The Feminist Initiative

In 2005-06 a group of Swedish women formed the Feminist Initiative Party (Fi) to campaign for gender equality issues. Liv Weisberg's film follows the core group from the early days of the organization through Sweden's 2006 parliamentary elections, in which the fledging party won 1% of the vote with a platform of equal pay for equal work, shared parental leave, and an end to men's violence against women. Weisberg here showcases five key Fi members: Ebba Witt-Brattström, a longtime activist with little interest in politics; Sofia Karlson, a student driven by her frustration with discrimination; Tiina Rosenberg, a Stockholm University professor with radical views on the nuclear family; Gudrun Schyman, one-time leader of Sweden's Left Party; and journalist Devrim Mavi, whose family fled Turkey when she was a child. This inside look at the growing pains of a new political movement is dramatic and compelling, as Fi's leaders try to find consensus among their varying goals and philosophies, and the less experienced women learn to make political compromises and deal with the media and the public. The Feminist Initiative features a surprising level of intrigue and suspense: Witt-Brattström leaves the Party and uses the media to try and discredit Fi; Mavi receives death threats and reconsiders the cost of activism; and Rosenberg, who is also threatened personally, is accused of academic misconduct and subjected to a lengthy series of attacks in the press. American actress Jane Fonda comes to Sweden to campaign for Fi alongside Schyman, and although the Party's parliamentary campaign is unsuccessful, the film views it as a first step, rather than a failure. An inspiring story of political activism, idealism balanced with pragmatism, and perseverance in the face of adversity, this is highly recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (M. Puffer-Rothenberg)