Feminism Under Corona. There is more than one community – McKenzie Wark
The sixth episode of Feminism Under Corona is based on a conversation with Australian-born and New York-based writer and scholar McKenzie Wark, who is known for her writings on critical theory and new media. Her latest book “Reverse Cowgirl” has been published by Semiotext(e) in 2020. Somehow, reading books starts always in reverse. We turn them over with our hands, looking for answers in advance on the back cover. However, “Reverse Cowgirl” is not a book made to satisfy questions, not even those of the author herself regarding her own biography. The following conversation with McKenzie Wark does not provide a continuation of her book. It actually starts with her reflections on Marx. Her critique of capitalism is at the same time a critique of the concepts that the critique of capitalism itself constantly produces. What kind of economy produces information that is turned into a commodity? How can we call the system we live in, which in fact parasites our bodies individually and collectively in order to expand and to survive? The struggles in which many concepts and many anonymous bodies are involved in are extremely important. When we think about the concept of Feminism, it becomes violent and discriminatory when there is no recognition of the enormous differences between bodies and the lives lived by those bodies. Feminism, if not perceived as intersectional, is in danger of producing oppressive and exclusionary paradigms. Capitalism needs our bodies to be healthy and functioning in order to be able to continue working for it, but it does not offer the same support to all people. Race, class and gender are some of the many elements to consider when we think about health. However, it’s also true that past struggles for better and more accessible health systems provide experiences and strategies from which we can learn in the present. The rather pessimistic spirit in thinking about the future was nevertheless accompanied by a certain festive spirit thanks to the emergence of nightlife and dance culture during our conversation. The genealogy, bodies and culture that techno music produces are different from those of other music realities. In fact, each type of music shows that there is not one homogenous dance community, but many communities made up of different bodies and experiences. The same applies to Feminism. We should never forget that there is always more than one community and that communities exist in continuous transformation and differences.