A dva n c e P r a i s e f o r Varieties of F e m i n i s m

“Breaking new ground in the study of comparative , this beautifully written and engaging book situates feminist activism in relation to changing gender regimes and gender orders within , the , the EU, and the UN system itself. Ferree’s astute analyses guarantee that this book will become a feminist classic.” —Mary Hawkesworth, Rutgers University

“Varieties of is a breathtakingly accomplished amalgam of feminist history, theory, and politics. Ferree interweaves theoretical and political analysis of liberal and socialist politics of gender to illuminate how turns into practical action. This book is a major contribution to feminist scholarship.” —Judith Lorber, author of Paradoxes of Gender and Breaking the Bowls: Degendering and Feminist Change

“Varieties of Feminism is a brilliant analysis of feminist politics, with a special focus on Germany and powerful implications for the United States and other advanced industrial democracies. is at the forefront of the new political turn in gender scholarship.” —Julia Adams,

“In light of her unmatched body of work on the comparative development of feminism in Germany and the United States, I assumed that Ferree had exhausted her insights on the topic. I was wrong. In this extraordinary book, she pulls together, integrates, and provides historical context for her prior work. The result is not only the definitive book on the topic, but one of the very best books ever written on the comparative development of a movement.” —Doug McAdam, Stanford University

“Too often, American feminism is assumed to be a global norm, but in this excellent comparative work, Ferree reveals that this is not the case. The book explores a variety of women’s movements across national settings and provides true insights into the promotion of women’s rights in other countries. A tour de force!” —Amy G. Mazur, Washington State University “Varieties of Feminism is both a magisterial history of the German women’s movement and a provocative rethinking of feminism in its different national and global incarnations. Challenging the theoretical dominance of the U.S. model of feminism, Ferree brilliantly argues that developments in Germany provide a better guide to the future trajectory of women’s struggles around the world.” —Leila J. Rupp, University of California, Santa Barbara

“In telling the story of the institutionalization of gender politics in Germany over the past half century, Ferree provides rich theoretical insights for understanding the specific ways in which gender intersects with other inequalities.” —William Gamson, Boston College

“The history of the German women’s movement is compelling in itself, but it is also an important demonstration of the errors of imagining feminism everywhere on the model of a dominant U.S. liberalism. National trajectories are varied, and gender issues woven in different ways into political, cultural, and personal histories. Though focused on the past, Ferree’s work helps us see the openness of the future.” —Craig Calhoun,

“Ferree’s work is a brilliant comparative and historical analysis. Her empirically rich and theoretically sophisticated account illuminates the diverse dilemmas and opportunities facing proponents of different varieties of feminism. The book offers an innovative approach to gender and politics that other scholars are sure to find compelling.” —Ann Shola Orloff, Northwestern University

“Myra Ferree’s important study of German feminism emphasizes complexity, intersectionality, inconsistencies, and strategic concerns. Because of the many vantage points from which she views the German feminist project, Ferree serves the study of feminism across the globe by offering a model for understanding its differences.” —Bonnie Smith, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

“Varieties of Feminism is a tour de force of social science and feminist theory. Ferree provides the theoretical tools for analyzing the ‘relational realism’ of systems of gender as well as a vision of what feminist political struggle might look like in the future.” —Lynne Haney, New York University Va r i e t i e s of F e m i n i sm

Va r i e t i e s of F e m i n i sm

German Gender Politics in Global Perspective

Myra Marx Ferree

Stanford University Press Stanford, California Stanford University Press Stanford, California ©2012 by the Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system without the prior written permission of Stanford University Press. Printed in the United States of America on acid-free, archival-quality paper. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Ferree, Myra Marx, author. Varieties of feminism : German gender politics in global perspective / Myra Marx Ferree. pages cm Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-8047-5759-1 (cloth : alk. paper)--ISBN 978-0-8047-5760-7 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Feminism--Germany--History. I. Title. HQ1623.F47 2012 305.420943--dc23 2011040194 Typeset by Bruce Lundquist in 10.5/15 Adobe Garamond