Corona, Care, and Political Masculinity: Gender-Critical Perspectives on Governing the COVID-19 Pandemic in Austria
Titelübersetzung:Corona, Sorge und politische Männlichkeit: Eine geschlechterkritische Perspektive auf das Regieren der COVID-19 Pandemie in Österreich
Quelle: Historical Social Research, 46 (2021) 4, S 50-71
Inhalt: The article departs from the contradiction that the importance of care for society was publicly acknowledged during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the pandemic response of the Austrian government did not challenge the structurally devalued status of care. In order to sustain the hegemonic patriarchal-capitalist governance of care and social reproduction in the pandemic government actors had to reframe care. We investigate government discourses that normalised its careless crisis management and interrogate the role political masculinity and affects played therein. Based on our analysis of a set of selected press conferences held in March 2020, we find that a new mode of rational-affective political masculinity was constitutive of the political management of COVID-19 crisis. With help of this hybrid mode of masculinity, political actors reinterpreted care first and foremost as healthcare and caring for the economy, and as caring for the population in terms of biopolitics. At the same time, caring tasks in the 'private' sphere were left to the personal responsibility of individuals and families. In order to generate consent, political actors frequently invoked affects that pertained to risk and danger on the one hand and solidarity and responsibility on the other.
Schlagwörter:Österreich; Austria; Pflege; caregiving; Reproduktion; reproduction; Gesundheitspolitik; health policy; Krisenmanagement; crisis management (econ., pol.); politischer Akteur; political actor; Männlichkeit; masculinity; Biopolitik; biotechnology policy; Hegemonie; hegemony; Gender; gender; rational-affective masculinity; reframing care; care for the economy; solidarity; nationality; Corona; COVID-19; global pandemic; biopolitics
SSOAR Kategorie:politische Willensbildung, politische Soziologie, politische Kultur, Frauen- und Geschlechterforschung
Quelle: Femina Politica - Zeitschrift für feministische Politikwissenschaft, 27 (2018) 1, S 47-61
Inhalt: Aktuell wird europaweit das gleichstellungspolitisch Erreichte - sei es die (relative) Öffnung der Ehe für gleichgeschlechtliche Paare, der Anspruch von Frauen auf autonome Lebensentscheidungen, die Möglichkeit der Integration von Geschlecht und Sexualität in wissenschaftliche Paradigmen oder die Inklusion von Frauen in patriarchale Sprachmuster - in Frage gestellt. Der Beitrag zeigt am Beispiel Österreichs, dass sich der Hass auf Gleichberechtigung, der Wunsch nach Reetablierung traditioneller hierarchischer und naturalisierter Geschlechterverhältnisse sowie der Wille zur Diffamierung und Diskriminierung jeder Form von Sexualität jenseits heterosexueller Vorstellungen in breitere rechtspopulistische und rechtsextreme Strategien der Naturalisierung sozialer Ungleichheit einfügen. Damit verfügen sie über das Potenzial, diese zu plausibilisieren und zu popularisieren. Der Text macht deutlich, dass im Kampf gegen Geschlechtergleichstellung und gegen die Anerkennung sexueller Differenz ein Kampf um kulturelle Hegemonie sichtbar wird, der sich gegen die sozialen Errungenschaften, gegen Liberalisierungsprojekte und gegen demokratische Kompromisse der 1970er-Jahre wendet und der insbesondere die Idee der 'Gleichheit' als Basis von Demokratie ablehnt.
Inhalt: Equal opportunity policies have achieved a number of milestones in Europe, including the legalization of same-sex marriage, women's right to determine their own lives, the possibility to include gender and sexuality in academic paradigms or the visibility of women in patriarchal language. However, currently these accomplishments are under attack. Taking Austria as an example the article shows that the rejection of equal opportunities, the wish for the re-establishment of traditional, hierarchical and naturalized gender relations and the will to repudiate and discriminate against any form of sexuality other than heterosexuality are part of broader right-wing populist and right-wing extremist strategies, which aim to naturalize social inequality. We show that gender and sexuality related discourses have the potential to render these overarching strategies more plausible and popular. The fight against gender equality and against the acceptance of sexual diversity is analyzed as part of a fight for cultural hegemony. It is a fight that tries to dismantle social achievements, the liberalization of social relations and the democratic compromises of the 1970s, but which most of all objects to the idea of 'equality' as the basis of democracy.
