The Feminist Wave in the Politics - Essay Example

WOMEN, POWER AND POLITICS: GENDERED S by Date Introduction The fight for political, social, economic and civil rights for women has been a very long struggle. Women oppression is often blamed on the capitalist and patriarchal system based on male dominance and power. However, various feminist political theorists attribute women oppression to myriad of causes such as the rationalist ideas of seventeenth and eighteenth century, capitalism, and sexism but it is clear that feminist thought has evolved for decades from liberalism, radicalism, Marxism, socialism and contemporary feminism. Whatever the phase of feminism, the state is forced to make changes in its social policies to accommodate women demands such as equal education, employment, equal liberty, voting rights, equal pay among others. However, inequalities still exists and modern feminists try to raise their issues within state system through various networks and coalitions as opposed to identity politics. The state is therefore definitely a gendered state. The aim of this essay is to discuss ways in which the state might be considered to be ‘gendered’. This will involve looking at the history of feminism and feminist thought and political action. Feminist Political Theory The feminist thought can be traced to seventeenth century Europe. According to Bryson (2003:1) the western political theory often ignored women and defended their exclusion from public affairs and confinement the private sphere. This meant exclusion of half of world population from participating in political or public affairs especially in making decisions that affect their lives. The early feminist thought was rooted in customary and legal constraints that held the false belief that women are by nature less intellectually and physically capable than men (Tong 2009: 1-10). This group of theorists were referred as liberal theorists and believed that gender justice could only be achieved by making the rules of the game fair. Philosophers of this time like Descartes, Rousseau and Montesquieu stressed that the only thing distinguishing men and animals was the power to reason. As such, human beings are rational individuals capable of determining what is best for them. However, this did not apply to women who were considered as incapable of reasoning. This led to discrimination of women especially in education. The eighteenth century liberalists focussed their attention on equality in education. Liberal feminists like Mary Wollstonecraft were very critical of Rousseau and others who discriminated women on basis of reason and intellect. Wollstonecraft argued that if reason distinguished men from animals, then women were equally capable of reasoning and exercising autonomy and self-fulfilment (Tong 2008: 11). Education for boys and girls should therefore be equal contrary to what Rousseau thought. For Rousseau, the educational goal for boys was rationality while that of girls was emotional. Feminists also advocated freedom of religion and non-intervention by government in private or public sphere although some welfare liberalists welcomed state intervention to reduce economic disparities and offer civil liberties (Bryson 2003; Taylor 2005; Tong 2008). State was thus called upon to offer public services such as legal services, Medicare. Medicaid, social security and education. Classical liberals on the other hand, thought the role of state was to protect civil liberties such as property rights, voting rights, and freedoms of speech, association and religion. In this case, offer equal opportunities for individual development rather then interfere in the market. This had great impact on social policy on the issue of whether to provide state welfare or not. Classical liberals would argue this is degrading women while welfare liberals view it as necessary to close the gap occasioned by initial advantage (social class) or sheer luck. However, the contemporary liberalists favour welfare liberalism. The political upheaval in Britain and development of the capitalist system marked another step towards feminism. Industrialization and complex division of labour destabilized the traditional division of labour and family system. Women got engaged in wage labour but even though they were paid, they were discriminated against in workplaces. Bryson (2003: 7) argues that this was “the beginning of the distinction between public world of work and private world of home and family.” The Marriage institution grew as an economic necessity rather than an act of love. Wives became more dependent of men thus accelerating their subordination and strengthening male supremacy. There also emerged a trend of linking political theory to authority of state and family which was patriarchal in nature. Besides the morality and autonomous decision making emphasized by classical and welfare liberals, John Stuart Mill added an element of calculative reason whereby individual’s goal becomes maximizing utility and minimizing pain (Charles 2000). Gender justice for these nineteenth century liberalists lay in granting women equal liberty. In addition to equal education, women needed same political rights and economic opportunity hence become partners to their husbands instead of acting as their servants. Mills just like Wollstonecraft believed men and women had intellect but differed slightly on what causes differences in intellect. For Wollstonecraft, women could have shortage of intellect than men but for mills, this difference was artificially caused by the privileged position men have in society (Tong 2008: 20). However, Mills argued that regardless of intellect, women would always choose family over career. The nineteenth century also witnessed the growth of women suffrage movement. It was an era of radical feminism which blamed women oppression on patriarchal systems based on power, dominance, hierarchy and competition. Gender justice for these feminists was to be achieved by transformation of legal, political, cultural and social structures (Caine 1982; Geadle 2000; Mills 1983). The institution of family and religion were viewed as enhancing or producing oppression for women as they dictated the values required of each gender and sex. Some values were feminine while others were masculine but masculine traits were more valuable that feminine. That is the reason why military characteristics are associated with masculinity and during times of war, women are manuevered through militarization (Enloe 2000). To some radical feminists, feminity was the source of women oppression but since it was a socially constructed phenomenon by men for patriarchal purposes women could be liberated by rejecting it (Tong 2008:10). Other radical culturalists attributed women oppression to low value attached by patriarchy to feminine traits rather than feminity itself (Bryson 2003). This problem could be solved by men and women learning to value each others traits and cultivating them. Men can adopt feminine qualities and vice versa hence becoming whole beings. This period also witnessed increased concern on sex issues with some feminists claiming heterosexual sex is harmful to women and so are reproduction control technologies. Issues of abortion and reproductive health as well as lesbianism were discussed by later theorists. To save women from oppressive patriarchal systems, systems, structures and attitudes that contribute to oppression needed change. Giving women the power to participate in public sphere or political activities