The National Council of German Women's Organizations – German Women's Lobby () is a German umbrella organization for organizations concerned with

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and Entitlement (fair division), entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st c ...

and

gender equality Gender equality, also known as sexual equality, gender egalitarianism, or equality of the sexes, is the state of equal ease of access to resources and opportunities regardless of gender, including economic participation and decision-making, an ...

. One of Europe's largest women's organizations, it includes 62 member organizations with 11 million members.

History and policies

It was founded in 1951 and views itself as a successor of the

Bund Deutscher Frauenvereine The Bund Deutscher Frauenvereine (Federation of German Women's Associations) (BDF) was founded on 28/29 March 1894 as umbrella organization of the women's civil rights feminist movement and existed until the Nazi Seizure of Power, Nazi seizure of po ...

, that existed from 1894 to 1933. The council, similar to the Bund Deutscher Frauenvereine, was traditionally an umbrella organization for the bourgeois or "bourgeois-liberal" women's movement, but over time developed a broader political profile as a result of a rapprochement between the bourgeois-liberal women's movement and the labor or social democrat women's movement, as the labor unions also joined the organization. Today, it is a broad and representative umbrella organization for the German women's movement with 62 member organizations and 11 million members. The National Council of German Women's Organizations initiated the establishment of the CEDAW Alliance Germany, and serves as its host institution. It is a founding member of the

European Women's Lobby The European Women's Lobby (EWL) is the largest umbrella organization of women's non-governmental associations in Europe working for the interests of women and girls in all their diversity and gender equality in all areas of life. EWL was foun ...

and its largest national chapter. The council actively engages in advocating for women's rights and equality in politics, work, and within the family. The overarching goal is formal and real equality between genders in all areas of life. The organization operates on democratic principles, values tolerance, and emphasizes international cooperation. Its understanding of its mission also includes supporting the human rights of minority groups, and in the 21st century, the association has also become involved in advocating for the rights of transgender individuals and other queer communities in Germany. Thus the council opposes

transphobia Transphobia consists of negative attitudes, feelings, or actions towards transgender or transsexual people, or transness in general. Transphobia can include fear, aversion, hatred, violence or anger towards people who do not conform to socia ...

, supports gender self-identification and has stated that "trans women are women and we need to represent them and defend their rights." The National Council of German Women's Organizations is a member of the Bündnis gegen ein Sexkaufverbot, sponsored by the

German Women Lawyers Association The German Women Lawyers Association (; djb) is an association of female lawyers in Germany and Europe's largest feminist legal policy organization. History and focus It was founded in 1948 as the successor to the Deutscher Juristinnen-Verein, whic ...

, which argues that "criminalizing sex work does not protect against coercion, but leads to more health risks, violence, and precarious living conditions."

Irene Stoehr Irene Stoehr (February 16, 1941, in Brzeg – February 26, 2023, in Berlin) was a German feminist historical social scientist and journalist. Her main research interests were the feminist movement and gender history in the 20th century. Life S ...

, historical social scientist and journalist and Rita Pawlowski were of the importants members of the editorial staff of this organization. Since 2021

Beate von Miquel Beate von Miquel (born 1968) is a German women's rights advocate and gender studies scholar. She is President of the National Council of German Women's Organizations – German Women's Lobby, Germany's largest organization that campaigns for gen ...

has served as president of the organization.

References

External links

National Council of German Women's Organizations
Women's rights organizations based in Germany Organizations established in 1951 1951 establishments in Germany {{Germany-org-stub

History and policies

See also

References

External links