Feminisms And Women S Movements In Contemporary Europe

Feminisms and Women's Movements in Contemporary Europe, explores new developments in the theory and practice of European feminists. It assesses the significance of recent trends both in terms of a possible convergence of identities and issues across national boundaries and of the continuing relevance and vitality of feminist thinking and female activism in the 1990s. The book focuses on Europe, East and West, paying particular attention to the former USSR.

Women and European Politics is a comprehensive country-by-country survey of the changing political and economic history of women in Eastern and Western Europe over the last two centuries. Joni Lovenduski first discusses the contributions of the "first wave" feminists who fought for women suffrage as well as for reforms in family life, wage work, and educational opportunities. A more economically independent group of "second wave" feminists were concerned primarily with women's political activism, reproductive rights, child care provision for wage-earning women, laws against rape and sexual harassment, and consciousness-raising about women's oppression. Throughout her consideration of these issues, Lovenduski remains keenly aware of the unique situation for the women in each country discussed, as well as the divisions created among women due to differing social class and ethnic background. She is also skeptical of official press reports and accounts of women's political activity and aware of the interplay between professed government ideology and actual social and political practices as they affect women's daily lives.

Written confidently and with compassion, this is the story of a long revolution that has set out to change predominant attitudes and transform value hierarchies and human lifestyles. By outlining the postwar histories of individual countries Kaplan contextualises women's movements and documents a significant chapter of European social history. She poses questions about the interrelationship between the new movements and the parliamentary democracies in which they occurred, while analysing the contradictions of living in modern capitalist countries. Contemporary Western European Feminism also tackles important contradictions, such as those between the welfare state and the free market economy; industrialisation and religious value systems; social engineering and the production of wealth; and dissent and patrimonial systems of democracy.

This Biographical Dictionary describes the lives, works and aspirations of more than 150 women and men who were active in, or part of, women’s movements and feminisms in Central, Eastern and South Eastern Europe. Thus, it challenges the widely held belief that there was no historical feminism in this part of Europe. These innovative and often moving biographical portraits not only show that feminists existed here, but also that they were widespread and diverse, and included Romanian princesses, Serbian philosophers and peasants, Latvian and Slovakian novelists, Albanian teachers, Hungarian Christian social workers and activists of the Catholic women’s movement, Austrian factory workers, Bulgarian feminist scientists and socialist feminists, Russian radicals, philanthropists, militant suffragists and Bolshevik activists, prominent writers and philosophers of the Ottoman era, as well as Turkish republican leftist political activists and nationalists, internationally recognized Greek feminist leaders, Estonian pharmacologists and science historians, Slovenian ‘literary feminists,’ Czech avant-garde painters, Ukrainian feminist scholars, Polish and Czech Senate Members, and many more. Their stories together constitute a rich tapestry of feminist activity and redress a serious imbalance in the historiography of women’s movements and feminisms.

The New Women's Movement provides a comparative analysis of the social and political impact of the women's movement in ten European countries and the USA since the 1960s. It explains how a decentralized, non-professional, grass-roots organization has been able to effect political change. The contributors examine central issues in the feminist challenge to the establishment, including the abortion debate. Two contending strategies within the women's movement are outlined: one aiming to effect change through legislation; and the other asserting that women's liberation' can only be achieved from outside the existing system. Contributors also explain why the women's movement emerged when it did in different countries. National studies of feminist movements in the USA and ten European countries provide a unique comparative analysis of the women's movement as a social movement, with important implications for social movement theory. The successful emergence of the women's movement in different social and political settings challenges the notion that a decentralized, non-professional, grass root structure is a barrier to political influence.

This book examines the events in the feminist movement in Western Europe over the past 20 years. It invites critical analysis of terms, ideas and assumptions about the modern world, and helps the reader to recognize fundamental traits of the social contexts which give rise to social movements. as Iceland, Norway, Portugal and Greece, the book aims to transcend a mere narrative of women's movements to provide a comprehensive account of the European scene. By mapping the postwar history of each country and thereby providing a context for the women's movements, the author documents a significant chapter of European social history. contemporary world, such a those between the welfare state and a free-market economy, industrialization and religious value systems, social engineering and wealth production, and dissent and patrimonial systems of democracy. contemporary world, such as those between the welfare state and a free-market economy, industrialization and religious value systems, social engineering and the production of wealth, and dissent and patrimonial systems of democracy. contemporary feminism, Contemporary Western European feminism is essential reading. It incorporates an extensive bibliography concentrating on English-language sources. Sciences at the Queensland University of Technology. She is the co-editor of Hannah Arendt: thinking, judging, freedom, and a contributor to Feminine/masculine and representation. sociology.

Women's Movements in the Global Erais a path-breaking study of the genesis, growth, gains, and dilemmas of women's movements in countries throughout the world. Its focus is on the Global South, where women's movements have engaged in complex negotiations with national and international forces. It challenges widely held assumptions about the Western origins and character of local feminisms. All the authors locate women's movements within the terrain from which they emerged by exploring their relationships with the state, civil society, and other social movements. This book is essential reading for anyone interested in the global scope and implications of feminism. Contents 1. Introduction Africa 2. South African Feminisms: A Coming of Age? (Elaine Salo) 3. "The Future Will Be Better Next Time": Opportunities and Challenges of the Zimbabwean Women's Movement (Shereen Essof, Ramagwana Rakajeka) Asia 4. The Women's Movement in Pakistan: Challenges and Achievements (Farida Shaheed) 5. Feminist Deliberative Politics in India: Some Reflections (Kalpana Kannabiran) 6. The Chinese Women's Movement in the Context of Globalization: Opportunities and Challenges (Naihua Zhang) Europe 7. Polish Feminism between the Local and the Global: A Task of Translation (Elzbieta Matynia) 8. Russian Women's Activism: Two Steps Forward, One Step Back (Lisa McIntosh Sundstrom) Latin America 9. Contemporary Feminisms in Brazil: Achievements, Shortcomings, and Challenges (Cecilia M. B. Sardenberg, Ana Alice AlcÁntara Costa) 10. Seeking Rights from the Left: Gender and Sexuality in Latin America (Elisabeth Friedman) 11. Towards a Culturally Situated Women Rights Agenda: Reflections from Mexico (R. AÍda HernÁndez Castillo) The Middle East 12. The Demobilization of the Palestinian Women's Movement: From Empowered Active Militants to Powerless and Stateless "Citizens" (Islah Jad) 13. The Women's Movement and Feminism in Iran: A Glocal Perspective (Nayereh Tohidi) The United States 14. Intersecting Oppressions: Rethinking Women's Movements in the U.S. (Julie Ajinkya)

Contemporary Western European Feminism is a ground-breaking history of feminism. Gisela Kaplan invites a critical analysis of current ideas, terms and assumptions about our modern world. Written confidently and with compassion, this is the story of a long revolution that has set out to change predominant attitudes and transform value hierarchies and human lifestyles. By outlining the postwar histories of individual countries Kaplan contextualises women’s movements and documents a significant chapter of European social history. She poses questions about the interrelationship between the new movements and the parliamentary democracies in which they occurred, while analysing the contradictions of living in modern capitalist countries. Contemporary Western European Feminism also tackles important contradictions, such as those between the welfare state and the free market economy; industrialisation and religious value systems; social engineering and the production of wealth; and dissent and patrimonial systems of democracy. For those wanting to know more about Europe without the intimidating barriers of language and for those already experts in its social history, Contemporary Western European Feminism is essential reading.