Schlagwörter:Gender; gender; Geschlechterverhältnis; gender relations; Geschlechterpolitik; gender policy; Gleichstellungspolitik; equal opportunity policy; Gleichberechtigung; equality of rights; Populismus; populism; politische Rechte; political right; Rassismus; racism; Konservatismus; conservatism; Diskurs; discourse; Österreich; Austria
SSOAR Kategorie:Frauen- und Geschlechterforschung, politische Willensbildung, politische Soziologie, politische Kultur
Inhalt: Gender Equality has not yet been achieved in many western countries. Switzerland in particular has failed as a forerunner in integrating women in politics and economy. Taking Switzerland as a case study, the authors critically reflect the state of gender equality in different policy areas such as education, family and labour. The collection of articles reveals how gender policies and cultural contexts interact with social practices of gender (in)equality. They also outline the gender(ed) effects of recent changes and reform strategies for scientists, politicians and practitioners. Despite considerable successes at the legal and societal level, equality between women and men has not yet been achieved in many western countries. This is true also for Switzerland, where gender equality issues increasingly are being highlighted. This book critically reflects the state of gender equality in Switzerland by focusing on key areas of gender policy such as education, labour, and the private sphere, especially in the context of economic and social change. The articles are based on multi-disciplinary perspectives as well as innovative methods in studying gender (in)equality. All chapters refer to the National Research Program 60 on 'Gender Equality' (2010-2014) launched by the Swiss National Science Foundation which aimed at generating knowledge on the complex conditions for gender equality in Switzerland. The chapters of this book highlight the 'evidence' and impact of current gender equality policies and objectives. The authors investigate the gender-relevant implications of important policy areas, some of which are still rarely discussed, such as social investment, tax or working time policies. They discuss interdependencies between gender and other categories of social difference, e.g. social class, and also illustrate the meaning of these intersections with respect to the outcomes and limitations of public policies. Further, the articles are dedicated to the analyses of the complex reasons for persisting gender inequalities in the world of work, care and education by looking especially at the interfaces and the transitions between those social fields. The book provides nuanced insight into how gender policies and cultural contexts interact with social practices of gender (in)equality and reflects the media and public reception of scientific studies on gender inequality. It is directed to social and political scientists and yields important information on effective strategies and their relevance to gender equality for politicians and practitioners today.
Migration, Geschlecht, Gewalt: Überlegungen zu einem intersektionellen Gewaltbegriff
Titelübersetzung:Migration, gender, violence: towards an intersectional concept of violence
Autor/in:
Sauer, Birgit
Quelle: GENDER - Zeitschrift für Geschlecht, Kultur und Gesellschaft, 3 (2011) 2, S 44-60
Inhalt: "Politische Maßnahmen gegen und wissenschaftliche Diskussionen um sogenannte 'traditionsbedingte' Gewalt gegen Frauen in westlichen Einwanderungsgesellschaften machen einen intersektionellen Gewaltbegriff nötig, der der kulturalisierenden Falle entkommt und nachhaltigen Gewaltschutz zu denken ermöglicht, ohne bestimmte minorisierte Gruppen abzuwerten und von Gewalt betroffene Frauen zu viktimisieren. Der Text schlägt im Kontext eines weiten feministischen Gewaltbegriffs eine Re-Theoretisierung von Gewalt gegen Frauen vor. Ein feministischer Gewaltbegriff sollte erstens das Zusammenspiel von Gewaltstrukturen und -diskursen, zweitens die Interaktion von Ungleichheitsstrukturen in Minderheitengruppen und der Mehrheitsgesellschaft sowie drittens die Interaktion von Ungleichheits- und Gewaltstrukturen an der Schnittstelle von Geschlecht, Kultur, Ethnizität/Nationalität, Religion und Klasse umfassen." (Autorenreferat)
Inhalt: "Political measures against as well as scientific debates about so-called 'traditional harmful practices' against women in western immigration countries put the necessity of an intersectional concept of violence on the feminist scientific agenda, Such a concept should aim to escape the trap of culturalizing the 'Other'. It should also build the ground to guarantee sustainable harm reduction without stigmatizing minority groups nor victimizing women affected by violence. In the context of a broad feminist notion of violence the article suggests the re-theorization of the concept of violence against women. This conceptualization should include first the interplay of structures and discourses of violence, second the interaction of structures of inequality between minority groups and dominant society, and third the intersection of structures of inequality and violence between gender, culture, ethnicity, religion, and class." (author's abstract)
SSOAR Kategorie:Frauen- und Geschlechterforschung, soziale Probleme, Migration, Allgemeine Soziologie, Makrosoziologie, spezielle Theorien und Schulen, Entwicklung und Geschichte der Soziologie
"Doris ihr'n Mann seine Partei": die Reduktion von Frauen- auf Familienpolitik im bundesdeutschen Wahlkampf 2002
