Documents from the Women's Liberation Movement
An On-line Archival Collection
Special Collections Library, Duke University

DAR II (Dyke for the Second American Revolution)

Minutes from January 26, 1975

(Page images are also available)

DAR II     1/26/75

Discussion of Bayou Landing article for newsletter.

Discussion of whether [unreadable] DAR II should be used in print -- especially in ref. to mention in Bayou Landing article

-- most important thing is the issue + not the name (DAR II) when where doing publicity

-- consensus was not to pring name in newsletter

-- later we will have a discussion of when we will use the name, i.e. coalitions, publicity of events, etc.

Definitions

Marxism; Socialism; Communism; Trotsyism; United Front; Lesbian Separatism; Feminism; Dialectical Materialism; Stalinism

Dialectical materialism --

• Dialectical -- things change in spirally contradictions reacting + creating new forces
• Materialism -- things change because of material forces -- not ideal   Science vs. religion

Marxism -- methodology of dialectical materialism ie way of looking at history + things also as a startegy which makes it [unreadable] different from dialectical materialism.

* 15 minute discussion of whether to have definitions at all whether it was intellectual masterbation -- consensus was to continue briefly.

Trotsky & Stalin -- Stalin wanted to industrialize Russia & Trotsky wanted to make rev. in rest of world.  Trotskyists consider themselves true Marxists because they agree with original Bolsheviks.  Maoists pretty much line up with Stalinists

Bolsheviks -- people who took part in in original Russian revolution

Therefore recommended reading on Russian Revolution.  10 Days that Shook the World  Nicolas & Alexandra

Maoists -- peasants are imp't. in 3rd world countries.  Serve the People -- talk about politics & theory afterwards.  people need to be educated more than country needs to be industrialized.  Therefore rec. reading Agnes Smedley Daughters of Earth

M Smith check of Margaret Snell tape

30 minute discussion of class differences & lack of communication -- arrogance of left -- question of whether feminism alienates people in same way.    

-- alienation of us from other feminists & them from us because we push too hard.

next time Lesbian/Separatism & Feminism -- discuss alienation we fell & what we make others feel.

CRITICISM

1. were people bored or not?  meeting too unstructured?  a few people dominated the discussion?
2. decisions that were made weren't written down in previous meetings therefore discussion of name being used wasted a lot of time
3. room too small   too much smoke
4. Discussion at beginning on name and proceedure of meeting burned people out & from now on if people miss a meeting shouldn't complain about what's being said
5. suggestion of having a person separate from note taker to keep discussion on the track -- we should all have that responsibility to point out that we're going in another direction & that it's either good or bad
6. decided last week that if someone notices two people are in a dialogue or that the discussion is going off they should say so!
7. Question of too much pressure not to go off on a tangent -- that also burns people out as much as structure
8. Question of structure depends on:

• why meeting is -- what trying to accomplish
• where people are coming from.  too much structure in past not enuf structure in the past
• Either we have structure & non talkers might not talk or we don't have it & non-talkers might talk
• must meet a medium

Structure may mean that certain people will monopolize the discussion whereas non-structure may mean a different group of people will monopolize.

Page images for this date:

• Page 11 [full size] [double size]
• Page 12 [full size] [double size]
• Page 13 [full size] [double size]
• Page 14 [full size] [double size]

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