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Women’s Movements in International Perspective: Latin America and Beyond (Institute of Latin American Studies)

The analysis of gender and political inequality, and the women's movements that have contested it, has concentrated on the West. In this wide-ranging reevaluation, incorporating development studies and political sociology, Maxine Molyneux redresses this balance by analysing Latin American women's movements within liberal, authoritarian and revolutionary states. These studies of Argentina, Nicaragua and Cuba, alongside comparative discussions of socialism, women's movements and citizenship, examine the complex, and persistent, interaction of states and women's movements, and the diversity of responses engendered.

Women's Police Stations: Gender, Violence, and Justice in Sao Paulo, Brazil

Women's Police Stations examines the changing and complex relationship between women and the state, and the construction of gendered citizenship, using women's police stations in Sao Paulo. These are police stations run exclusively by police women for women with the authority to investigate crimes against women such as domestic violence, assault and rape. Sao Paulo was the home of the first such police station, and there are now more than 250 women's police stations throughout Brazil. Cecilia MacDowell Santos examines the importance of this phenomenon for the first time, looking at the dynamics of the relationship between women and the state as a consequence of a political regime, and exploring the notion of gendered citizenship.

Women’s Political Participation in Bangladesh: Institutional Reforms, Actors and Outcomes

This volume offers an understanding of institutional reforms, gender-related policy dynamics, the role of different actors in the policy process, and the impact of a particular policy on the state of women’s political participation in Bangladesh. The discussion is set against the background of the Fourth World Conference on Women, 1995, in Beijing, in which a Platform for Action signed by heads of governments expressed their countries’ commitment to achieve ‘gender equality and empowerment of women’ through ensuring integration of the gender perspective at all levels. In Bangladesh, notable among the initiatives undertaken was the enactment of the Local Government (Union Parishads) (Second Amendment) of 1997, through which one-third of seats were reserved for women in the Union Parishad (UP) and the system of direct election was introduced to elect women members in reserved seats. The Act of 1997 is considered to be a milestone, since it has enhanced women’s participation in the local government politics significantly. Against this background, the specific research questions that have been addressed in this volume include: the necessity of reform for enhancing women’s participation in politics; the context against which the Government of Bangladesh enacted the Act and the reasons such an initiative was not taken earlier; the actors behind the reforms and their role in the reform process; and the impact of the reform on the state of women’s participation at the local level in Bangladesh.

Women's Prison: Sex and Social Structure

A thoroughly researched pioneering work based on personal interviews with inmates and prison personnel and on data compiled from questionnaires and inmate record files, Women's Prison reveals that homosexual liaisons are the primary foundation of the social structure of female inmates; shows that homosexual behavior can be a superficial kind of adjustment to particular situational privations; amplifies and broadens the application of earlier findings on men's prisons; opens the way for future studies involving the delineation of homosexual roles in the free community.This study began with both of the authors' interest in gathering data on women in prison to see whether there were female prisoner types consistent with the reported characteristics of male prisoners. Early in the course of this study it became apparent that the most salient distinction to be made among the female inmates was between those who were and those who were not engaged in homosexual behavior in prison, and further, of those who were so involved, between the incumbents of masculine and feminine roles.It has become increasingly apparent that prison behavior is rooted in more than just the conditions of confinement. Unlike their male counterparts who establish the so-called inmate code, women prisoners suffer intensely from the loss of affectional relationships and form homosexual liaisons as the primary foundation of their social organization. The great majority of homosexually involved inmates have their first affair in prison, returning to heterosexual roles outside prison.Women's Prison is a revealing study of social structure and homosexuality for sociologists; of vital interest to social workers, parole officers and chaplains dealing with female inmates as well as penologists and criminologists; and provocative reading for the non-specialist.

