EAST-GERMAN WOMEN AND THE WENDE

East German women's enthusiastic response to the political changes in autumn 1989 made many of them flock to the Independent Women's Associa tion hoping to promote anti-patriarchial reforms. The paper draws atte ntion to the broad range of academic, sociocultural, health and legal aid projects of great value to the community that women engage in, des pite inadequate or any renumeration. Also various commercially success ful ventures have been established by individual women or women's team s. East German women have so far resisted all pressures to be sent bac k to the hearth. Although the German women's movement is at very low e bb, most of the women activists of 1989-90 are still carrying on their struggle against the general backlash in many differnt ways, individu ally break the deadlock and regain its previous power.