SNEAK PREVIEW For additional information on adopting this title for your class, please contact us at 800.200.3908 x501 or [email protected] INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVES ON WOMEN Edited by Esther Wangari Towson University Bassim Hamadeh, CEO and Publisher Christopher Foster, General Vice President Michael Simpson, Vice President of Acquisitions Jessica Knott, Managing Editor Kevin Fahey, Marketing Manager Jess Busch, Senior Graphic Designer Melissa Barcomb, Acquisitions Editor Sarah Wheeler, Project Editor Stephanie Sandler, Licensing Associate Copyright © 2013 by Cognella, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reprinted, reproduced, transmitted, or utilized in any form or by any electronic, me- chanical, or other means, now known or hereaft er invented, including photocopying, microfi lming, and recording, or in any information retrieval system without the written permission of Cognella, Inc. First published in the United States of America in 2011 by Cognella, Inc. Trademark Notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trade- marks, and are used only for identifi cation and explanation without intent to infringe. 15 14 13 12 11 1 2 3 4 5 Printed in the United States of America ISBN: 978-1-60927-822-9 (pbk) Contents Introduction 1 PART I Conceptualizing Race, Class, Gender, Religion, and Nationality 1. The Foundation of Gender Identity 9 Cheryl A. Rubenberg 2. Gender, Race, and Class in Silicon Valley 19 Karen J. Hossfeld 3. Race, Class, Gender, and Women's Works 27 Teresa Amott and Julia A. Matthaei 4. Recasting the Middle East, North Africa, and Afghanistan 43 Valentine Moghadam PART II Women and Politics in a Global World 5. The Politics of Gender Equality 77 Sarah Henderson and Alana S. Jeydel 6. Under Western Eyes 113 Chandra Talpade Mohanty 7. Common Themes, Different Contexts 141 Cheryl Johnson-Odim 8. Analysing Gender in the Politics of the Third World 155 Georgina Waylen 9. Hierarchy and Class in Women’s Organizations 175 Gay Young Part III: Women and Employment in a Global Economy 10. The Sweeper Women of Structural Adjustment, or the Feminization of Social Security 195 Christa Wichterich 11. Paid and Unpaid Labor 225 Lourdes Beneria 12. Female Labor, Regional Crises, and Feminist Responses 255 Valentine Moghadam 13. From Structural Adjustment to the Global Trade Agenda 279 Valentine Moghadam 14. Women Miners, Human Rights and Poverty 311 Ingrid Macdonald Introduction Goals and Objectives of This Book his book is interdisciplinary: it takes a global perspective within the contexts of T gender relations, class, race, religion, and nationality. Th ese factors are neither static nor biological. Th ey change with economic development, technological advancement, class confl icts, and political actions, as Moghadam (2003) points out in this text. Amott and Matthaei (1991) argue that women’s struggle for the right to vote in the 19th century changed gender perceptions and gender relations. In “the 1960s, the transformation of race-ethnic identity into a source of solidarity and pride was essential to movements of people of color such as the Black Power and American Indian Movements.” To what extent do the institutionalization and applications of gendered roles, class, race, and religion into social, economic, and political policies impact women in particular, and people in general? Th ese factors shape and diff erentiate experiences among women and people typically. What are some of the challenges and mechanisms women face and use in their responses to such policies? Although women have diverse diff erences, locally and internationally, they have been able to organize and participate in socioeconomics and politics around is- sues that aff ect all women in their daily lives. Women are instrumental in eff ecting changes in the areas of policy through legislation, nongovernmental organizations (NGOS), and social movements at the grassroots level. Globally, women bring about changes through international conferences, such as the Beijing International Conference in 1995, the Fourth Conference on Women, and its adoption of the Beijing Platform for Action. Th ese eff orts demonstrate some steps taken by international organizations and the United Nations in improving women’s working conditions. Furthermore, it off ers some recommendations and information on the work done by women and men. Th e analyses of gender, race, religion, nationality, and class refl ect the way socially construed, internalized, and institutionalized terms shape the ways in which people are chosen for diff erent jobs, and how resources are distributed in society. Th e gendering process of jobs creates a subdivision of labor and hierarchies in the workforce, based on rankings in class, race, religion, and