Role of women 1917-85

Question 1

Lenin times

Answer 1

• As he comes to power in 1917 he established Zhenotdel to promote the status of women.
• He passes a fuck tone of decrees such as their legal wages, ability to get a divorce, educate themselves, bans term baba

But:

• in real life 70% of divorces were innitiated by men abandoning their preggers wives.
• they rarely were sending money

Question 2

Impact of civil war

Answer 2

• Women were in the army 70,000
• In factories
• No creches and rather shitty pay
• As they were unskilled men were getting their jobs once they were coming back
• Many were left homeless and had to be prostitutes

Question 3

Islamic women

Answer 3

• Not much, as men very conservative
• They tried to promote unveiling, working, basic contraception
• ‘Honor killing’ of women who were unveilling by family memebers

Question 4

Impact of collectivisation and industrialisation on rural women

Answer 4

• Agricultural work had a rather low status and men were trying to get a better job in town (often abandoning their women) and leaving the bulk of work on their arms.
• War only enhaced it as all the able men were taken to fight Germany
• Many never came back others died
• it was possible to find villages of only men and children in 50s
• Better in Krushchev and brezhnev years as they were given health care beenfits and internal passports in 1974

Question 5

On town women

Answer 5

• In 30s they found themselves having to work as a socialist duty rather than liberation.
• Worked in light industry mainly but not only; textiles
• 20% of places at uni were reserved for them in 1929
• By 1940 40% of engeneering students were female
• They occupied the education and health care sectors, nevertheless rarely at high and well payed vacancies.
• A lot of division between women (social activists elites)

Question 6

Basic dates

Answer 6

• 1917 Zhenotdel

- 1926 postcard divorce allowed