Swiss Review 2/2018

20 Swiss Review / March 2018 / No.2 Society In 1979, you explained the “path to social- ism in Switzerland” in a book. This talked about “overthrowing capitalism and breaking the capitalist class’s power of control over the vast majority of the population”. That’s how we worded it at the time. We wanted to get rid of bourgeois so- ciety and private ownership of the means of production and strove to cre- ate a society of equals, socially and not just under the law. People on the left like yourself were accused of failing to critically come to terms with your past in an article published by “Weltwoche”to mark the 40 th anniver- sary of “1968” ten years ago. As I said, I’m pleased that the revolu- tion came to nothing. But I’malso glad that many of our goals have been achieved. There is nowgreater gender equality, the situation of foreignwork- ers in Switzerland has improved and everyone is covered by old-age pen- sion provision. What about capitalism? Some of our ideas are still relevant to- day. Just think about the power of the global banking systemwhich plunged the western world into crisis in 2008. Controlling this power democratically still represents an attractive proposi- tion for society today. You were a teacher and professor of education. What impact did 1968 have in schools? The first thing is that the education systemwasmademore accessible.We had 36 pupils in our class at the gram- mar school in Frauenfeld – only five of whom were girls. Today, there are more girls and children from the lower social strata in upper secondary education. Corporal punishment has also disappeared, but fortunately au- thority has not. Would you consider yourself a liberal today? Yes, I’d say so, a social liberal. Tradi- tional liberalism was one of the ene- mies in 1968 but it is the bedrock of a democratic society. This can be seen in Russia today. Democracy becomes au- thoritarian without liberalism. The 1968 generation grew up in the prosper- ous and growth-driven society of the post-war period. Then they declared war on this society and its values. Isn’t that a paradox? No, if anything it’s logical. Those who struggle to survive do not spendmost of their time pursuing alternative world views, as we did back then. And conversely, thosewho can enjoy a beer and a steak can still reflect on the fact that, say, the same level of prosperity does not exist in the ThirdWorld. Such a gulf can make people sensitive to is- sues of social justice. From 1980 onwards, your RML was called the Socialist Workers’ Party (SAP). It occasionally won seats on cantonal and communal authorities and also launched a federal initiative in favour of guaranteed vocational training, which was resound- ingly rejected in 1986. In 1987, the SAP ceased to exist and many of its members joined the Greens or SP. Yes, I was amember until the very end but didn’t join any other parties after- wards because I was focusingmore on my academic work. I still feel a sense of commitment to many of the issues we campaigned on. Which ones? Democratisation, especially in rela- tion to economic affairs, gender equal- ity and social security. DANIEL DI FALCO IS A JOURNALIST WITH “DER BUND”AND A HISTORIAN 1968 – more than turmoil and scandal? 1968? Historians today, when they refer to 1968, actually mean the events – including in Switzerland – that were not restricted to a single year. There were the riots at the Rolling Stones concert at the Hallen- stadion in Zurich in April 1967, the occupation of the teaching seminar in Locarno in March 1968, the battles on the streets of Zurich known as the “Globus riots” in June 1968, the large-scale women’s demonstration on the Bundesplatz (“March on Berne”) in March 1969 and Harald Szee- mann’s provocative exhibition “When Attitude Becomes Form” at the Kunsthalle Bern in March/April 1969. The 1968 movement revolted against traditional forms of authority and demanded self-determination, justice and solidarity. However, a wider development was also identifia- ble in the headline-grabbing protests – they were the climax of social upheaval that began in 1965 and went on for over a decade. This devel- opment was reflected in the rising number of divorces, university de- grees and women in employment. Prosperity, youth culture and mass media also created a dynamic that increasingly conflicted with the con- servative values which shaped the climate in Switzerland during the post-war era. A process of social modernisation was underway which broke fresh ground with the protests of 1968 and finally resulted in po- litical reform but also a broad liberalisation of social norms. The num- ber of accepted ways of life multiplied, from cohabitation to cultural consumption and hairstyles. Much of what we take for granted today had its roots in the 1968 movement. DDF The Globus riots in summer 1968 ended in battles on the streets of Zurich. Photo: Keystone