Reykjavík Grapevine - 08.11.2019, Blaðsíða 30

30The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 20— 2019Culture
On a chilly Wednesday evening,
I stand at the foot of Ingibjörg
H. Bjarnason’s statue in front of
Al!ingi, shivering in unison with
six strangers as the wind picks up.
We cast knowing smiles at each
other, fumbling with our hats in
anticipation of the upcoming tour.
It’s then that Tinna Eik Rakelardót-
tir begins to speak, and we soon
forget about the chill. The young
woman designed and now hosts the
Reykjavík Feminist Walking Tour,
in which we are eager participants.
Tinna’s academic background is in
anthropology and business, but her
passion for feminism runs much
deeper than what she learned
throughout her studies.
The president next door
“I grew up with a single mum—a
family constellation that is rath-
er common in Iceland,” Tinna
explains. Vigdís Finnbogadóttir,
the world’s first female president,
lived next door, and was an early
role model for the academic. At
this, the small crowd nods, visibly
impressed.
“In fact,” Tinna continues, a
smile forming on her lips. “After
Vigdís’ tenure was over and men
were running to become her suc-
cessor, I was quite confused.” Be-
ing just a kid, she couldn’t help but
inquire: “Why are men applying for
this? I thought it is a woman’s job?”
Blood feuds
The tour is permeated with such
anecdotes, which crack up the au-
dience and subsequently lighten
the mood. They are much needed
in light of the heavy topics Tinna
touches on as we meander towards
Hotel Borg, where many sexual
assaults took place by American
soldiers, who were
stationed there dur-
ing the Second World
War. The stories of
the girls who became
subject to this abuse
were largely swept
under the rug and
never revisited.
Unfortunately, as
Tinna emphasises,
the lack of documen-
tation of female concerns was the
rule throughout Icelandic histo-
ry, rather than the exception. “We
don’t have many records of the
women who came here with the
first group of settlers, other than
their names,” Tinna sighs. “We
know so much about Ingólfur Ar-
narson but nothing about his wife.
Wouldn't it be great to hear her ac-
count on the emigration?”
She gives the group a moment to
ponder on what Hallveig Fró"adót-
tir might have thought about hav-
ing to leave her home in Norway,
which she was forced to do just
because her dumbass husband got
involved in a blood feud.
Moving forward
As the sun begins to set and our
cold feet require us to move, Tinna
walks us past the town hall and cir-
cles Tjörnin, stopping sporadically
with more interesting stories. We
then approach Kvennaskólinn—
our final stop—Tinna begins to
contemplate the contemporary
problems concerning feminism in
Iceland today.
“Internationally, we might be
at the forefront of equal rights, but
we’re certainly not in a position to
rest. There are many pressing is-
sues that we’ll have to address as a
country that wants to be an advo-
cate for celebrating diversity in all
its facets,” she explains.
And Tinna is right; 21st-centu-
ry feminism should not just sup-
port white upper-class people who
were born female. It
should have a much
more inclusive ap-
proach that equally
addresses the con-
cerns of immigrant
women, trans wom-
en, and those that
live on a very low
income.
When the tour con-
cludes, I ’m tr uly
sad to leave. Tinna’s insights and
stories have opened my eyes to the
unheard tales of Icelandic women,
most of which, are, unfortunately,
lost forever. In the future, it seems
all we can do is listen to each oth-
er and write our own narratives.
Potentially, then our stories will
never go ignored again.

Givin! The Women
Of Icelandic
History A Voice
TThe Reykjavík Feminist Walkin! Tour tells the
unheard stories of Icelandic women
Words: Lea Müller Photo: Lea Müller
Ingibjörg H. Bjarnason, the first woman elected to Iceland's Parliament
“We know so
much about
Ingólfur Arnar-
son but almost
nothing about
his wife.”