Women's Studies Commons^™

A Hidden History: Women's Activism In Ethiopia, Gemma Burgess

Journal of International Women's Studies

In Ethiopia a woman's identity is linked to her family and the prescribed gender role as a mother and home-maker, yet throughout Ethiopia's history there are examples of women who have roles that extend beyond the home and family into public, political life. This paper briefly describes this dominant gender identity of Ethiopian women before charting the changes to Ethiopian politics and women's place within them. It discusses how the shift to democratic politics opened new spaces for women's civil society activism. However, more recent political moves towards greater repression of civil society have closed the space for women's public, …

Female Entrepreneurship In A West African Context: Network, Improvisation And Dependency, Anniken Førde

Journal of International Women's Studies

This article addresses gender and entrepreneurship in a West African context. Through a case study of the network Les Femmes Entrepreneurs in Ngaoundéré, North Cameroon, gendered spaces and how these are being articulated, maintained and changed are analysed. The Cameroonian female entrepreneurs have a broad understanding of entrepreneurship, including all kinds of improvisation to survive and fight poverty. The network consists of women performing a multitude of activities, using Les Femmes Entrepreneurs as a social and economic safety net as well as to gain access to international financial support. Their entrepreneurial practices challenge established narratives of entrepreneurship. It is argued …

Muslim Women And Girls: Searching For Democracy And Self-Expression, Theresa Renee White, Jennifer Maria Hernandez

Journal of International Women's Studies

This project captures the stories of Muslim women and girls, and the individual ways in which they construct female identity and exercise religious freedom as a form of democracy and self-expression. Much has been written about Muslim women, their dress, hijabs, veils and more recently burqas (Shirazi, 2001; MacDonald, 2006; Haddah & Smith et al., 2006; McLarney, 2009), in the wake of the 9/11 events. Scholars have noted the increasing construction of hate, fear, and misunderstanding, as well as increasing incidences of “Islamophobia” through the construction of Muslims as “the other”. Others have focused on Muslim women’s negotiations of religious …

Women In The Second Egyptian Parliament Post The Arab Spring: Do They Think They Stand A Chance?, Laila El Baradei, Dina Wafa

Journal of International Women's Studies

Egyptian women were very active on the streets during the 25 January Revolution, both in the demonstrations and in the subsequent elections, showing very high rates of participation as voters, yet surprisingly, very low rates of representation in the 2012 parliament. The current study seeks to explore different views, expectations and perceptions of Egyptian women regarding women’s role in the forthcoming 2013 parliamentary elections, and to identify what alternative measures are needed to strengthen women’s representation in parliament, both quantitatively and qualitatively.

The methodology utilized relied on a literature review in addition to a quantitative and qualitative analysis of the …

Sex And Selfhood: What Feminist Philosophy Can Learn From Recent Ethnography In Ho Chi Minh City, Mathew A. Foust

Journal of International Women's Studies

This article explores the connection of class dynamics to the moral agency of sex workers and their clients. It revisits the analyses of several contemporary feminist theorists, placing these analyses in dialogue with a recent ethnographic study of the sex work industry in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. In light of this comparative analysis, it is argued that accurate understanding and assessment of the moral agency of sex workers and their clients requires attunement to the complex and evolving class dynamics within which each is situated. Thus, while traditional frameworks for approaching this subject are useful, they are ultimately inadequate.

Changing Status Of Women And The Phenomenon Trafficking Of Women For Transactional Sex In Nigeria: A Qualitative Analysis, Clementina A. Osezua

Journal of International Women's Studies

This paper examines the changing status of Bini women occasioned by the upsurge and endemic nature of the phenomenon of trafficking of women for the purpose of transactional sex. It engaged ethnographic methods of data collection with the use of family based interviews, focus group discussions using vignette stories, life histories, and key informant interviewing. Data were analyzed based on emerged themes. Findings revealed that “successful” trafficked Bini women enjoyed high socio-economic status in their families of procreation especially where family members were the direct recipients of the proceeds from transactional sex. Most mothers of “successfully” trafficked victims wielded greater …

Quality Of Life Among Thai Sex Workers: How Important Are Work, Educational And Personal Characteristics In Shaping Subjective Well-Being?, Elizabeth Monk-Turner

Journal of International Women's Studies

Little work explores subjective well-being (SWB) differences among unique populations. This study rests on a data from commercial female sex workers (CFSW) that was collected in Thailand during January and February 2007. Past research in SWB indicates that women who have more formal education, those who feel positively about their income rank and working conditions, and those who feel connected to others in their community report greater well-being compared to others. Moreover, Biswas-Diener and Diener (2006) found that sex workers in Calcutta were generally satisfied with their personal domains. Most Thai sex workers, in our sample, were generally satisfied with …

Brooks Better Not Come Back, Helena E. Yang

SURGE

Every time a new season of the Bachelorette starts, I tell myself that I won’t watch this season—that I won’t give in to the trashiness and the petty drama which is the Bachelor. But I can’t help it. Season after season I’m hooked and 17 seasons later… here I am. [excerpt]

Fearless: Professor Janet Powers And Linnea Goebel, Janet M. Powers, Linnea C. Goebel

