Renate Augstein

(*1950) - Women's (places) in Bonn: Kennedyallee 105-107 - former Federal Ministry for Youth, Family and Health

Renate Augstein

Rights for the disenfranchised, that's what has driven me all my life.

Renate Augstein

Injustice often acquires a legal character simply because it occurs frequently.

Bertolt Brecht

Promotion of women, promotion of women's policy

There are women from Bonn who are still known far beyond the city limits and will be remembered by many women from the women's movement. Renate Augstein is one of them. For many years, she played a decisive role in shaping women's policy in the Federal Republic of Germany from Bonn, always representing the interests of women in clear and unambiguous terms and campaigning for all important issues in her day-to-day work as a ministerial official (from advisor to head of department). "Unwavering" is the word that first comes to mind about her. In the government before and after the move from Bonn to Berlin, she worked among many female ministers and state secretaries as a speechwriter, lecturer, editor of many books, author and patient and committed discussion partner and "collaborator", setting the course for us to have a broad-based women's policy today despite many setbacks and attacks.

Her most important issues such as the advancement of women, anti-discrimination law, rights against sexualized and domestic violence, the creation of a women's support system (from women's shelters to the nationwide help hotline), diversity of lifestyles, injustices in education and the social situation are now firmly anchored in the public consciousness. With her, the German women's movement had an unmistakable and important advocate within the government administration and German women's policy caught up with global international developments and struggles for women's rights. How did this come about? How rocky was the road to her later position?

Born in Cologne, Renate Augstein attended the Ursuline School there, then trained as a lawyer at the Cologne Higher Regional Court before studying law at the University of Cologne. In her memoirs, she describes her father "as weak within the family", but he was aware of his "legally secure role as head of the family" and liked to hide behind the law. He also "pointed out her lack of rights" to her daughter. Renate Augstein reacted with a reluctance to learn. This only changed when she came across understanding teachers in the upper school who familiarized her with the political issues of the time. For example, the pupils visited the Bundestag together and talked to a member of parliament about his everyday work. When the class read "The Physicists" by Friedrich Dürrenmatt, Renate Augstein was concerned with the question of the "responsibility of science and politics". In her A-level essay on these questions, she drafted "something like an ethics council, a committee in the Bundestag that would be responsible for monitoring the use of dangerous scientific achievements (such as the atom)".

The treasure chest

Good times - bad times

In 1981, she joined the then Federal Ministry for Youth, Family and Health as a highly motivated woman in terms of legal policy as a consultant in the "Pharmacy Law and Poisons" department, before moving to the new "Women's Policy" working group in 1981. In 1988, she became head of the policy unit "Women's Policy" and in 1990 head of the unit "Protection of Women from Violence". In 2000, she moved to Berlin and has worked there as head of the "Equality" department since 2012.

Today, her professional career reads like the "embodiment" of the rise of the women's movement in the implementation of legal policy demands. She drafted federal government bills on abortion, the criminalization of marital rape, the Protection against Violence Act and the nationwide "Violence against Women" helpline, the Prostitution Act and the General Equal Treatment Act, the Confidential Birth Act and a law on the equal participation of women and men in management positions in the private and public sectors (women's quota).

These were all issues that were new to the political public in post-war Germany and whose significance for democracy and gender equality first had to be worked out. The legislative objectives were never uncontroversial. A glance at the long list of female ministers for whom Renate Augstein worked from 1981 to 2015 gives an idea of this: Antje Huber, Anke Fuchs, Heiner Geißler, Rita Süssmuth, Ursula Lehr, Angela Merkel, Claudia Nolte, Christine Bergmann, Renate Schmidt, Ursula von der Leyen, Kristina Schröder, Manuela Schwesig. She experienced not only tough battles for women's political goals, but also women and men acting differently, self-centered, vain and inconsiderate people alongside supportive, understanding people across party lines.

Renate Augstein, who always found like-minded people inside and outside the government apparatus, loved her work very much. She wrote: "When working on laws, final documents and resolutions (...) an important prerequisite is to understand the different points of view and objectives and to cast them in a language that reflects everything. (...) But the wording for posters, advertisements and brochures was also in demand. Draft texts 'from the outside', from paid writers, were often unusable because they were not familiar with the sensitivities and pitfalls or did not set the priorities correctly in a statement." It was also important to find wording that did not offend or provoke contradiction, "and yet still covered what we wanted." Renate Augstein calls this art "diplomatic formulation", which was particularly important for many topics, e.g. the action plans on violence against women, gender mainstreaming and coordination with other government departments.

