For once, the focus is "only" on women

"All the things that women can do" is the motto of this year's day of action for the Jugendanimation (Youth Animation) Zug (Jaz) for International Women's Day on Sunday, March 8th. “Women's Day has a long tradition for us. Our goal is to specifically involve women in the design of the programme, so that their concerns and ideas can be dealt with and implemented,” explains Lisa Palak-Otzoup, director of the Jugendanimation Zug.

For this reason, a project team for International Women's Day was set up in November 2019. Six women between the ages of 14 and 55 and from different corners of the world met in the Lade für Soziokultur (Store for Socio-culture) and worked together to develop a colourful program of selected activities in order to properly celebrate Women's Day 2020. The focus on Women’s Day should thereby be on women themselves, with their skills, their stories and their desire to express themselves, emphasizes Lisa Palak. The supporting programme includes various activities intended to stimulate people and to encourage them to try things out, together with a bar with fine snacks in the foyer of the Burgbachkeller in Zug.

Stories can be invented and the obvious taken for granted in a writing and picture laboratory. The women record their stories in self-designed ‘fanzines’ - small books made from a sheet of paper. "The self-made, but extremely refined little books form the mouthpiece for the collected images and thoughts," explains Palak.

In the afternoon, women can follow the traces of their social role as women in the theatre of the Burgbachkeller, under the direction of two aspiring theatre teachers. In two workshops of 10 to 12 people each, the participants should deal with the subject of “being a woman” for one hour, using various forms such as impro-theatre, movement or dance. At the end, the participants will write a song together with the musician Saida, which will be rehearsed and sung together.

The Zug Women's Strike Committee (Zuger Frauenstreikkomitee) is also participating in the Jugendanimation Zug programme. "But we also want to convey our message to the outside world, and will therefore carry out an action in the public space on March 8," says Julia Küng of the Women's Strike committee. She did not want to be more specific, but revealed that the well-known demands for equality will be repeated, and that the next women's strike demo (Frauenstreikdemo) will be called on June 14, 2020.

International Women's Day was celebrated two years ago
with musical performances and texts by Jugendanimation Zug.

The Catholic Church in Zug and the Zug Women's Centre (Frauenzentrale Zug) also have plans– but both of them taking place in Zurich. The Catholic Church Zug will take part in the Sternenmarsch für Gleichberechtigung (Star March for Equal Rights) on Sunday, which will move from four locations to the St. Felix and Regula Church in Zurich. People from Zug who want to participate can meet at the railway station in Zug at 12.20 p.m., and take the S5 S-Bahn train to Birmensdorf at 12.35 p.m. From there, if the weather is good, they will then walk to Zurich. Theologian Regula Grünenfelder (contact@regulagruenenfelder.ch) can provide further information.

The Zug Women's Centre (Frauenzentrale) and the Frauennetz Kanton Schwyz (Schwyz Women's Network) are organising a joint march to Zurich, in order to commemorate the women's rights activist Emilie Lieberherr, and to once again underline the need for equality of women in society, politics and business. The meeting point is Zurich Main Station (Hauptbahnhof) at 10 a.m., after which there will be a march to the Zentrum Karl der Grosse (Charlemagne Centre) followed by a matinee for Women's Day. The author Trudi von Fellenberg-Bitzi will read from the biography of Emilie Lieberherr, and this will be followed by a mutual exchange between representatives from Central Switzerland. If you want to participate, you can register by email at info@frauenzentralezug.ch.

Programme of the Jugendanimation Zug

From 1 p.m.:  Cake buffet and all kinds of drinks in the foyer of the Burgbachkeller
1.30 p.m.:       Creative room with handicrafts, writing stories in the drawer for socio-culture.
                         Theatre workshop "Wettsch Theater, chasch haa" in the Burgbachkeller Theatre
3 p.m.:            Second theatre workshop in the Burgbachkeller Theatre, with registration on-site
4.30 p.m.:      Making music and enjoying in the Burgbachkeller Theatre
6 p.m.:            Bar service with fine snacks in the Burgbachkeller foyer