Women's Prison: Sex and Social Structure

A thoroughly researched pioneering work based on personal interviews with inmates and prison personnel and on data compiled from questionnaires and inmate record files, Women's Prison reveals that homosexual liaisons are the primary foundation of the social structure of female inmates; shows that homosexual behavior can be a superficial kind of adjustment to particular situational privations; amplifies and broadens the application of earlier findings on men's prisons; opens the way for future studies involving the delineation of homosexual roles in the free community.This study began with both of the authors' interest in gathering data on women in prison to see whether there were female prisoner types consistent with the reported characteristics of male prisoners. Early in the course of this study it became apparent that the most salient distinction to be made among the female inmates was between those who were and those who were not engaged in homosexual behavior in prison, and further, of those who were so involved, between the incumbents of masculine and feminine roles.It has become increasingly apparent that prison behavior is rooted in more than just the conditions of confinement. Unlike their male counterparts who establish the so-called inmate code, women prisoners suffer intensely from the loss of affectional relationships and form homosexual liaisons as the primary foundation of their social organization. The great majority of homosexually involved inmates have their first affair in prison, returning to heterosexual roles outside prison.Women's Prison is a revealing study of social structure and homosexuality for sociologists; of vital interest to social workers, parole officers and chaplains dealing with female inmates as well as penologists and criminologists; and provocative reading for the non-specialist.

Women's Reflections on the Complexities of Forgiveness

This book by women represents a diversity of opinions about every aspect of forgiveness, embodying a tolerance for differing perspectives. The contributors are researchers and therapists who have dedicated themselves to grappling with the controversies and conundrums associated with forgiveness. On the basis of their clinical and empirical work in the field, the authors have questioned established definitions, opposed emerging “truisms” within the field, and used research methods that run counter to traditional practices. The result is a compelling collection of research and clinical wisdom that pushes us to consider new perspectives on the mysterious process of forgiveness.

Women's Reflections on the Complexities of Forgiveness

This book by women represents a diversity of opinions about every aspect of forgiveness, embodying a tolerance for differing perspectives. The contributors are researchers and therapists who have dedicated themselves to grappling with the controversies and conundrums associated with forgiveness. On the basis of their clinical and empirical work in the field, the authors have questioned established definitions, opposed emerging “truisms” within the field, and used research methods that run counter to traditional practices. The result is a compelling collection of research and clinical wisdom that pushes us to consider new perspectives on the mysterious process of forgiveness.

Women's Renunciation in South Asia: Nuns, Yoginis, Saints, and Singers (Religion/Culture/Critique)

This volume brings together compelling new research on South Asian women who have renounced worldly life for spiritual pursuits. Documenting contemporary women's experiences with intimate ethnographic narratives, this book offers feminist insights into Jain, Buddhist, Hindu and Baul ascetic traditions.

Women's Reproductive Mental Health Across the Lifespan

"In this book you’ll find a thoughtfully edited chronicle of the unique convergence of genetic, hormonal, social, and environmental forces that influence a woman’s mental health over the course of her life. Both comprehensive and nuanced, Women’s Reproductive Mental Health Across the Lifespan captures the science, clinical observation, and collective wisdom of experts in the field. Professionals and laypersons alike are well-advised to make room on their bookshelves for this one!" - Margaret Howard, Ph.D., Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University; Women & Infants Hospital, Providence RI "This outstanding collection of work is an important, timely, and much needed resource. Dr. Diana Lynn Barnes has been instrumental in bringing attention to the needs of perinatal women for decades. In Women's Reproductive Health Across the Lifespan, she brilliantly unites the medical world of reproductive life events with the psychiatric and psychological world of mental health issues associated with them. Her expertise, combined with contributions by distinguished leaders in the field, create a volume of work that should be studied carefully by every medical and mental health provider who works with women." - Karen Kleiman, MSW, The Postpartum Stress Center, Author of Therapy and the Postpartum Woman "Finally, a book that addresses the entire scope of women’s reproductive mental health spanning the gamut from puberty to menopause. The list of chapter contributors reads like a who’s who of international experts. Unique to this book is its focus on the interaction of genetics, hormonal fluctuations, and the social environment. It is a must addition for the libraries of clinicians and researchers in women’s reproductive mental health". - Cheryl Tatano Beck, DNSc, CNM, FAAN, Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor, School of Nursing, University of Connecticut Pregnancy and childbirth are generally viewed as joyous occasions. Yet for numerous women, these events instead bring anxiety, depression, and emotional distress. Increased interest in risk reduction and early clinical intervention is bringing reproductive issues to the forefront of women's mental health. The scope of Women's Reproductive Mental Health across the Lifespan begins long before the childbearing years, and continues well after those years have ended. Empirical findings, case examples, and dispatches from emerging areas of the field illuminate representative issues across the continuum of women's lives with the goal of more effective care benefitting women and their families. Chapter authors discuss advances in areas such as fertility treatment and contraception, and present current thinking on the psychological impact of pregnancy loss, menopause, cancer, and other stressors. These expert contributors emphasize the connections between an individual's biology and psychology and cultural expectations in shaping women's mental health, and the balance between a client's unique history and current clinical knowledge clinicians need to address disorders. Included in the coverage: The experience of puberty and emotional wellbeing.Body image issues and eating disorders in the childbearing years.Risk assessment and screening during pregnancy.Normal and pathological postpartum anxiety.Mood disorders and the transition to menopause.The evolution of reproductive psychiatry.A reference with an extended shelf life, Women's Reproductive Mental Health across the Lifespan enhances the work of researchers and practitioners in social work, clinical psychology, and psychiatry, and has potential relevance to all health care professionals.