Titelübersetzung:"Doris' husband's party": the reduction of women's policy to family policy in the German federal elections 2002
Autor/in:
Lang, Sabine; Sauer, Birgit
Quelle: Österreichische Zeitschrift für Politikwissenschaft, 32 (2003) 4, S 429-441
Inhalt: 'Die Rhetorik im deutschen Bundestagswahlkampf 2002 wurde entscheidend vom Schlagwort 'Familie' geprägt, während Frauen- und Gleichstellungspolitik eine nur marginale Rolle spielten. Die Studie fragt nach den Ursachen der Engführung von Frauen- auf Familienpolitik im Wahlkampf. Die Analyse programmatischer Aussagen der fünf großen bundesdeutschen Parteien, der Arbeit der Wahlkampfzentralen sowie der Presseberichterstattung im Vorfeld der Wahlen zeigt, dass die Refamiliarisierung der geschlechterpolitischen Debatte im Bundestagswahlkampf 2002 entscheidend von den maskulin geprägten Wahlkampfstäben getragen wurde. Ihr mangelndes geschlechterpolitisches Differenzierungsvermögen sowie die Forderung nach Plakativität und medialer Dramatisierung formten aus frauen- und familienpolitischen Themen ein Amalgam, in dem Frauen vornehmlich als Mütter angerufen wurden und Väter unsichtbar blieben. Gleichstellungspolitisch brisante Themen wurden so nicht nur dethematisiert, sondern auch delegitimiert. Die bundesdeutschen Medien be- und verstärkten durch ihren routinisierten Indexierungshabitus die Dethematisierung von Frauenpolitik.' (Autorenreferat)
Inhalt: 'The rhetoric of the German federal election campaign was characterized by the term 'family', while women's and equal opportunity politics played only a residual role in the election debate. Our study investigates the causes for this reduction of women's policy to family policy in the election campaign. We analyzed the programmatic statements of the five major parties, the strategies employed by the campaign headquarters and the national press reports in the months heading up to the elections. The main finding is that the refamiliarization of gender debates was primarily due to the masculinist frames within the campaign headquarters. Campaign strategists for the most part exhibited little differentiated knowledge regarding gender issues. Moreover, their need for polarization and dramatization of the campaign formed a mixture of women's and policy issues that addressed women only as mothers - while for example leaving fathers completely out of the discourse frames. During the campaign, equal opportunity issues were not only dethematized but also delegitimized. The German media supported this delegitimation by way of indexing issues according to weight they had acquired in the campaigns.' (author's abstract)
Schlagwörter:party; Familienpolitik; Berichterstattung; Wahlkampf; election to the Bundestag; women's policy; Medien; Federal Republic of Germany; election campaign; Partei; Bundestagswahl; political program; politisches Programm; Frauenpolitik; family policy; reporting; media
SSOAR Kategorie:Familienpolitik, Jugendpolitik, Altenpolitik, Frauen- und Geschlechterforschung, politische Willensbildung, politische Soziologie, politische Kultur
Quelle: Institut für Höhere Studien (IHS), Wien; Wien (Reihe Politikwissenschaft / Institut für Höhere Studien, Abt. Politikwissenschaft, 46), 1997. 28 S
Inhalt: "The women's movement and feminism tend to intimize, to destructure and therefore to depolitizise the public sphere. This accusation is quite popular in the german speaking feminist academic community. What happened to the politics of subjectivity, to the feminist political strategy of overcoming the split between public and privat as well as rationality and emotion? I argue that feminist political science as well as malestream political science is 'emotionblind'. This means that emotions are treated as forms of perception, of acting and evaluation that are different from political perceptions and political action. Emotions are outside of the political space – either making the field of politics chaotic (malestream political science) or conzeptualized as a means to feminize and humanize politics (some feminist approaches to female political partizipation). These contradicting appraisals of emotion, gender and politics is putting the connection of gender, emotion and politics on the agenda of feminist political theory. I suggest an approach which conceptualizes emotion as socially and politically constructed. The recent notion of emotion was constructed at the same point in history as gender, with the formation of the capitalist state and the bourgeois class. Gender and emotion build a historical dispositive (Foucault) which emotionalizes women and the private sphere and de-emotionalizes men and the public sphere. The separation of women and men as well as rationality and emotion is a means of control. The notion of an emotional dispositive says that political space is structurally gendered and emotionalized: The dominant mode of beaurocracy – rationality – is the organized hierarchy of male over female as well as rationality over emotion. The Weberian seperation of beaurocracy and (charismatic) politics constructs the public sphere as male and seperates 'good' emotions (Vaterlandsliebe/ love for the country) from 'bad' emotions (sexuality)." (author's abstract)
Schlagwörter:gender studies; Politik; gender; politische Kultur; political theory; Emotionalität; political culture; Geschlechterforschung; Feminismus; politics; politische Theorie; emotionality; feminism; political science; Politikwissenschaft
SSOAR Kategorie:Allgemeines, spezielle Theorien und Schulen, Methoden, Entwicklung und Geschichte der Politikwissenschaft, Frauen- und Geschlechterforschung