Abstract

MERTNOFF, Ela. The Rosenstrasse Protests: Women´s Collective Action Against the Nazi Regime. La ventana [online]. 2021, vol.6, n.54, pp.145-174.  Epub July 15, 2021. ISSN 1405-9436.

In February of 1943, the Nazi regime arrested 2,000 Jewish men which were taken to the administrative office located on Rosenstrasse in Berlin. The spouses of the incarcerated Jews gathered in front of the building to demand the return of their loved ones. A protest of 600 women that lasted a week quickly broke out. Although this event was relevant within its context, from the point of view of the history of social movements it has remained unexplored. This protest deserves recognition within the journey of women struggles in history.

This paper will critically address the debates regarding the women’s social movement involved in the Rosenstrasse protests that took place between February and March of 1943 in Berlin during the Nazi government. The interest lies in discussing the nature of this social demand led by women; analyze this claim of justice taking into account the unfavorable period for the German feminist movement and for women’s rights; identify their position regarding gender perspective; and to assess the impact of the social movement.

The thesis of this paper is that the Rosenstrasse protests meant an extraordinary act of a successful resistance which prove the awareness of the Nazi terror on account of German bystanders. These protests, despite not being against the system, were a spontaneous collective action that managed to have an impact on public opinion and on the Nazi government within a context of state weakness. Even if women questioned the state from their position as wives, not from a feminist perspective but from the morality of traditional values such as home and family, the importance of this protest in the memory construction of social movements cannot be underestimated.

Keywords : Holocaust; female resistance; German feminism; gender perspective; collective action.

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