Women's Reproductive Rights (Women's Rights in Europe)

Based on country reports and practical input from researchers and activists in the field, this book is an up-to-date account of the issues surrounding women's reproductive rights across Europe. The contributions provide astute theoretical analysis of existing problems and suggest innovative alternatives. The book brings together authors from academia, policy-making and international institutions to ensure comprehensive representation and thorough commentary of the issues.

Women's Rights and Religious Practice: Claims in Conflict (Women's Studies at York Series)

The author looks at conflicts between human rights for women and religious integrity, through family religious ideology and questions of relativism, privacy and agency. The study shows that theological resistance and political and social inhibitors can, ironically, make the human rights concept inappropriate for gaining rights for religious women.

Women's Rights in Authoritarian Egypt: Negotiating Between Islam and Politics

During the uprisings of late 2010 and 2011 which took place across the Middle East and North Africa, women made up an important part of the crowds protesting. Women's rights were central to the demands made. However, despite this, in the ensuing social and political struggles, these rights have not progressed much beyond the situation under previous governments. Hiam El-Gousi's book offers an examination of the status of women under Egypt's various authoritarian regimes. In exploring the role played by religious scholars in helping to define women's status in society, she focuses on personal status laws and health rights. In examining the issue of women's rights El-Gousi begins with an account of feminism in Egypt: the centre of feminist thought in the Middle East at the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth century. Based on extensive research in the country, especially at grassroots level, El-Gousi goes on to analyse the constitutional and legislative rulings which have affected the lives and rights of Egyptian women. This book will become a vital primary resource for those studying feminism in the wider Middle East and North Africa.

Women’s Rights in Movement: Dynamics of Feminist Change in Latin America and the Caribbean (Latin American Societies)

This book provides an updated comparative overview of women’s movements in Latin America and the Caribbean, filling some of the gaps left by the existing literature. It brings together case studies of nine countries – Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Peru – and includes a comparative analysis of the overall evolution of women’s rights movements across the region during the past decades. This analysis shows Latin America as the home to the largest, strongest, and most densely regionally and globally interconnected women’s rights movements in the Global South. Each chapter in this volume seeks to understand where the struggles for women’s rights come from, how they stand today and where they are headed to. To do so, they all use qualitative methodologies, and most resort to first-hand accounts of the processes described and reflections by the actors on their own experiences, collected through surveys, in-depth interviews and/or ethnographic observations. The comparative analysis of the different national case studies reveals the main struggles in which women’s rights movements are currently involved in Latin America and the Caribbean: the quest for political representation within the State and its political institutions; the fight against gender violence and the struggle for sexual and reproductive rights – especially abortion rights. Women’s Rights in Movement: Dynamics of Feminist Change in Latin America and the Caribbean will be a valuable resource for researchers, activists and policy makers interested in the struggles for women’s rights not only in Latin America and the Caribbean, but in different parts of the world. It will be of special interest to sociologists, political scientists, anthropologists and other social scientists working in interdisciplinary fields such as gender and social movements studies.

Women's Sexualities and Masculinities in a Globalizing Asia (Comparative Feminist Studies)

Through detailed studies, this collection of writings by academics and activists explores the emergence of contemporary lesbian and butch/femme relationships and communities throughout Asia and their location within the context of nationalist struggles, religious fundamentalism, state gender regimes and global queer movements.

