A discussion of global feminisms today plunges us into contention. In some contexts “feminism” is again (or still) a dirty word; in others, “global feminism” suggests the hegemony of Western values or a kind of moral imperialism. In this conference, we will examine the extent to which human-rights discourse can or should influence our approach to women’s rights. Is a universal system of values an effective tool in fighting the oppression of women, or is it more useful to consider the specificity of the ways gender is inflected by particular cultures? In other words, are there alternatives to the rights paradigm that would prove more constructive in engaging the issues faced by women around the world?
The conventional narrative of global feminism begins in Europe and the United States with the 20th century women’s and feminist movements, then traces their spread through various countries and cultures. This is a story of progress in which enlightened understandings of gender supercede oppressive structures. But such progress is undeniably uneven, and feminists who subscribe to this history face questions regarding this unevenness. What kind of cultural, economic, and political conditions promote, inhibit, or incite activism on behalf of women’s rights? How, when, and why do women’s movements emerge? On a practical level, what can women’s rights advocates do to encourage international gender equity?
Other versions of feminism challenge the effort to spread a homogenous version of women’s rights, focusing instead on cultural specificity. Western values, they argue, are not simply exportable to every culture. Imposing western-style gender equity can have unintended consequences for women in non-western cultures. New practices might undermine traditional spaces for women’s empowerment and efficacy. More fundamentally, this approach asks when and whether it is appropriate for scholars, activists, or politicians to intervene in other cultures. How can feminists promote women’s rights without overstepping important boundaries? What would a truly pluralistic system of global feminisms look like?
The ability of individual women to make choices is at stake in both of these narratives. In many cases women strongly prefer to follow traditional practices that women’s-rights advocates view as oppressive (female genital cutting being the most prominent example). While some feminists insist on respecting these preferences, others argue that a choice constrained by masculine structures of power is hardly a choice at all. For these advocates, women’s freedom and self-determination depend on the disruption of patriarchal social organizations—even if the women in question do not support it. Questions about rights, coercion, and agency are inextricable from any discussion of global feminisms.
Furthermore, recent events have demonstrated that global feminisms cannot be considered in isolation: they are always imbricated in the particularities of politics, on the one hand, and general questions of our humanness, on the other. The debate over the wearing of headscarves in France highlights the complicated intersection of gender, religion, and politics; the fervor over microlending programs inspires questions about the place of women in globalization and economic development; the framing of the Iraqi constitution forces debate on the meaning of these issues in a context of occupation and international diplomacy. Scholars of history, anthropology, literature, law and politics will join us in this seminar to engage the complexities of global feminisms in today’s world.
Speakers will include: Leora Auslander (History), Orit Bashkin (Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations), Jennifer Cole (Human Development), Leela Gandhi (English), Rochona Majumdar (South Asian Languages and Civilizations), and Amy Stanley (History).
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