An association for all farmers

Created: 05/20/2022, 13:00

By: Timo Aichele

Timo Aichele, Deputy Editor-in-Chief © Aichele

Peasant women are strong women.

Why shouldn't they also be able to lead a BBV local association?

Comment.

Dorfen

- "Local chairwoman - does the word even exist?" This is how Sabine Berger reacted to the question of how she now wants to be addressed in her new office.

Ms. Ortsvormann, Ortsobmännin or just Ortsobfrau - this search for titles is far more than an academic hobby for gender-moved quibblers.

Because agriculture has always been shaped by strong women - and will continue to do so.

Neither bulldog driving nor digging in the richly planted cottage garden are per se male or female activities.

The BBV does not have to rename itself to the Bavarian Farmers' Association.

And a division of tasks between kitchen and cowshed may not seem modern to outsiders, but it will always remain contemporary on farms - as long as this is done voluntarily (and the strong women farmers will not put up with anything else either).

In every farm, the large amount of agricultural work has to be spread over different shoulders and hands.

The self-confident town councilor Sabine Berger is certainly not an emergency person for the BBV local chairmanship.

However, there was no male opponent.

This shows that the farmers' association has the same problem as most clubs and organizations.

The willingness to get involved is dwindling.

Volunteering is much more than the self-administration of leisure activities.

Volunteering is an important pillar of our social life.

Nobody has to become a club boss, but the officials and other hard-working people are real enablers.

They offer other citizens not only connection and community, but also competent representation of their interests.

The BBV will therefore have no choice but to place voluntary work on a broader basis and also to specifically recruit women for the association's agricultural policy work.

Clarity about the title of a local chair would be far more than a symbolic step.

I think the local mayor doesn't sound bad at all.