Women’s Social Standing: The Empirical Problem of Female Social Class

Women's Work: A Survey of Scholarship By and About Women

While most women’s studies texts function “topically” as “readings” for courses and general use, Women’s Work: A Survey of Scholarship By and About Women takes a broad spectrum of women’s disciplines--psychological, artistic, religious, and philosophical--and gives you a diverse, interdisciplinary view of this important and ever-expanding field of study in one accessible volume. You’ll see that women are leading the world into the twenty-first century in such areas as education, business, health, and science. You’ll also find your appreciation for the current developments in women’s studies increase as you see how far-reaching and multifaceted this crucial discipline really is.Women’s Work avoids the compilations of topical readings that tend to bog down typical women’s studies courses and explores the different disciplines that continue to make this field central to the development of the academic world community. You’ll find your perspective on women’s studies expand and take on new meaning as you delve into these and other areas: feminist approaches to research the lack of women in science and feminist critiques of science women and health psychology and discussions on sex differences, sex similarities, and gender roles communication differences between men and women women in literature, art history, and metaphysics Judeo-Christian religions and goddess religionsThis comprehensive compendium has something for everyone interested in the massive contribution that women have made--and will continue to make--in all areas of human development. All readers, especially women’s studies scholars, professors, students, and informed members of the general public looking for an excellent, up-to-date resource concerning the general direction of feminist disciplines today, will definitely want a copy of Women’s Work.

Women's Work: A Survey of Scholarship By and About Women

While most women’s studies texts function “topically” as “readings” for courses and general use, Women’s Work: A Survey of Scholarship By and About Women takes a broad spectrum of women’s disciplines--psychological, artistic, religious, and philosophical--and gives you a diverse, interdisciplinary view of this important and ever-expanding field of study in one accessible volume. You’ll see that women are leading the world into the twenty-first century in such areas as education, business, health, and science. You’ll also find your appreciation for the current developments in women’s studies increase as you see how far-reaching and multifaceted this crucial discipline really is.Women’s Work avoids the compilations of topical readings that tend to bog down typical women’s studies courses and explores the different disciplines that continue to make this field central to the development of the academic world community. You’ll find your perspective on women’s studies expand and take on new meaning as you delve into these and other areas: feminist approaches to research the lack of women in science and feminist critiques of science women and health psychology and discussions on sex differences, sex similarities, and gender roles communication differences between men and women women in literature, art history, and metaphysics Judeo-Christian religions and goddess religionsThis comprehensive compendium has something for everyone interested in the massive contribution that women have made--and will continue to make--in all areas of human development. All readers, especially women’s studies scholars, professors, students, and informed members of the general public looking for an excellent, up-to-date resource concerning the general direction of feminist disciplines today, will definitely want a copy of Women’s Work.

Women's Work: How mothers manage flexible working in careers and family life

What’s it really like to be a mother with a career working flexibly? Drawing on over 100 hours of interview data, this book is the first to go inside women’s work and family lives in a year of working flexibly. The private labours of going part-time, job sharing, and home working are brought to life with vivid personal stories. Taking a sociological and feminist perspective, it explores contemporary motherhood, work-life balance, emotional work in families, couples and housework, maternity transitions, interactions with employers, work design and workplace cultures, and employment policies. It concludes that there is an opportunity to make employment and family life work better together and offers unique insights from women’s lived experiences on how to do it.

Women's Work: How mothers manage flexible working in careers and family life

What’s it really like to be a mother with a career working flexibly? Drawing on over 100 hours of interview data, this book is the first to go inside women’s work and family lives in a year of working flexibly. The private labours of going part-time, job sharing, and home working are brought to life with vivid personal stories. Taking a sociological and feminist perspective, it explores contemporary motherhood, work-life balance, emotional work in families, couples and housework, maternity transitions, interactions with employers, work design and workplace cultures, and employment policies. It concludes that there is an opportunity to make employment and family life work better together and offers unique insights from women’s lived experiences on how to do it.

Women's Work and Politics in WWI America: The Munsingwear Family of Minneapolis

By World War I, the Northwestern Knitting Company was the largest workplace for gainfully employed women in Minnesota and the largest garment factory in the United States. Lars Olsson investigates the interplay of class, gender, marital status, ethnicity, and race in the labor relations at the factory, illuminating the lives of the women who worked there. Representing thirty nationalities, particularly Scandinavian, the women worked long hours for low pay in roles that were strictly divided along ethnic and gendered lines, while the company directors and stockholders made enormous profits off of their labor. Management developed paternal strategies to bind the workers to the company and preempt unionization, including bonus programs, minstrel shows, and a pioneering industrial welfare program. With the US entry into the war, the company was contracted to produce underwear for soldiers, and management expanded the metaphor of "the Munsingwear Family" to construct not just company loyalty, but national loyalty. This book sheds new light on women's labor in WWI and the lives of textile workers in the United States.

