Showing papers in "Womens Studies International Forum in 2013"
TL;DR: In this paper, a review of the "politics of the intimate" in the Turkish context is presented, focusing on regulations and policy debates in the areas of sexuality, reproduction and family and partnership in the 2000s.
Abstract: Synopsis This paper aims to review the ‘politics of the intimate’ in the Turkish context. By looking at regulations and policy debates in the areas of sexuality, reproduction and family and partnership in the 2000s, it critically analyzes the scope and content of state policies, as well as the policy debates in these areas, from a gender and gender equality perspective. This analysis further emphasizes the interaction between neo-liberalism and neo-conservatism, two political rationalities that have come to play important roles in the shaping or regulation of public and private domains, and the relations within these domains, in the last decade in Turkey. This paper will suggest that given the intermesh of neoliberal and neoconservative rationalities, the notion of gender equality loses its significance, leaving disadvantaged groups open to the detrimental effects of dominant power relations.
166 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine the narratives of three professional transnational Muslim women of Turkish, Pakistani and Indian heritage living and working in Britain, developing a post colonial black feminist framework of embodied intersectionality, and explore ways in which the regulatory discursive power to name the "Muslim woman" in the "West" as either dangerous or oppressed is lived out on and within the body.
Abstract: The paper examines the narratives of three professional transnational Muslim women of Turkish, Pakistani and Indian heritage living and working in Britain. Developing a post colonial black feminist framework of embodied intersectionality, the analysis explores ways in which the regulatory discursive power to ‘name’ the ‘Muslim woman’ in the ‘West’ as either dangerous or oppressed is lived out on and within the body. Embodied practices such as choosing to wear the hijab, which one woman described as a ‘second skin’, allows an insight into the ways in which the women draw on their subjecthood and inner sense of self to negotiate the affective ‘postcolonial disjunctures’ of racism and Islamophobia which framed their everyday lives. Embodied intersectionality as a feminist critical theory of race and racism shows how gendered and raced representation is powerfully written on and experienced within the body, and how Muslim women's agency challenges and transforms hegemonic discourses of race, gender and religion in transnational diasporic spaces.
147 citations
TL;DR: The women-environment linkages remain seductive and influential, and women's identities are projected as fixed, centred, and uniform, and the discourse of climate change vulnerability has proven to be a strategic entry point for feminist advocacy.
Abstract: Synopsis Since the 1980s, the discourse that women are intrinsically closer to nature, are hardest hit by environmental degradation, and have special knowledge of natural resource systems has influenced development policy circles and intervention programmes globally Despite criticism being levelled time and again at the discourse's potential risk of passing on the burden of environmental care onto women while letting men off the hook, the argument still holds strong sway in current climate change debates Women are once again being singled out as climate victims and ‘powerful agents of change, as they are seen to lead early warning systems and identify water supplies that have saved climate change-affected communities’ (GenderCC, 2008: 1) The paper explores why and how women–environment linkages remain seductive and influential, and forwards three arguments for this: first, for gender to muster entry into climate politics, women's identities are projected as fixed, centred, and uniform — and tied to nature; second, the discourse of climate change vulnerability has proven to be a strategic entry point for feminist advocacy; and finally, inertia associated with past environmental projects has reinstated the women–environment discourse in contemporary climate change discussions and possibly, future interventions
130 citations
TL;DR: The Mumsnet discussion forum is characterised by its difference to other mothering websites in its language use, its celebration of confrontational, opinionated and well-informed debate, its tolerance of aggression and swearing and its focus on entertainment rather than support as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: This paper investigates the motivations and online behaviour of the users of Mumsnet, a UK online parenting community. The Mumsnet discussion forum is characterised by its difference to other mothering websites in its language use, its celebration of confrontational, opinionated and well-informed debate, its tolerance of aggression and swearing and its focus on entertainment rather than support. Many of these attributes have previously been seen as male online behaviour, but it is argued that new forms of femininities are emerging and a clear-cut binary divide between male and female online behaviour can no longer be applied.
95 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors compare two divergent cases: Botswana, a stable multiparty democracy in southern Africa and Rwanda, an increasingly authoritarian single party dominant state in east Africa.
