Music festival misogyny is as tiresome as it is harmful. Whether it’s the lack of female headliners or the ongoing problem of sexual assault, it’s quite clear to any female-identifying music fan that most festivals — and gigs in general — are spaces organized by and for men. Now Glastonbury has proposed one very bold solution: a women-only venue called “The Sisterhood,” providing a safe and fun space for female-identifying fans and musicians.
“The producers of The Sisterhood believe that women-only spaces are necessary in a world that is still run by and designed to benefit mainly men,” the organizers said in an email. “Oppression against women continues in various manifestations around the world today, in different cultural contexts.”
Linking the problem to broader issues, they continued: “In the UK, the gender pay gap in the workplace, cuts to domestic violence services, and sex worker rights are current talking points that highlight this issue. Sisterhood seeks to provide a secret space for women to connect, network, share their stories, have fun, and learn the best way to support each other in our global struggle to end oppression against women and all marginalized people, while showcasing the best and boldest female talent in the UK and beyond.”
The “revolutionary clubhouse” will pop up in Glastonbury’s Shangri-La zone, a space rooted in “deep history in outsider art and underground culture.” It will include live music, dance classes, workshops on intersectionality and diversity, and even workshops on DIY power tools with carpenter Rhi Jean. Glastonbury’s co-organizer Emily Eavis has long been committed to carving out spaces for women in music, lamenting in-depth the male-dominated scene and standing up to the haters who claimed Adele was too boring to headline. Hopefully other, smaller festivals follow suit — despite the inevitable impending backlash from crybaby men on Twitter.
Credits
Text Hannah Ongley
Image via WikiCommons