaringly apparent. Because of the strain of the "second shift' of childcare and housework, • women began dropping out of work each year.

In 1975 a Family Code was enacted into law which stipul ates the "total equality" of men and women in all aspects of life beginning with the family unit, •But the emphasis is on shared responsibility within an individual, family. unit-equal oppression-instead of providing more childcare facilities to remove the second shift from both parents.

The Family Code does not take into account one parent families.

Trotskyist Programme The policies put forward by Trotskyists in nursery and child care campaigns are based on a political programme put forward by Trotsky in 1938 at the founding conference of the Fourth International.

It is not enough however simply to offer women the demands of the Transitional Programme. We have to relate to the particular needs of women if we are to win them to the struggle of the working class.

The fight for the maintenance and extension of rights is inseparable from the fight against capitalism and for the victory of the working class.

Capitalism far from guaranteeing democratic rights will engage in increasing attacks upon them like the attacks on child care provision at present. We must link our demands for future extended child care provision to the fight to defend what we already have.

The policy, of occupying threatened services or workplaces-like nurseries-against closure by the capitalist class is a demand that does this; it 'shows workers and users of the service in practice the need both to defend nurseries and to assert workers control.

Ask anyone before an occupation of a nursery/hospital whether they think that the working class can actually tun things • themselves and one would probably receive a negative answer.

When one has no other choice but to occupy a threatened facility it's amazing how much workers will contribute and control that facility the way it should be run In the same way, the policy of opening the books of County Councils; Area Health Authorities and any factory or workplace where the capitalist class says it has to olose or there cannot be a wage rise because there is no money available challenges their right' to solve problems at our expense.

..The WSL does not say open the books in order to prove there is money available. Some capitalists will be anxious to prove to workers their bankruptcy and the need for workers to go without and not the exploiters.

Whereas we say open the books to show the need for nationalisation of the economy and for workers control.

The open the books demand on county councils and AHAs is to point to where the money goes to-firms who supply books and materials, drug companies like La Roche who make huge profits and the need for these firms to be nationalised.

Every serious demand now raised by women in the struggle against the oppression must bring them into conflict with the official labour bureaucracy.

The demands and aspirations of women have always been, neglected by trade union and Labour leaders, who have based themselves on • the most conservative and privileged layers of the workers' movement.

Now these demands are cast aside entirely by bureaucrats determined if necessary to sacrifice the interests of the whole working class sooner than mobilise independent mass action for the overthrow of the crisis ridden capitalist system.

The struggle in defence of jobs, wages or conditions; the struggle to stop the Tory spending cuts; the struggle to create the material conditions for lifting the burden of domestic labour from the shoulders of individual women in the home; all require the turn to the building of a revolutionary socialist leadership in the working classin which women must play their 'full part.

While recognising that only „socialism will create the material conditions that make the emancipation of women a possibility this process is by: no means automatic.

The - reactionary ideology that both justifies and intensifies women's oppression is much older and capitalism and will live on after its overthrowunless communists lead a conscious campaign to stamp it out.

In a planned economy it will become possible to provide communal facilities supercede the work done by women's domestic labour with high quality but cheap dining halls and laundries as well as comprehensive free child care provision.

There is no guarantee that the economy will be planned in this way, unless there are women and men communists in the leadership of the revolutionary party that believe that these facilities are a priority to relieve the burden on women and grant them genuine social rather than purely formal equality.

NURSERIES - HOW & WHY TO FIGHT FOR THEM "The aim is to force the state to run the services we need. Many unions -NUPE, NALGO, NUT, ott., cover all sectors in the social and aduca.

tional services, and their union officials must be forced to act in support of policios already accapted against the cuts..."

So states this vital booklet 60p plus top pap from NCCC.

c/o Surrey Docks Child Care Project, Dockland settlement, Redriff Ad, London SE 16.

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SOCIALISI PRESS. Apri.