Abstract: Synopsis The ‘fast track’ approach for increasing women's representation in politics through the adoption of electoral gender quotas has replaced the ‘incremental approach’ (waiting for cultural, political and socioeconomic developments over time) in recent years. Scholars have disagreed whether increasing women's representation in sub-Saharan Africa where legislatures are weak and executives are strong is meaningless or may even undermine democracy; or increasing women's representation results in significant substantive or symbolic representation effects. This article compares two divergent cases: Botswana, a stable multiparty democracy in southern Africa and Rwanda, an increasingly authoritarian single party dominant state in east Africa. In Botswana, gender quota campaigns have raised awareness but have been unsuccessful in achieving quotas, and women's parliamentary representation is low and continues to fall. In Rwanda, a constitutional gender quota, including reserved seats combined with voluntary party quotas for women have resulted in a majority female lower house of parliament—the only such parliament in the world. These cases suggest that a democratic state is not necessarily more likely to adopt gender quotas or have more women in parliament than a less democratic one and that there are other factors that are more important in determining both. Moreover, in single party dominant systems with limited democracy, like Rwanda, elected women are able to represent women's interests, and campaigns to adopt quotas, even when unsuccessful as in democratic Botswana, can contribute to substantive and symbolic representation effects even with only limited descriptive representation. Thus, the conditions under which and the ways in which women's interests are represented must be understood broadly.
93 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the role of conservatism in women's labor force participation decision was investigated and three indices that might influence women's participation decision were identified: religion, social norms, and conservatism.
Abstract: Synopsis The aim of this paper is to investigate the role of conservatism in shaping women's labor force participation decision. Turkey is a particularly important case as, unlike in many other countries, female labor force participation (FLFP) has shown a decreasing trend over the last 50 years. In addition to the main determinants found in previous literature, this paper adds a new variable that influences FLFP in Turkey: conservatism and the role of social norms. Three indices that might influence FLFP are identified: religion, social norms, and conservatism. The results are in accordance with the previous literature, which reveals that urbanization, and education levels play an important role in FLFP. An additional important innovation of this paper is the identification of the impact of social norms and religion on rural and urban areas. While such factors have a negative effect on female employment in urban areas, no significant effect is seen in rural areas.
80 citations
TL;DR: The authors reviewed the debate on intersectionality as the dominant approach in gender studies, with an emphasis on the politics of representation, and provided an overview of this interdisciplinary debate, culminating in an affirmative answer to the question: should we move from intersectionality to interference?
Abstract: This article reviews the debate on ‘intersectionality’ as the dominant approach in gender studies, with an emphasis on the politics of representation. The debate on intersectionality officially began in the late 1980s, though the approach can be traced back to the institutionalization of women's studies in the 1970s and the feminist movement of the 1960s. Black and lesbian feminists have long advocated hyphenated identities to be the backbone of feminist thought. But in recent years, intersectionality has sustained criticism from numerous angles within gender studies, ranging from feminist philosophy to applied political research. This article will use the theorization of ‘interference’ as a searchlight to produce an overview of this interdisciplinary debate, culminating in our affirmative answer to the question: should we move from intersectionality to interference? Our answer is based on onto-epistemological reflections, i.e., reflections in which being and knowing are always already entangled.
61 citations
TL;DR: The authors explored how bisexual women manage their bodies and appearance in relation to their bisexuality and found that despite their lack of access to a distinct visual identity, the women negotiated ways in which to incorporate their bisexual identity into their dress and appearance, and considered their identity an important aspect of their identity, which they would like to be recognised and acknowledged.
Abstract: A number of feminist scholars have argued that dress and appearance can be used to critique the dominant culture and explore alternative subjectivities. Research on non-heterosexual visual identities has explored the role that appearance and clothing practices can play in the construction of individual identities and collective communities. However, bisexual women are largely invisible in these discussions. The minimal existing research suggests that bisexual women are unable to communicate their sexuality through their clothing and appearance. This study explored how bisexual women manage their bodies and appearance in relation to their bisexuality. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 20 self-identified bisexual women and the data were analysed using thematic analysis. The participants reported particular visual aesthetics associated with an embodied lesbian identity; however, they reported no visual image of bisexual women. Nonetheless, despite their lack of access to a distinct visual identity, the women negotiated ways in which to incorporate their bisexual identity into their dress and appearance, and considered their bisexuality an important aspect of their identity, which they would like to be recognised and acknowledged.
