The feminist movement Dolle Mina is the winner of the Joke Smit Oeuvre Prize 2025 and online feminist activist Nienke ’s Gravemade the winner of the Joke Smit Encouragement Prize 2025. The Joke Smit Prize is a biennial state award for a person or organisation committed to gender equality. State Secretary Koen Becking of Education, Culture and Science and responsible for emancipation presented the awards at the Stadsgehoorzaal in Leiden.
State secretary Koen Becking:
“Dolle Mina is still relevant in standing up for the position of women. Unfortunately, equal rights for women are still not a given. Admirable how Dolle Mina still manages to draw attention to women's safety, among other things, with striking actions. Nienke ’s Gravemade is the deserved winner of the incentive prize because of her humorous videos with feminist undertones. She managed to raise awareness after the murder of 17-year-old Lisa with her poem 1TP5Right on the night movingly putting women's right to safety at the centre.”
The jury on Dolle Mina
“Especially now, Dolle Mina's are very topical. They know how to reach an audience of all ages. The Dolle Minas, founded in 1969 to share discontent about the position of women, show that women's rights are still under pressure. The impact and relevance of Dolle Mina is truly enormous and valuable and therefore they deserve the Joke Smit Prize Oeuvre Prize,” the jury said.
On Saturday 30 August 2025, Dolle Mina called attention to women's safety while cycling in 15 cities. The Dolle Mina slogans: ‘Women's insecurity is not a women's problem, but a social problem,’ and ‘Together we demand back what has always been ours, the night, the street, the future’ brought topical issues to the attention.
The jury on Nienke ’s Gravemade
“As an actress, writer and online feminist activist, Nienke ’s Gravemade brings attention to toxic masculinity with humorous videos on Instagram. Taking the ‘Manosphere seriously and fighting it with humour. That works. She thinks. Hopes she does.’ What is very special is that she is aware of the impact she has and speaks out on important topics about feminism. She does so clearly and mostly with humour,” the jury said.
The jury of the Joke Smit Award is impressed by the way Nienke ’s Gravemade dedicates herself and why. With her moving poem 1TP5Right on the night she made a beautiful and clear statement that was shared massively. The jury would like to encourage Nienke ’s Gravemade to continue her fantastic commitment to feminism.
Joke Smit Prize
The winner of the oeuvre prize will receive an art object and €10,000. The winner of the incentive prize will receive €1,000. The Joke Smit Prize jury consists of Janneke Wittekoek (women's heart cardiologist), Belle Barbé (sex education educator) and Iven Cudogham (presenter, author). The prize is named after feminist Joke Smit (1933-1981), who played a leading role in women's emancipation in the Netherlands.
