The underground movements always act with extreme caution and anonymity, and it won’t be long before we know by name who we have to thank for such radical moves. But it is important to realise that among the underground and partisan movements there are often women and girls, although the classic image of the “partisan” in many people’s minds is a masculine one.
Women partisans have a rich history and tradition: for example, during the Second World War some 28,500 women (and these are just the ones who are known) were involved in partisan work. Women were not only liaison officers, reconnaissance officers, cooks and nurses, they also participated in mine clearance, and in blowing up bridges and Nazi trains.
Today’s partisan movement is also fighting against fascism, but now the fascist regime is our own, carrying genocide and death to the people of Ukraine. All people involved in the partisan war against Russian fascism are putting themselves in mortal danger and will be recognised as heroes and heroines of these years in the future.
“Women partisans, along with men, endure all the hardships of a marching battle life. The women are perfect scouts, risking their lives to get valuable information from behind the fascists’ lines,” (Krasniy Krym newspaper of June 27, 1942).
Women partisans, we know that you still exist today! And along with the growth of the partisan anti-war movement, there will only be more of you.
There are more guerrilla forms available: you can now be a cyber partisan, get involved in hacking initiatives and make the regime’s crimes visible. And if you work for a government agency, you can also be a kind of spy: extracting information and cautiously leaking it to independent journalists.