60 citations
TL;DR: This paper examined changing cultural representations of motherhood and children's needs in articles on child care and mothers' employment in Canada's top parenting magazine, and found that although women' employment is now more taken-for-granted than in the 1980s, there is less discursive space for women to lay claim to good motherhood while devoting themselves to careers.
Abstract: Synopsis Drawing on previous feminist and poststructuralist work in the areas of motherhood, childhood, and risk, this study examines changing cultural representations of motherhood and children's needs in articles on child care and mothers' employment in Canada's top parenting magazine. A comparative thematic analysis of articles on child care and mother's employment from two distinct time periods (1984–1989 and 2007–2010) was completed. Findings suggest that although mothers' employment is now more taken-for-granted than in the 1980s, there is less discursive space for women to lay claim to good motherhood while devoting themselves to careers. This occurred as discourses of intensive, child-centered mothering, neoliberal self-responsibility, and risk converged to position children as more needy, vulnerable and dependent, and mothers' employment as more opposed to child well-being. The implications of this include decreased legitimacy for mothers' own needs and desires, and for gender equity claims regarding women's employment and child care.
58 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors studied the role of gender quotas in the election of women in the Moroccan parliament. But they did not examine the effect of these quotas on women's equal participation and representation.
Abstract: Synopsis This article surveys the adoption and implementation of gender quota provisions in the three Moroccan parliamentary elections, 2002, 2007 and 2011, following the first adoption of gender quotas. Despite being effective in bringing a substantial number of women into the parliament, the question should be asked, can gender quotas, once introduced, lead to more sustainable political representation for women? By introducing the concept of sustainable representation, defined as a durable, substantial political representation of women, this article points to the importance of studying how gender quotas may or may not alter some of the barriers, which prevents women's equal participation and representation. This study of the nomination and election of women through three subsequent elections in Morocco since the adoption of gender quotas, traces the evolution of the reserved seat system from a controversial and fragile system set by an ‘honorary agreement’ to an expanded and finally legalized system. The analysis suggests that the political uprising in the neighboring countries during 2010–11 created a political transitional atmosphere for the reform of the Moroccan constitution, and provided an opportunity for institutionalizing the principle of gender equality in the 2011 constitution. In exploring the link between the reserved seat system and having women elected in the general district seats in Moroccan elections, the article scrutinizes the widespread supposition in the quota literature that quotas in the form of reserved seats tend to block the nomination of women to constituency seats, thus constituting a kind of glass ceiling.
57 citations
TL;DR: In this first-time study, the travel women undertake to access abortion services at freestanding clinics across Canada was systematically tracked, mapped, and analyzed using questionnaire-based data.
Abstract: Synopsis Access to abortion services is uneven throughout Canada. As a result, women cross provincial and territorial borders to garner access to abortion services. In this first-time study, the travel women undertake to access abortion services at freestanding clinics across the country was systematically tracked, mapped, and analyzed using questionnaire-based data. A total of 1186 women from 17 freestanding abortion clinics provided information about their journeys. The mapped data reflect the acknowledged importance of the “spatial turn” in the health sciences and provide a graphic illustration of spatial disparities in abortion access in Canada, namely: 1) the paucity of services outside urban centers; 2) the existence of substantial access gaps, particularly for women living in Atlantic, Northern and coastal communities; 3) the burdensome costs of travel and, in some cases, the costs of the abortion procedure itself, especially for younger women who travel the farthest; 4) the unique challenges First Nations and Metis women face in accessing abortion services.
TL;DR: The literature finds little evidence that increased women's representation has had significant effects on policy outcomes as mentioned in this paper, but several pro-women laws were passed in the 2006-2011 multiparty period.
Abstract: Synopsis Since the 1990s there has been an unprecedented rise in the number of women in parliaments in sub-Saharan Africa. However, the literature finds little evidence that increased women's representation has had significant effects on policy outcomes. Uganda has been a pioneer in increasing the number of women legislators. Legislative outcomes were poor from 1996 to 2006, but several pro-women laws were passed in the 2006–2011 multiparty period. Legislative developments since the reintroduction of multiparty politics in Uganda suggest that women have made use of restricted political space to advance their concerns. The new multiparty dispensation, however, does not seem to have been a significant factor. While the increased number of women in Parliament has contributed to pro-women policies, other important factors include the role of the women's caucus in Parliament, the support of male legislators, and relationships between female legislators and actors in civil society and the aid community.
