Anarchism and feminism

Abstract

Sharif Gemie has recently pointed out in Women's History Review, 5, (1996), pp. 417-444, that patriarchalism and adherence to strict gender roles in the early twentieth century were an integral part of French and Spanish anarchist political culture. Nevertheless, any analysis of the sexual politics of a particular movement must also take into account the sexual culture of the times and the role of the ‘homosexual menace’ in securing ‘correct’ heterosexual behaviour. This short article illustrates some of the wider influences on anarchists and attempts to show the importance of the fear of homosexuality as a disciplinary factor in the sexual politics of their movement.