The Reluctant Feminist: Angela Merkel and the Modernization of Gender Politics in Germany
Titelübersetzung:Feministin wider Willen? Angela Merkel und Geschlechtergleichheit in Deutschland
Autor/in:
Mushaben, Joyce Marie
Quelle: Femina Politica - Zeitschrift für feministische Politikwissenschaft, 27 (2018) 2, S 83-95
Inhalt: Academic studies regarding the impact of various forms of gender representation focus largely on quantitative evidence that women in power can make a difference, downplaying qualitative case studies that can establish causal links between women's participation in government and better policies for women. Analyzing policy changes initiated by Germany’s first female Chancellor since 2005, the paper argues that despite her CDU-affiliation, Angela Merkel has contributed more to gender equality in Germany than all previous chancellors, even though she refuses to label herself a feminist. The author explores three factors shaping Merkel's reluctance to embrace the (western dominated) feminist label, e.g., her socialization under a diametrically opposed GDR gender regime, her preference for data-driven policy learning, her aversion towards “ideological” framing, coupled with a tendency to pursue mixed motives, respectively. The paper concludes with recent examples geared towards leveling the global gender playing-field, attesting to her willingness to embrace transformational representation.
Schlagwörter:woman; Politikerin; ; politische Entscheidung; political decision; Entscheidungsfindung; decision making; Repräsentation; representation; Intersektionalität; intersectionality; Gleichstellung; affirmative action; Merkel, A.; Merkel, A.; Geschlechterpolitik; gender policy; Feminismus; feminism; Federal Republic of Germany
SSOAR Kategorie:Frauen- und Geschlechterforschung, politische Willensbildung, politische Soziologie, politische Kultur
Addressing Supply-Side Hurdles to Gender-Equal Representation in Germany
Titelübersetzung:Angebotsseitige Hindernisse der gleichberechtigten Repräsentation in Deutschland
Autor/in:
Davidson-Schmich, Louise K.
Quelle: Femina Politica - Zeitschrift für feministische Politikwissenschaft, 27 (2018) 2, S 53-70
Inhalt: One hundred years after being granted the right to active suffrage, German women remain underrepresented in elective office. Quotas have partially addressed demand-side barriers to gender parity in descriptive representation, but significant supply-side gaps remain. Men comprise over 70% of political party members in the Federal Republic, dominating the bodies that provide candidates for elective office. Solutions to this supply-side problem have often focused on “fixing” women to fit into gendered party institutions, rather than altering these structures to be more welcoming to women. In contrast, drawing on interviews with (potential) party members in Germany, this article identifies informal institutions that deter gender-balanced involvement in political parties and suggests ways in which these norms might be changed.
Schlagwörter:woman; Repräsentation; representation; politische Partizipation; political participation; Politikerin; ; Partei; party; Mitgliedschaft; membership; Frauenanteil; proportion of women; Gleichstellung; affirmative action; Federal Republic of Germany
SSOAR Kategorie:Frauen- und Geschlechterforschung, politische Willensbildung, politische Soziologie, politische Kultur
Women's Coalitions beyond the Laicism-Islamism Divide in Turkey: Towards an Inclusive Struggle for Gender Equality?
Autor/in:
Çağatay, Selin
Quelle: Social Inclusion, 6 (2018) 4, S 48-58
Inhalt: In the 2010s in Turkey, the ruling Justice and Development Party's (AKP) authoritarian-populist turn accompanied the institutionalization of political Islam. As laicism was discredited and labeled as an imposed-from-above principle of Western/Kemalist modernity, the notion of equality ceased to inform the state’s gender policies. In response to AKP's attempts to redefine gender relations through the notions of complementarity and fıtrat (purpose of creation), women across the political spectrum have mobilized for an understanding of gender equality that transcends the laicism - Islamism divide yet maintains secularity as its constitutive principle. Analyzing three recent attempts of women's coalition-building, this article shows that, first, gender equality activists in the 2010s are renegotiating the border between secularity and piety towards more inclusive understandings of gender equality; and second, that struggles against AKP’s gender politics are fragmented due to different configurations of gender equality and secularity that reflect class and ethnic antagonisms in Turkish society. The article thereby argues for the need to move beyond binary approaches to secularism and religion that have so far dominated the scholarly analysis of women’s activism in both Turkey and the Nordic context.