TL;DR: This paper analyzed how understandings of "gender equality" inform distinct approaches to immigrant integration, and showed how the idea of gender equality can sometimes be used to include Muslim communities in the larger population, by generating policy responses that are more likely to position immigrants as full members of society.
Abstract: Synopsis The past decade has seen a surge in media and policy debates on honor-based violence, honor killing, and forced marriage in the Netherlands, Germany, and Britain. Drawing on political debates and policy responses to these forms of violence, we analyze how understandings of “gender equality” inform distinct approaches to immigrant integration. The Dutch case shows how the idea of gender equality can sometimes be used to include Muslim communities in the larger population, by generating policy responses that are more likely to position immigrants as full members of society. Alternatively, as the German case most clearly illustrates, the idea of gender equality can inform the stigmatization of Muslim communities and lead to exclusionary immigration policies. In Britain, gender equality discourses stand in tension with discourses on race, with some NGO's accusing government of failing women out of fear of being accused of racism.
TL;DR: The authors examined mainstream news media texts reporting sexual harassment in four industrialized countries and found that the media most frequently reports classic sexual harassment and emphasizes scandalous allegations and overtly sexualized conduct, and argued that these media representations limit opportunities to frame sexual harassment as dynamic, complex, and part of the practice of gendering.
Abstract: Synopsis This article examines mainstream news media texts reporting sexual harassment in four industrialized countries. The study first identifies the aspects of sexual harassment cases considered newsworthy by asking how the media texts characterize such cases. Second, the study illuminates the discourses evident in these texts, which are theorized as a mode by which understandings of workplace gender (in)equality shape, and are shaped by, individuals, organizations and the community. The analysis reveals that the media most frequently reports “classic” sexual harassment and emphasizes scandalous allegations and overtly sexualized conduct. The hegemony of a discourse of sexual harassment as an individualized problem of inappropriate employee behavior is also evident. By contrast, discourses presenting sexual harassment as a systemic issue, or as symptomatic of broader gender inequality, are less frequent. We argue that these media representations limit opportunities to frame sexual harassment as dynamic, complex, and part of the practice of gendering in and beyond organizational boundaries.
TL;DR: Wang et al. as mentioned in this paper studied the women who are consumers of cosmetic surgery in China and found that Chinese women's engagement with cosmetic surgery has been shaped by both the specificities of local contexts and the market imperatives of globalization.
Abstract: Synopsis This study looks into China's beauty economy through the women who are consumers of cosmetic surgery. My qualitative inquiry is based upon multiple and in-depth interviews with ten research informants who hail from various regions of mainland China. The findings reveal that Chinese women's engagement with cosmetic surgery has been shaped by both the specificities of local contexts and the market imperatives of globalization. Cosmetic surgery, according to the informants' personal accounts, has been reinvested with new, complex meanings: as a way of adapting to redefined gender norms, a gesture toward national modernity, a strategy of asserting self-control in personal lives, and an emblem of seeking upward class mobility. Ultimately, the Chinese case of cosmetic surgery consumption provides a tension-ridden microcosm of the beauty economy, where bodies, postsocialist gender politics, class aspiration, and consumerism intersect. Furthermore, the interview texts reveal the sophisticated ways beauty discourses have become entrenched in economic and transnational trends, which fuel the rapid growth of the local beauty industry.
TL;DR: The unintended gender consequences of EU development policy are caused not by the failure to gender mainstream, but by the way in which gender slips off the agenda once other policies intersect with development as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: This article argues that the unintended gender consequences of EU development policy are caused not (or not only) by the failure to gender mainstream, but by the way in which gender slips off the agenda once other policies intersect with development. Policy coherence for development (PCD) is an attempt to prevent policies in other areas having a negative impact on development, but although it claims that gender is a crosscutting issue, there is little evidence that gender features at the intersections between development and other related areas. Therefore, gender must be kept at the forefront of policy analysis if unintended gender consequences are to be avoided.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe a process of change in academic work that is characterised by the dominant discourses of competition, accounta cation, and accounta a cation.
Abstract: Across the globe, academic work is changing in order to meet the demands of the global knowledge economy. This process of change is characterised by the dominant discourses of competition, accounta ...
TL;DR: In this article, the status of women and the relationship between gender and social policy in the Turkish welfare system offer an ample example of the veiled Europeanisation of the welfare model in Turkey, in which women's issues are seen as a pendulum between EU legal regulations and the conservative discourse of the AKP government.