Women's Work and Politics in WWI America: The Munsingwear Family of Minneapolis

By World War I, the Northwestern Knitting Company was the largest workplace for gainfully employed women in Minnesota and the largest garment factory in the United States. Lars Olsson investigates the interplay of class, gender, marital status, ethnicity, and race in the labor relations at the factory, illuminating the lives of the women who worked there. Representing thirty nationalities, particularly Scandinavian, the women worked long hours for low pay in roles that were strictly divided along ethnic and gendered lines, while the company directors and stockholders made enormous profits off of their labor. Management developed paternal strategies to bind the workers to the company and preempt unionization, including bonus programs, minstrel shows, and a pioneering industrial welfare program. With the US entry into the war, the company was contracted to produce underwear for soldiers, and management expanded the metaphor of "the Munsingwear Family" to construct not just company loyalty, but national loyalty. This book sheds new light on women's labor in WWI and the lives of textile workers in the United States.

Women’s Work in Britain and France: Practice, Theory and Policy

Women's Work in Britain and France is a ground-breaking retheorization of what constitutes 'progress' in gender relations. The book shows that French women, although having more full-time and continuous careers and greater social policy support, retain as great a responsibility for unpaid domestic and caring work as their British counterparts. It replaces the conventional focus upon encouraging women's increased insertion into employment as the principal strategy for achieving progress in gender relations with a new focus on changing men's work patterns.

Women’s Work in the Pandemic Economy: The Unbearable Hazard of Hierarchy

This book explores two unique studies of women’s economic behaviour during Australia’s COVID-19 crisis. The first describes the care ‘frontline’ in the feminised labor sectors of healthcare and education, identifying extreme workload pressures, deteriorating conditions, and a shockingly high incidence of workplace bullying: including women targeting other women workers. The author argues workplace cultures are almost inevitable in Australia’s advanced neoliberal economy, where a patri-colonial legacy continues to devalue and under-resource women’s work.In contrast, a second study of voluntary care provisioning taking place in ‘hyperlocal digital sharing networks’ over the same period identifies very different economic behaviours. Here, women – and occasionally men – instead engage in ‘care-full’ labors of gifting, collective provisioning, and hive mind problem-solving, that align with the gift economy models seen in degrowth theory.This book will interest scholars in gender studies, sociology, and economics, particularly those interested in care work, the gift economy, and women’s labor.

Women's Work in the Unorganized Sector: Issues of Exploitation and Globalisation in the Beedi Industry

This book probes into the beedi industry, a highly gendered and class-divided unorganised sector in India. It introduces an analysis of the lives, health status and work of the Indian women and girl children in the industry and discusses the role of gender constructions, global capitalism, and global racism in shaping the ideologies and conceptions about men and women at work. The volume presents a gendered postcolonial perspective on women's employment in the context of social and economic processes that are critical to globalization. It focuses on Telangana's Nizamabad district - where a majority of the women population are employed in the beedi industry. Through detailed surveys and case studies, the author analyses different aspects of exploitation of these women such as poor working conditions, income inequalities, health risks and the realities of child labour in the process of beedi making. Richly detailed, this book will be of great interest to students, researchers and teachers of geography, particularly human geography and feminist geography, women and gender studies, feminism, labour economics, capitalism, development studies, political sociology, and cultural studies. It will also be of interest to gender and feminist geographers, occupational health professionals, NGOs, and those interested in the issues of gender and development.

Women's Work in the Unorganized Sector: Issues of Exploitation and Globalisation in the Beedi Industry

This book probes into the beedi industry, a highly gendered and class-divided unorganised sector in India. It introduces an analysis of the lives, health status and work of the Indian women and girl children in the industry and discusses the role of gender constructions, global capitalism, and global racism in shaping the ideologies and conceptions about men and women at work. The volume presents a gendered postcolonial perspective on women's employment in the context of social and economic processes that are critical to globalization. It focuses on Telangana's Nizamabad district - where a majority of the women population are employed in the beedi industry. Through detailed surveys and case studies, the author analyses different aspects of exploitation of these women such as poor working conditions, income inequalities, health risks and the realities of child labour in the process of beedi making. Richly detailed, this book will be of great interest to students, researchers and teachers of geography, particularly human geography and feminist geography, women and gender studies, feminism, labour economics, capitalism, development studies, political sociology, and cultural studies. It will also be of interest to gender and feminist geographers, occupational health professionals, NGOs, and those interested in the issues of gender and development.