The compatibility of women's involvement in politics and the process of Euro-integration in the modern Georgian reality
Autor/in:
Darchashvili, Manana; Alaverdov, Emilia
Quelle: Journal of Liberty and International Affairs, 2 (2016) 2, S 65-73
Inhalt: Nowadays, women’s involvement in politics is a quite hot discussion topic among public associations and politicians. It is highlighted in various events. It is a fact that the country has to make certain legislative changes for the purpose of women’s (political) activation. It will help to fulfill the international obligations, and to establish (some/additional/further) democratic principles in Georgia and accelerate the country’s process of European integration at the same time. Based on the attitude of women’s political engagement issue in Georgia, with the support of Georgia’s Euro-integration strategy, public organizations and politicians, public awareness and the certain support of political parties, it is possible that in the nearest future the mentioned issue will be given wider resonance and it will be defined the legislative level in order to be more supported, what will add to growth of the women’s engagement.
Schlagwörter:woman; politische Partizipation; political participation; politische Aktivität; political activity; Politikerin; ; Quotierung; quotation; Gleichstellung; affirmative action; Frauenförderung; advancement of women; Georgien; Georgia; europäische Integration; European integration
SSOAR Kategorie:Frauen- und Geschlechterforschung, politische Willensbildung, politische Soziologie, politische Kultur
Islamism, Secularism and the Woman Question in the Aftermath of the Arab Spring: Evidence from the Arab Barometer
Autor/in:
Fox, Ashley M.; Abdelkarim Alzwawi, Sana; Refki, Dina
Quelle: Politics and Governance, 4 (2016) 4, S 40-57
Inhalt: "The uprisings that led to regime change during the early period of the Arab Spring were initially inclusive and pluralistic in nature, with men and women from every political and religious orientation engaging actively in political activities on the street and in virtual spaces. While there was an opening of political space for women and the inclusion of demands of marginalized groups in the activists' agenda, the struggle to reimagine national identities that balance Islamic roots and secular yearnings is still ongoing in many countries in the region. This paper seeks to deepen understanding of the extent to which the pluralistic sentiments and openness to accepting the rights women have persisted following the uprising. We aim to examine changes in attitudes towards women's equality in countries that underwent regime change through popular uprisings during revolutionary upheavals of the Arab Spring and in countries where regimes have remained unchanged. Using available data from consecutive rounds of the Arab Barometer survey, we examine changes in attitudes in nine countries with two rounds of Arab Barometer during and post Arab Spring (Egypt, Yemen, Tunisia, Algeria, Lebanon, Sudan, Jordan, Iraq, Palestine). We find that support for 'Muslim feminism' (an interpretation of gender equality grounded in Islam) has increased over the period and particularly in Arab Spring countries, while support for 'secular feminism' has declined. In most countries examined, relatively high degrees of support for gender equality co-exist with a preference for Islamic interpretations of personal status codes pertaining to women. We discuss the implications of these findings for academics and activists concerned with women's rights in the Middle East North Africa (MENA)." (author's abstract)
Schlagwörter:Nordafrika; North Africa; arabische Länder; Arab countries; Nahost; Middle East; politischer Wandel; political change; politische Partizipation; political participation; Islamismus; islamism; Säkularisierung; secularization; woman; Menschenrechte; human rights; Feminismus; feminism; Muslim; Muslim; Gleichstellung; affirmative action; Einstellung; attitude; gender-specific factors; Einstellungsänderung; attitude change; Islam; Islam; Religiosität; religiousness; Arab democratic exceptionalism; Arab Spring
SSOAR Kategorie:Frauen- und Geschlechterforschung, politische Willensbildung, politische Soziologie, politische Kultur, Religionssoziologie