A Call For Mother Earth and Humanity
Claudia von Werlhof
in: Renate Klein and Susan Hawthorne (eds.):
Not Dead Yet. Feminism, Passion and Women’s Liberation, Spinifex Press, Melbourne 2021
Why do people not want to know about the violence that is committed against Mother Earth?
Is it a taboo to reveal a secret? For instance, Dr Rosalie Bertell´s research about geoengineering has to this day still not been properly debated in public. Not only the powers that be, but also the social movements of today have not allowed this to happen. Very often, people reject radical new thoughts right away because they are too shocking for them. A first reaction typically consists of ignoring them instead of trying to learn and do something about these perilous matters. Most people simply deny the possibility that something like ‘military geoengineering’ may even exist. In an effort to avoid confronting these uneasy truths, they repeat the term prepared by those in power who want to do away with this sort of ‘evil knowledge’ and call it a ‘conspiracy theory’.
But we do need to confront the facts about the system we live in, which in itself is based on different forms of direct and structural violence against life itself, against nature and against human beings. This truth is a secret and thus it has become a taboo to speak about it. Whenever this taboo is violated, there is always a prompt and often violent reaction to stop any further discussion.
Of course, we know what the violence of our system – our ‘modern civilization’ – is based on. It is rooted in ‘patriarchy’, as I name it in my critical theory approach. The intention of patriarchy is to change all of life, nature and humanity, in fact the entire world into a ‘man-made’, artificial one, that is not allowing life to exist any longer in its organic, natural and motherly ways on Planet Earth. This man-made world is by definition a pater-arché one, a ‘creation’ of so-called human fathers instead of human mothers together with Mother Nature. During the time to reach this patriarchal utopia, which is several thousands of years old, much violence has already been applied. This violence has turned into trauma, but at the same time, it is considered ‘forbidden knowledge’ and is suppressed. It has been hidden on all levels and cannot be addressed openly. And as long as this patriarchal ‘civilization’ has not totally succeeded in transforming life, nature, humans, the whole world – and the Planet itself – into a completely man-made world, more violence will continuously be applied as a necessary means of achieving its dangerous end goals.
This paradox is the secret of patriarchy. Because the patriarchal narrative tells us that there is no violence in the transformation process from the natural to the artificial – the machine – we are also always told that the result will be superior. It is called progress! But the secret we must reveal tells us that violence does not lead to the better and improved worlds we are promised, but to what it actually produces: destruction!
Destruction is the overall outcome of this ‘alchemical’ – as I call it – transformation process through violence. This is its logic, but nobody is allowed to name it. This is the ‘evil’ knowledge, the forbidden one, the forgotten one, the knowledge driven into the underground and thus made subconscious. I call it ‘the collective subconscious’.
Understanding this makes it clear how difficult it is to acknowledge what Rosalie Bertell is teaching us. She teaches us that patriarchy in the form of the Military Industrial Complex (MIC), has started to destroy our living conditions and the Planet itself. I believe we are forced to do something against this, if we want to continue living on this earth. This means that we have to address patriarchy and its systemic, direct and structural violence, running the risk of becoming the ones who break the taboo.
My personal experience with breaking the taboo of this syndrome of avoidance and fear that we can see repeated today in the case of the worldwide Coronavirus Crisis, has led me to found the Planetary Movement for Mother Earth (PMME) in 2010.
This is how it happened: after an interview for a newspaper about the necessity to do research into a possible crime, namely the eventual participation of military geoengineering, mentioned by the Venezuelan president, the Russian Duma and others, that had led to the death of a quarter of a million people – the Haitian earthquake in 2010. Just for quoting those sources I was immediately called a ‘conspiracy theorist’. As a result I was publicly ‘murdered’ and discredited, robbed of my good reputation as an academic, an activist, a person and a woman. I was threatened by the Deep State and the Institute of Political Science at the University of Innsbruck where I had worked for more than 20 years. The official Austrian media threatened me – being instructed from above, as I was informed by a whistleblower. I lost many of my friends, even very old ones, from the left wing, the green and other alternative movements, even from matriarchy groups in Germany and Austria, with whom I had been working for many years. I lost publishers I used to work with, and I was never again invited for interviews or talks in the mainstream and even most of the alternative press.