Abstract: Synopsis The foundation of the Turkish Republic and its modernisation project rested upon changing women's secondary role within society and providing them with equality through development and education. These reforms had an impact on changing the status of upper and middle class women, but its impacts remained limited for women in the lower societal segments. A further major change in regards to gender equality is the attempt of Turkey to be an EU member, which resulted in a major legislative shift through EU directives being inserted into national legislation. The result was a move towards the Europeanisation of its welfare regime in the last two decades. The current in progressive reforms has also given rise to a counter trend, namely the Islamist and conservative political party took office in 2002. The Justice and Development Party (AKP) actually supports the rights and public visibility of women with headscarves and championed women's roles as mothers and wives. Therefore, it based its discourse on those women's issues that were enmeshed with family and religious affairs. In this way, the status of women and the relationship between gender and social policy in the Turkish welfare system offer an ample example of the veiled Europeanisation of the welfare model in Turkey, in which women's issues are seen as a pendulum between EU legal regulations and the conservative discourse of the AKP government.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examine the turn to parenting, as constituted by the emergence of parenting as a way of conceiving of the role of parent and the putting in place of a set of services for parental instruction and education.
Abstract: Synopsis Using developments in England as the baseline case study, this article critically examines the ‘turn to parenting’, as constituted by the emergence of parenting as a way of conceiving of the role of parent and the putting in place of a set of services for parental instruction and education The view of parent generalised by these developments is akin to the idea of ‘parenter’ — a genderless someone who puts into practice a set of instrumental behaviours in relation to child-rearing that are beyond gender specificity or social setting When the measures are examined they are shown to be not gender neutral but gender blind I suggest that gender blindness is traceable to some of the philosophical influences behind the interventions It also fits with the instrumental views inherent in policy today, in relation not only to children's development but also the roles of women and men in contemporary economy and society There is also the fact that a key intent of some of the provisions is to exercise control over the parenting-related behaviours of the poorer sections of the population and women are potentially the best means of achieving this
TL;DR: In this article, the author made a study of the feminist and anti-nationalist thinking and relationships among the doctors, therapists and other staff of Medica Women's Therapy Centre in central Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Abstract: During the nationalist wars that destroyed Yugoslavia, a women's organization in central Bosnia-Herzegovina was set up to respond to the needs of women raped and traumatized in the fighting. In 1995, as the war ended, the author made a study of the feminist and anti-nationalist thinking and relationships among the doctors, therapists and other staff of Medica Women's Therapy Centre. In 2012 she returned to Bosnia to reinterview women and track developments in this post-conflict period. Medica now supports survivors of domestic violence, on the one hand working in a close partnership with local government services and on the other lobbying the state for improved legislation and provision. In a political system riven by nationalism, women report a retrogression in gender relations and high levels of violence against women. A recent split in Medica signals divergences in feminism and aspirations to a more radical and holistic movement.
TL;DR: In this article, a phenomenological study explores the meaning of being single and presents a firsthand view of how women feel about being a never-married single female in contemporary China, finding that women live in a culture of traditional social prejudice against singlehood, and that traditional family and societal values in general place pressure on single females to marry and have a child.
Abstract: Synopsis Although female singlehood has become a lifestyle in western countries, never married and being over 30 is still viewed as “special” in contemporary China. Chinese single females live in a culture of traditional social prejudice against singlehood. Traditional family and societal values in general place pressure on single females to marry and have a child. This phenomenological study explores the meaning of being single and presents a firsthand view of how such women feel. Ten never-married single females over 30 years of age took part in one-on-one telephone interviews. Constant comparison data analysis revealed three major themes in their lived experiences of being single: (1) awareness of the advantages and disadvantages of singlehood; (2) ambiguous attitudes towards marriage; and (3) adjustments in life needed to make living as singles worthwhile.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors identify incidents researchers are likely to encounter in this work, examine how they handled them, and use their experiences to develop a continuum of complicity that can be utilized by researchers to evaluate their decision-making processes relevant to research subjects' (and their own) exercise of power over marginalized others.