nationality, among other factors. Th ese factors facilitate the understanding of economic restructuring, Introduction | 1 international economic development, information on global markets, the feminization of labor, including national and international policies that are gendered. Th e analyses provide some insights in understanding how gendered perspectives are integrated into economics, politics, and global processes. For this, we turn to three major themes of investigation into how these factors are manifested in daily experiences—from local to global. Part One: The Conceptualization of Gender, Class, Race, Religion, and Nationality Th e socialization and construction of gender, race-ethnicity, class, nationality, and religion (among other factors diff erentiating people and societies) originate from family as an insti- tution, to public institutions. Th ey constitute ideologies, cultural norms, attitudes, and iden- tities that shape most perceptions about gender roles, class, race-ethnicity, nationality, and religious beliefs. At the public level, they are internalized and institutionalized, and become the determinants of policies, distribution, and accessibility to health care, employment, education, environmental safety, and immigration status, among other factors. Rothenberg (2005) points out that in a kinship society, gender relations and hierarchies make up the identity of an individual, and entitlements depend on these hierarchies. Morality, senior- ity, gender relations, and racial-ethnic privileges and structural arrangements are seen within the context of this culture: a patriarchal culture, in which domination and control are legitimized, and the role of a woman is that of a good mother and wife—an obedient helpmate. According to Waylen (1996) private and public spheres in this type of system seem separate, but they are, in fact, complementary. In various parts of Africa, gender roles overlap, especially in rural communities subject to agricultural production. Women’s roles revolve around domestic work, as well as food production. In a capitalist mode of produc- tion, patriarchal ideologies fi lter into the process of production, in which hierarchies are determined on the basis of gender, race-ethnicity, and class. For instance, Hossfeld (Paula Rothenberg 2005) points out that masculinity and femininity are constructed through the gendering of workplace by “reaffi rming traditional forms of femininity.” Although women work in non-female jobs (especially those in factories), their femininity is affi rmed by wear- ing make-up Such behavior inherently stems from upper-class women, who traditionally did not work. Hossfeld argues that women in the workplace face contradictions, and the “strategy on the part of management serves to devalue women’s productive worth.” Th e color-coding by sex—regardless of a woman’s occupation—assumes that in every house- hold, there is a man who is the breadwinner. As such, a woman’s job is supplementary and temporary, and does not deserve equal pay and benefi ts compared with that of a man. Th is generalization is erroneous, since female-headed households are on the rise, according to 2 | International Perspectives on Women Wangari. 1 In her study, she found the impacts of land registration in Mbeere, Kenya, re- sulted in the disruption of families, which led to an increase in female-headed households. Th e expansion of capital in a global market prefers cheap labor in order to minimize the cost of production, thus maximizing profi ts. Th e expansion of capital globally, depends on the unskilled labor of women and people of color, particularly in the Th ird World. Eisenstein2 points out that “women and girls toil away in maquiladora factories,” while the “global vil- lage” has been glorifi ed as a key to equality between the core and peripheral countries. Th e hegemony of political and economic decisions is dominated by the core countries, and those of peripheral nations forming alliances with the international structures of economic power, with race as a determining factor. Likewise, a regional context and global system of states and markets, according to Moghadam, infl uence each country’s social formation, and the roles and status of women. In the Middle East, for instance, women’s low status should be seen within the context of economic development and political changes. Islam as a religion alone, she argues, cannot be the determinant of the low status of women, since it is neither more nor less patriarchal than other major religions, such as Judaism and Christianity. Th e Islamic precepts and the application of legal codes should not be universalized, according to Moghadam. Part Two: Women and Politics in a Global World Waylen and Mohanty (1996; 1991) assert that