DEALING WITH CHANGE. REFLECTIONS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF A FEMINIST ORGANIZATION

For many decades now scholars have documented the divisive impact of internal processes and external pressures on feminist organizations. To further substantiate the claims on the difficulty to maintain a supportive and egalitarian character in the face of group enlargement and diversity, I aim at discussing the internal dynamic of such organizations. Based on participant observation and interviews with newer and older members of a recently established Romanian feminist group, I discuss issues of group identity building and transformation in the face of growing diversity of personal identities, backgrounds, and feminist visions on the principles, strategy and tactics of the organization. The section has both a theoretical and a practical stake, in that further inquiry into the internal dynamics of groups pertaining to the diverse field of women’s rights organizations is needed in order to understand their engagement with other actors (state institutions, media, and other organizations) and their coalition building options. The practical stake hints at the benefits of a reflexive engagement with academics and activists over the importance of building non-hierarchical inclusive spaces that reflect the feminist values we wish to see implemented in society at large