Abstract: Synopsis “Studying up” has a long tradition in the social sciences, especially in critical scholarship. Critical methodologies, however, do not fit well with studying up. Responding to a history of disadvantaged groups' exploitation by scholars, critical researchers – especially feminists – developed alternative methodologies involving shared authorship, honest and open exchange, or “giving voice” to those you study. None of these practices are appropriate when studying the powerful, leaving critical scholars who do this work in a challenging position. We use our ethnographic studies of a jail and an anti-crime organization to explore this challenge. We identify incidents researchers are likely to encounter in this work, examine how we handled them, and use our experiences to develop a continuum of complicity that can be utilized by researchers to evaluate their decision-making processes relevant to research subjects' (and their own) exercise of power over marginalized others. The continuum is a tool that can be utilized to address the professional strain and identity crises that gaps in the methodological literature can produce for feminist, anti-racist, and social justice-oriented researchers who study power. It is also useful for mapping power as it unfolds in the field.
TL;DR: In this article, a special issue on Democratization and Gender Quotas in Africa is presented, which explores the long-term effects of processes of gendering political institutions through quota adoption.
Abstract: Synopsis The authors in this special issue on Democratization and Gender Quotas in Africa are in various ways exploring the long-term effects of processes of gendering political institutions through quota adoption. The collection of articles investigate how gender quota institutions affect the descriptive, substantive, and to some extent, symbolic representation of women across different regimes in Africa. While gender quotas are found in all types of regimes, the concepts used for analyzing women’s quotas are intrinsically embedded in the democracy discourse. The aim of this special issue is to bring together a set of cross-national authors and cases to explore the use of quotas as a phenomenon in itself and not necessarily as an attribute of democracy. The articles cover different regime types and various kinds of quotas, but a common denominator is that they hold multiparty elections on a regular basis. All contributions are engaged with investigating the positive and negative dynamics of quotas, implementation processes, and sustainable effects in African legislatures. One key concern addressed is the vulnerability of women’s descriptive and substantive representation in post-transitional regimes and added to that to which extent such representation is sustainable in non-democratic settings. A democratic dispensation in many ways could be considered critical for the sustainability of women’s political representation. In short, if pro-women gains are associated with hegemonic rulers, how sustainable are they in the face of a change in power?
TL;DR: In this article, the authors reveal the circumstances as to how women without men live in Turkey and show the ways in which material conditions, and norms and values of the society make life difficult to cope with for this group of women.
Abstract: Esping-Andersen's “welfare regime” approach has been criticized on different accounts. Most prominently, Orloff emphasizes its ignorance of the relationship between gender-based inequalities and social policies. Her contribution in gendering the welfare regimes is extremely valid in understanding the case of Turkey. Only a very limited number of women who are formally employed are entitled to take part in the social security system as subjects (the actively insured) in Turkey. Thus, the majority of women are either totally excluded or included in the system by means of their husbands or fathers (a male member of their family), primarily as dependants of men reflecting the gender roles attributed to men and women within the society. In this setting, those women who are not under the protection of any form of social security scheme face increased vulnerability when divorced, deserted or widowed. We argue that women without men often go unnoticed by or frankly invisible from the domain of social policies in general since existing set of policies and their everyday practices are far from providing support to this group of women. Our main aim in this paper is to disclose the circumstances as to how women without men live in Turkey. We show the ways in which material conditions, and norms and values of the society make life difficult to cope with for this group of women. By doing so, we intend to demonstrate not only the discriminatory and gender biased nature of the welfare regime in Turkey, but also, and maybe more importantly, the gendered construction of norms and attitudes towards women without men in the society.
TL;DR: In this paper, a comparative analysis of two recent cases in Belgium, the burka ban and the law on quotas for women on company boards, is presented, where the authors propose inclusiveness and responsiveness of the representation process as criteria to judge the quality of women's substantive representation.
Abstract: Synopsis Recognizing diversity among women and their intersectional identities leads us away from evaluating the substantive representation of women with singular views of what is ‘feminist’ and ‘in the interests of women’. Illustrated through the comparative analysis of two recent cases in Belgium – the burka ban and the law on quotas for women on company boards – this article proposes inclusiveness and responsiveness of the representation process as criteria to judge the quality of women's substantive representation. The discussion over the interests of women in the quotas debate – which was responsive to a broader range of women who would hence feel represented – made it the better process of representation.
TL;DR: A qualitative analysis of the arguments of the members of the parliament following Prime Minister Erdogan's statement on abortion is presented in this article, revealing the frameworks within which the political debates are shaped when women's bodies, sexualities and reproductive capacities are at stake.