was a step towards empowering women (Eisenstein 1984). As such, women suffrage was a key focus for these feminists. Women needed to be enfranchised in order to become equal to men although black men themselves had not been enfranchised. Most of these women were engaged in abolitionist and temperance movements hence had experience on how the system works. They used these public forums to demand for their rights and create awareness for other women on their rights. Women suffrage movements cropped up and Equal Rights Association was formed (Caine 1982; Joanna & Purvis 2009; Purvis & Holton 2000). It was believed women could change the whole society if they were enfranchised and in 1920 through the nineteenth Amendment to the US constitution, they were given voting right. The Marxists and socialists traced the source of oppression to introduction of private property (Mils 1983; Paxton & Melanie 2007). Capitalism is an economic system whereby means of production is owned by capitalists hence they hold the power in society; they are the ruling and dominant class. This capitalist mode of production according to Marxists came to change even the family system making men the dominant gender and subordinating women just like wage labourers are subordinated in capitalism. The only solution to end oppression is thus abolishment of private property and replaces capitalism with socialism. Socialist feminists also believed capitalism and patriarchy were sources of oppression hence the two needed to be abolished (Tong 2008). The twentieth century was a period of slowed activity by feminists after acquiring the right to vote in 1920. However, energy was renewed in the 1960s by need for economic opportunities, sexual freedoms and civil liberties. Feminism was institutionalized as women formed organizations such as the National Organization for Women (NOW) to demand their rights (Midgely 1995; McMillan 2007). The previous feminists were biased as they only focused on middle-class women neglecting blacks and other disadvantaged groups. This was thus a period to incorporate all classes of women regardless of race. Men also joined in fighting for women rights as the blacks were also fighting for their rights and needed women support. It was period when civil rights movements thrived. Feminism thus intersected between class, race and gender (Acker 2000: 192-214; Bryson 2003; Tong 2008). Some white feminists refused to support black suffrage as they felt they had more rights than black males. Women fought for various rights including education, political participation and sexual discrimination. Women also fought against domestic violence and rape (McMillan 2007). The feminist movement was able to influence a lot of government policies and is still pushing to have more reforms but this time within and outside the state (Walby 2011: 58). Contrary to belief that feminism is dead, Walby indicates that feminism is much alive despite gender inequalities and that it has only acquired new forms of organization such as grassroots pressure, NGOs, and feminist bodies within state such as gender equality architecture (Kaplan 1997; Walby 2011: 52). This is supported by Bagguley who argues that British feminism is now preoccupied with maintaining itself through service provision in voluntary organizations, education and elite politics (2002: 169-185). Women also pressure the state to make reforms through trade unions although their participation rate is not as high as that of men (Colgan & Ledwith 2002; Lewenhak 1977). Feminists also use coalitions and networks rather than identity politics to pursue their ends. They have thus gained recognition in recent years nationally and internationally through the United Nations, women rights are entrenched in UN charter. The EU also has various bodies to deal with women issues such as the Directorate of Equality (Walby 2011: 59). States place quotas in elections to ensure women are equally represented. One major achievement is the voting right in 1920 which allowed women to participate in politics. A study on the conservative party on women political participation showed that party discipline predominated over independence of Members of parliaments. As such, women MPs performed similar tasks as men. They dealt with a lot of feminine and social issues but defence of women interests did not constitute priority (Child, Webb & Marthaler 2010; Lovenduski & Randall 1995). The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibited discrimination on basis of sex, race, colour, religion and national origin. However, the state was not keen on implementing the sex amendment thus the renewed vigour of feminism in 1960s. Parliament also passed Equal Pay Act empowering women to get same pay as men for equal jobs. Flexible working arrangements have enabled women to work and also take care of their families although Eisenstein (1984) criticized it as a means of enabling the employer to devalue women. The challenge encountered by feminism in this regard is how to treat sameness and difference; women want to be equal to men yet they also claim to have unique qualities that make them superior to men such as motherhood. Freidan in The feminine mystique urges women and men to cooperate to develop set of values and institutional structures to enable both sexes to achieve fulfilment in public and private world (Freidan 1986). Contemporary feminists have found no need to deny their differences as they cannot hinder them from achieving equality with men. However, it is problematic and sometimes divides feminists into groups. For example, some view preferential treatment for women as degrading and affirming that women are inferior while others view it as necessary step to achieving equality (Daly 2005). Affirmative action and preferential treatment are some of the strategies used to ensure non-discrimination but they are also controversial in nature and depend on values held by individual women. Furthermore, it is believed in future women would be able to fight it out with male colleagues without being given any preferential treatment. Conclusion The feminist political theory has developed over a long period of time depending on the social context at the time. Today, the state cannot escape looking into women issues and developing policies to meet these needs. As such, the state can be considered ‘gendered’ in many ways. It ensures equality of both sexes in education, political arena, employment and all areas of life. Policy makers cannot ignore women issues when developing policies as this would only lead to conflicts between state and feminists. States have embraced feminist organizations and work closely with them. Some departments are also established within the state to deal with women issues hence women do not have to result to violence to demand for rights. References Acker, J. (2000) ‘Revisiting Class: Thinking from Gender, Race and Organizations’, Social Politics, 7, 2: 192-214. Bagguley, P. (2002) ‘Contemporary British Feminism: A Social Movement in Abeyance?’ Social Movement Studies, 1, 2: 169-85. Bryson, V (2003) Feminist Political Theory. 2ed. Basingstoke: Palgrave Caine, B. (1982) Feminism, Suffrage, and the Nineteenth Century Women’s Movement, Womens Studies International Forum, vol.5, no.6 Charles, N. (2000) Feminism, the State and Social Policy. Macmillan Childs, S., Webb, P. and Marthaler, S. 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London: Routledge Walby, S (2011) The Future of Feminism. Cambridge, UK: Polity Read More