What is discrimination against women?

Section 1 of the 2006 General Equal Treatment Act (AGG) defines "discrimination on grounds of gender" alongside other forms of discrimination that are prohibited for women and men, such as discrimination based on ethnic origin, religion, ideology and age. It thus encompasses an almost immense range of forms of harassment, defamation and attacks on women. They range from common forms of behavior that are often considered "normal", such as derogatory everyday insults, being passed over for promotion, violations of guaranteed rights (e.g. pregnancy and parental leave) to rape and femicide.

What these attacks have in common is that they destroy women's self-confidence, their strengths and their recognition in the private and public sphere, thereby strengthening male defining power and defending traditional male role models. It is also intended to defame women's politics as such. The blame is often placed on women themselves, who do not behave in the way that men or society expect them to. As an editor of volumes published by Rowohlt-Verlag, Renate Augstein has not only promoted knowledge of the legal situation as basic knowledge, but has also always explained why this knowledge is so important. In 1996, as co-editor alongside Sabine Berghahn of a volume entitled "Rechtsratgeber Frauen im Beruf", she wrote about her motivation: the book was intended to "encourage women to assert their rights with self-confidence and to support other women in asserting their rights." The laws that have been won must also be filled with life and: "We hope that this book will enable and facilitate male readers to put themselves in the position of women." When everyday life is combined with legal policy, this is a great source of strength.

For other women in power, she has a wealth of good advice on how to avoid the typical pitfalls of everyday political life, e.g. "write memos, record meetings and consultations, write minutes of meetings and statements yourself". It was never easy for her to deal with the various groups and their often conflicting positions on important issues and to find and maintain her own women's political "compass". As examples, she cites the debate on the issue of reconciling work and family life with more traditional women's associations, the "Mothers' Manifesto", the resistance of the churches in sexual policy and the battles over child-raising allowance. She experienced strong resistance to the feminist concept of violence during a course at the police command academy in North Rhine-Westphalia and detailed criticism of the (West) German legal system from an East German visiting group of the FDGB (trade union federation of the GDR). She was always prepared to question her own position and correct it if necessary.

Important issues were often simply postponed - "not in this legislative period" - and things only moved when inter-party coalitions were formed, such as in the case of abortion under Section 218 of the German Criminal Code, which was permitted in the GDR. The "drilling of thick planks" required a lot of patience. She also had to convince the ministry itself. For example, employees were surprised that her ministry was already supporting women's shelters at a time when the problem of violence against women was still little recognized by the public.

Conflicts and diplomacy - The international stage and internal obstacle courses

International women's policy gained steadily in importance and Renate Augstein was actively involved from the first EU Council of Women's Affairs Ministers under German aegis - at the EU, the Council of Europe, the G7 and the UN.

In 1995, she prepared the "2nd and 3rd Report of the Federal Republic of Germany on the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women" and described - for the first time - the different realities of women's lives in East and West Germany. She was involved in the ratification of the CEDAW Convention (see article on UN Women in this volume) and flew to New York for the negotiations on a CEDAW additional protocol. It was particularly problematic for her that the Federal Ministry of the Interior (then led by the CDU) was strictly opposed to an additional protocol. During the vote, "I was in a quandary: what was I supposed to do if all countries voted in favor? Should I then stand up and put on record that Germany is against it? As the only country. Should I get 'diplomatic diarrhea' and stay away from the vote? But then the miracle happened: the text turned out not to be ready for the vote. The stones that fell from my heart must have been heard all the way to Germany."

Later, she had to answer questions from the CEDAW Commission on the status of the Convention's implementation in Germany - no easy task, which Renate Augstein liked to compare to a "third state examination". In her memoirs, she also talks about her stage fright during major appearances, stress and overwork as well as friction with superiors: "Working together" within the ministry or department could also be very stressful at times - "to the point of symptoms of illness. Fortunately, I didn't experience any outright bullying."

But she also knew the opposite, that she could sweep entire halls off their feet: "I was funny and convincing and didn't cling to the speech text. But then I got scared of myself: Is this demagoguery? It felt great to be carried along on a cloud like that, very seductive!"

She drew strength again and again from many personal encounters and celebrations such as carnival parties and "Häppchenalarm". "Harvest festivals" with her employees were important to her; it was important to recognize and celebrate what had been achieved and accomplished, even on a small scale, in order to maintain motivation for the long-distance tasks. When she became a manager herself, it was immensely important to her that her leadership behavior was as fair and respectful as possible.