This is an indication of the deep hatred of the patriarchal system against life and truth, the real knowledge that is now emerging everywhere. It shows patriarchy’s need to cover up the truth, as quickly and as brutally as possible, by using its paid defenders. This experience changed my life, as I did not run away or go into hiding to atone for my alleged sins. On the contrary, I then started my own research on geoengineering which had not been an issue for me until then.
The Haitian case had put me on the road to Rosalie Bertell´s knowledge that was completely unknown to me. With the help of her research I learned how to explain what might have really occurred in Haiti – and not only that, but much more. I wished that I had been wrong, but I wasn´t.
During these experiences of change in my life, I became ill. When I emerged from the hell Rosalie had opened for me, I had to decide what to do: either stopping to do anything at all, or starting anew – and with exactly those issues the social environment around me tried to suppress. I decided to do the latter. Otherwise, we would not celebrate the tenth birthday of the Planetary Movement for Mother Earth in 2020.
I chose this option because there was no alternative. I had felt the same tremors in my body as Mother Earth must have felt in her body during the earthquake. It was as if She was calling me, and loudly so. She said: “Yes, you are the one. You have to stand up for me, as you now know what it feels like what is being done to me! Someone has to do it! This is the moment …”
Knowing already what this decision of mine meant, I began my new life. I informed my friends overseas who – contrary to those in Europe – were full of solidarity and support. They started a campaign for me that passed through many parts of the world, as I had done research in earlier years in different places and had many colleagues from social movements in many countries. It was wonderful and it gave me strength so that I could move on. The people of Haiti, however, probably never knew about this debate that began after their disastrous experience. Even the NGOs kept it away from them.
At a large women´s congress in Germany in May 2010, I spoke about Rosalie Bertell’s book Planet Earth: The Latest Weapon of War which deals with geoengineering and proposed founding the PMME in order to distribute her knowledge. Hundreds of women applauded in agreement, and we began organising this movement from Austria.
The first and most important task was to translate Bertell’s book into German and publish it. We found a good translator, we got enough donations to pay for this work, and Rosalie sent us the new texts she had written after the first publication of her book in 2000. However, we could not find a publisher! It felt like a boycott on all levels. When we finally found one and succeeded in publishing Bertell’s work in German, at the end of 2011, there was a second wave of hatred, discrimination and defamation occurring that appeared to me as if some people wanted to take revenge for being unable to prevent us from publishing Bertell’s research. So I had to stand up to this new wave of insulting personal and fierce political attacks.
In amazing ways, however, we then gained new friends all over the world. Ever more people and groups became active in relation to geoengineering issues. Rosalie considered it an obligation for all of us to fight for Mother Earth as we are her children. Where did she gain her power and energy from to do this work by herself? Her ‘dynamo’ surely was her immense and deep love for Mother Earth, our beautiful fantastic planet that gives us everything we need. So, things were very clear for her. And things should be very clear for us, as well.
Rosalie Bertell had developed early on what I call a ‘planetary consciousness’. My experience in these difficult last ten years with the PMME taught me the same. I learned to love the Earth much more than I could have imagined, I learned about her as a huge cosmic living being, I learned to listen to her, to trust her, and to accept her power as mine as well. Because, the power to go on with this struggle stems from Her – not from patriarchy, of course.
Over these years, I learned that if we want it, we can establish a real relationship with the earth and ask her: “What can we do? What should we do? Please tell us what to do and what not to do?” For example, what should we give up?
I strongly believe this is the answer to the panic, anxiety and fear that reaches us when we start to speak about the systemic violence of patriarchy. The time has come to stop this destructive way of life. The time has come to change from the patriarchal hatred of life to the love of life again – which is the natural attitude of human beings. We have to re-awaken this love, so we become aware and develop a planetary consciousness.
Love should be the ‘virus’, the ‘dis – ease’ that ‘contaminates’ us all – to be open to the power of love for, from, and with our Mother Earth! What else can we do? There is no alternative!