SURGE

This week we would like to recognize Professor Janet Powers and recent graduate Linnea Goebel ’13 for their work in Bosnia this summer helping to set up a group of female embroiderers with an Amazon Marketplace account to sell their wares on the internet. [excerpt]

"Wee Women's Work": Women And Peacebuilding In Northern Ireland, Amanda E. Donahoe

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

International norms on intrastate conflicts, such as United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325, call for women to participate in peace processes in countries emerging from conflict and civil strife, including those divided by identity-based conflict. However, scholars of post-war recovery in international relations and comparative politics have raised questions about the extent and effect of women’s participation in peace processes, and in politics more generally, in divided societies given underlying social, economic, and political barriers that impeded access to decisive or authoritative political decision-making. A critical question in the literature on women’s participation in post-conflict reconciliation-related dialogue and joint action …

Plain & Simple: The Will To Live Sustainably In An Unsustainable World, Brandi Nichole Button

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Sustainability is a buzzword covering a variety of fields and subjects. For the purposes of my research sustainability is “the ability to keep going over the long haul. As a value, it refers to giving equal weight in your decisions to the future as well as the present” (Gilman 1). The sustainability movement refers to activists, educators and researchers who are dedicated to finding high quality ways of living in the world that are environmentally benign for all who are now living as well future generations to come (Gilman 1). This research focuses on three women who engage in voluntary …

Being The Beautiful Fool, Ashley N. Gore

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Ernest Hemingway wrote to F. Scott Fitzgerald that “The good parts of a book may be only something a writer is lucky enough to overhear or it may be the wreck of his whole damn life — and one is as good as the other” (305). With that, I created a collection of short stories that analyzes my generation of women’s struggles. Framing the thesis are two stories involving three women, Lindsey, Jenny, and Sarah, “The Generation of Discontent” and “Revisions,” with the characters attempting to sort through love, success, and happiness in society. The piece “The Bachelor” has Amanda …

The Taste Of Mathematics: Caroline Herschel At 31, Laura Long

Journal of Humanistic Mathematics

The poem brings to life how Caroline Herschel (1750-1848) learned mathematics from her brother William as they began to work as professional astronomers.

Theoris, Jeanne. The Rebellious Life Of Mrs. Rosa Parks., Carol Shelton

Journal of Interdisciplinary Feminist Thought

No abstract provided.

Osborn, Tracy L. How Women Represent Women: Political Parties, Gender, And Representation In The State Legislatures., Arlene Violet

Journal of Interdisciplinary Feminist Thought

No abstract provided.

Does My Hair Bother You? Part 2, Adrienne M. Ellis

SURGE

I stopped shaving my legs in May. The decision to quit shaving was part social experiment, but a lot of it had to do with NOT HAVING TO SHAVE MY LEGS ANYMORE.

Honestly I didn’t make the decision to stop shaving my leg hair as some sort of feminist statement. I really just found it stupid how society pressures women to have smooth “sexy” legs. How did this pressure begin? Historically women didn’t shave their legs or underarms in the United States; however, hair removal was a common cultural practice in many other parts of the world such as …

Salary Differentials Based On Gender And Deafness At The Pennsylvania School For The Deaf 1840 To 1900, Brittany Turner

Undergraduate University Honors Capstones

Salary differences based on gender are generally known to exist and particularly within the educational workplace; however, deafness can also be a factor in pay difference. This study investigates the stereotype of white, hearing male dominance as well as the assumption of increased discrimination after the triumph of oralism at the Milan Congress of 1880 so that deafness resulted in a greater salary discrimination than gender. Sources include archival documents of financial records and annual reports from the school to Congress of the Pennsylvania School for the Deaf (PSD) from 1840 to 1900. The surprising results of the study add …

Justice Florence Kerins Murray: The Legacy Of A Pioneer In The Rhode Island Courts, Marian M. Desrosiers Ph.D.

Journal of Interdisciplinary Feminist Thought

This essay discusses the professional and personal life of Florence Kerins Murray (1916-2004), a senator and judge, whose career had a profound effect onRhode Islandgovernment, public service, and the judiciary. The author uses twenty oral history interviews conducted by the author from 2007-12 with men and women working in the courts, in state and local governments, in public service organizations, and in the media. The research was funded by a scholar grant from the Rhode Island Council on the Humanities.

The Respectability Trap: Gender Conventions In 20th Century Movements For Social Change, Georgina Hickey

Journal of Interdisciplinary Feminist Thought

An analysis of how a variety of women in 19th and 20th century movements for social change in the United States negotiated normative gender expectations in both their activism and their personal lives. While challenging norms or using traditional norms as a part of a movement tactic are both common in social movements, women leaders still sometimes found themselves in a ‘respectability trap’ when they reflexively applied the dictates of respectable behavior. In these moments, the often invisible privileges attached to the social recognition of a woman’s respectability – and implied morality – become visible. Women who eschewed traditional norms …

Daigler, Mary Jeremy. Incompatible With God’S Design: A History Of The Women’S Ordination Movement In The U.S. Roman Catholic Church., John Rok

Journal of Interdisciplinary Feminist Thought

No abstract provided.