Non-marital cohabitation and lesbian rights

Since the so-called '68 movement, it had become common, especially among young people, to form shared flats and non-marital partnerships. The legal position of lesbians was now also discussed more frequently in public. After decades of battles and countless court cases, the breakthrough was achieved with "marriage for all".

In this context, two essays by Renate Augstein in the 1990 "Rechtsratgeber Frauen" (see sources below) were groundbreaking. Her texts on the respective legal position for women and men who lived or wanted to live together in shared flats and/or with their romantic partners not only explained the respective legal difficulties and possibilities in language that was also convincing for laywomen, but were also intended to provide information on the legislation and case law of the time (unemployment benefit, tax laws, tenancy law and property issues). Her opening statement in the essay "Non-marital cohabitation" is full of understanding and calls for tolerance: "Today it seems almost normal: A woman and a man fall in love with each other, both move in together. Often both want to find out if they can get along in this way. Other couples, on the other hand, deliberately want an alternative to marriage or don't want to fall into a 'marriage trap' again. Of course, there are also partnerships in which one of the two would prefer to get married, but the other refuses."

In the following essay "Lesbian cohabitation", she pleads for contracts between the partners and also encourages women here. Lesbians often refrain from asserting their rights or prefer to conceal their lesbianism "and, if problems arise, prefer not to make a big deal of them. Under no circumstances, however, can the low number of proceedings be equated with a low number of legal problems. Although there are only a few studies on discrimination against lesbian women, the results are alarming (...). However, a common feature of many legal violations (e.g. in the case of termination of employment) is that they are officially justified differently. This makes them less contestable, the actual reasons are not discussed in the proceedings."

Since October 1, 2017, marriage has been permitted for homosexual couples in Germany, which is being celebrated as a great success by the gay and lesbian movement.

"I have always loved history"

Finish in Cornwall

Cornwall: Renate Augstein preparing the English breakfast

Cornwall: Preparing the English breakfast

After her retirement, Renate Augstein fulfilled a great wish: she opened a bed & breakfast house in Cornwall for friends and acquaintances. Once a month, interested parties receive a detailed newsletter about life and events in her new home, often illustrated with pictures from her life. The weather, cultural events, activities in the neighborhood and also personal experiences provide an exciting picture of the local landscape and its people. Every now and then she returns to Germany, for example with singer friends for whom she organizes a tour. In May 2022, she wrote:

"Dear friends, dear interested people,

The merry month of May is now over, but the weather was not often 'merry'. Too cool for the time of year, I would summarize, although there were also warm, sunny days. Mostly the weather was mixed: showers now and again, often fine in the evenings. But enough of the English Weathertalk...

One of the dominant themes here is rising energy prices, even though England boasts that only 5% of its gas comes from Russia. The radio is all about price rises, which are hitting many very hard. (...)

These financial hardships are also being felt at the current 'Cornwall Open Studios', which began last Saturday and continues until Sunday. Although visitors are swarming (school vacations plus two national holiday for the Crown Jubilee), the desire to buy is very limited. (...) The keyword is crown jubilee and I can report that everything is getting dressed up: the city, the stores, private houses - there is no shortage of bunting, flags and all kinds of devotional items, there are no limits to the joy of decorating and, as we all know, the English don't shy away from kitsch... and somehow the fun is contagious. There will be countless parties, both private and communal, invitations for cream tea, a barbecue in the garden or a street party. Let's see if the weather cooperates.

Our choir will be practising for their concert on Friday and the plan is for us all to dress up like the Queen's Garden Party and have tea after the rehearsal (it's still a secret what we'll be served for tea). A great opportunity to finally wear my fascinator! I will take photos...

My little garden is currently being embellished with an iron fence, just as it was originally. The current wooden fence is disintegrating more and more thanks to the salty and humid air and I'm looking forward to the durable new one.

On the musical front, I'm still practicing my harp, and I made my debut as MC ('Master of Ceremony') at the Folk Club. As I had chaired enough sessions in my life, I was not afraid of this task and obviously my sense of time management did not desert me. Everyone got their turn and we even finished on time. Lessons learned are lessons learned! I hope to see many of you again at the Baldrick's Plan concerts (in Germany), please spread the word and bring friends, I'm really looking forward to it! (....)

Best wishes from Cornwall, enjoy June, Renate"

Text: Barbara Degen