Abstract: Synopsis This paper discusses the gendered nature of reproductive citizenship in contemporary Turkey through reading the abortion chronicles and exposes the utilization of women's bodies and subjection of women to demographic state policies To this end, we focus on recent abortion debates originating from Prime Minister Erdogan's statement on May 25, 2012 that suggested that “every abortion is a murder” Our paper is a qualitative analysis of the arguments of the members of the parliament following PM's statement on abortion We documented and contextualized the recurrent themes; (1) abortion as a rhetorical tool, (2) trivialization of abortion, (3) medicalization of abortion, (4) abortion in the cases of rape, (5) abortion as an economic imperative As a result, we unravel the gendered discursive limits of “pro-abortion” arguments in Turkey and reveal the frameworks within which the political debates are shaped when women's bodies, sexualities and reproductive capacities are at stake
TL;DR: In this article, a cultural analysis of the label of selectiveness as it relates to single women is provided, revealing that during the transition from normative to late singlehood, single women lose their entitlement to maintain the selective stance.
Abstract: Synopsis The aim of this study is to provide a cultural analysis of the label of selectiveness as it relates to single women. The discursive expansion of the category of selectiveness as well as the “remedies” that have been set up to “cure” single women of their selective traits—as revealed through a textual analysis of web columns written by and about single women—proves to be a fascinating social terrain for exploring the possibilities and limitations of women's quest for self-fulfillment. The notion of selectiveness provides popular imagery with pervasive discursive resources for objectification and normalization. Labeling single women as overly selective acts as a classificatory mechanism with clear guidelines for discerning normative from excessive subjectivity. Furthermore, in many ways selectiveness is configured as a short-lived privilege dependent on one's age and gender. Indeed, the textual analysis reveals that during the transition from normative to late singlehood, single women lose their entitlement to maintain the selective stance. In that respect, this work joins the scholarly literature that addresses current regimes of feminine subjectivity as well as the contradictory role demands in which women today are required to carefully manage their own biographies.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors observed that barriers to the disclosure and reporting of sexual assault reside within families and drew on qualitative survey data, as well as interviews with adult victims of childhood sexual assault, to show how women are impeded by family members when attempting to disclose or report sexual assault.
Abstract: Synopsis In this article, we observe that barriers to the disclosure and reporting of sexual assault reside within families. We draw on qualitative survey data, as well as interviews with adult victims of childhood sexual assault, to show how women are impeded by family members when attempting to disclose or report sexual assault. Taylor and Putt (2007) identified three ‘family constraints on [sexual violence] reporting’ for women from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds in Australia. These were: 1) Family denial that sexual violence exists, 2) Reluctance to report a partner perpetrator, and 3) Fear of being ostracised for bringing shame upon the family (p. 4). We examine whether similar barriers to reporting exist for adult female survivors of childhood sexual assault who are from non-CALD backgrounds. On the basis of our findings, we urge greater police and public recognition of, and sensitivity to barriers extant within non-CALD families that contribute to the under-reporting of sexual assault by women in Australia.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explored the dynamics of migration, working conditions and in/formalization in the domestic service sector in Sweden based on an interview study conducted in Stockholm 2009/2010.
Abstract: This article explores the dynamics of migration, working conditions and in/formalization in the domestic service sector in Sweden. Based on an interview study conducted in Stockholm 2009/2010, the ...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explore the manifold and changing links that official Pakistani state discourses forged between women and work from the 1940s to the late 2000s, and argue that Pakistani women's non-domestic work has been conceptualised in three major ways: as a contribution to national development, as a danger to the nation, and as non-existent.
Abstract: Synopsis This paper aims to explore some of the manifold and changing links that official Pakistani state discourses forged between women and work from the 1940s to the late 2000s. The focus of the analysis is on discursive spaces that have been created for women engaged in non-domestic work. Starting from an interpretation of the existing academic literature, this paper argues that Pakistani women's non-domestic work has been conceptualised in three major ways: as a contribution to national development, as a danger to the nation, and as non-existent. The paper concludes that although some conceptualisations of work have been more powerful than others and, at specific historical junctures, have become part of concrete state policies, alternative conceptualisations have always existed alongside them. Disclosing the state's implication in the discursive construction of working women's identities might contribute to the destabilisation of hegemonic concepts of gendered divisions of labour in Pakistan.