If we look around, we see always more weaponry – not CO2! – threatening the earth, her climate, the ozone layer, her cycles and all life. Together with a ‘weaponization’ through mind control and neuroscience, 5G, artificial intelligence, digitisation, nano- and biotechnologies, geoengineering belongs to the fourth Industrial Revolution that has been proclaimed to build our future – or our no-future – in the twenty-first century. These technologies are already producing ‘lock-downs’ from above, from space, as well as from below. They are meant to use our bodies and brains, and I don’t think all of us are supposed to survive this process of becoming the ‘bio’-part of what I call the megamachine – the new global form of totalitarianism.
The problems we are confronting are all related to each other. The laissez-faire attitude towards the question of technology being welcomed as progress has to stop. There is a need to really look at patriarchy, the intentional destruction of the world including us humans. The vaccines against COVID-19 intending to turn us into genetically modified zombies with implanted chips and nanobots, are in the process of application right now. They are intended to lead us towards ‘transhumanism’, the end of mothers and of humanity.
This is my Call!
Innsbruck, October 2020
Bionote:
Dr. Claudia von Werlhof is Prof. Emerita of Political Science and Women’s Studies at the University of Innsbruck in Austria. She is the author of many books and has worked hard to make Rosalie Bertell’s important book Planet Earth: The Latest Weapon of War on Geoengineering available in German, Spanish, Italian, French and English again. Claudia was the founder of the Planetary Movement for Mother Earth (PMME) in 2010.
References:
Bertell, Rosalie. 1985. No Immediate Danger: Prognosis for a Radioactive Earth. London: The Women’s Press
_____ 2011, 2013, 2016, 20^18, 2020: Kriegswaffe Planet Erde, 5 editions, Gelnhausen, J. K. Fischer Verlag
_____2020. Planet Earth: The Latest Weapon of War. Enhanced edition, Dublin: Talma Studios International.
Forschungsinstitut für Patriarchatskritik und alternative Zivilisationen. < www.fipaz.at >
Planetare Bewegung für Mutter Erde.
von Werlhof, Claudia. 2011. The Failure of Modern Civilization and the Struggle for a ‘Deep’ Alternative. On ‘Critical Theory of Patriarchy’ as a New Paradigm. Frankfurt/New York, Peter Lang.
_______ 2011: Die Verkehrung. Das Projekt des Patriarchats und das Gender-Dilemma, Wien, Promedia
_______ 2012: Der unerkannte Kern der Krise. Die Moderne als Er-Schöpfung der Welt, Uhlstädt-Kirchhasel, Arun
_______ 2015: Madre Tierra o Muerte. Reflexiones para una Teoría Crítica del Patriarcado, Oaxaca, Cooperativa El Rebozo, México
_______ 2014: Nell´ Etá del Boomerang. Contributi alla Teoria critica del patriarcato, Milano, Unicopli
_______ 2021: Väter des Nichts. Zum Wahn einer Neuschöpfung der Welt, 2 Bde, Höhr-Grenzhausen, zeitgeist, forthcoming.
_______(Ed.). 2021. Global Warning! Geoengineering is Wrecking our Planet. Dublin: Talma Studios International, forthcoming.
About the Book:
What was it like to participate in the Women’s Liberation Movement? What made millions of women step forward from the 1960s onwards and join it in different ways? Many of the 56 women in this book were there. They describe how they have contributed in multitudinous ways across politics, the arts, health, education, environmentalism, economics and science and created wonderfully rebellious activism. And how they continue this activism today with determined grittiness. Here are women – all over 70 years of age – still railing against the patriarchal systemic oppression of women, still fighting back. “Don’t Call Me Sweetie,” “Never Waste a Good Crisis” and “Still Here, Still Clear and Still Lesbian” is some of what they want us to know.
The contributors to Not Dead Yet have created new analyses with new language and new kinds of organisations always aware of the ways in which the system is stacked against us, particularly against radical feminists. But we persist. We share the revolutionary zest we have carried with us over many decades. There is history, there is subversion and there are many extraordinary acts of courage. The language is full of irony and wit – as well as deadly serious.
The Women’s Liberation Movement has had a profound effect on the lives of millions of women and in turn those women have changed our world. But the struggle continues. May these riveting tales by the foremothers of the movement inspire young women readers. #NotDeadYet
6 JULY 2021 | ISBN 9781925950328 | Paperback | 233 x 150 mm | 464 pages