Women's Studies Commons^™

Matrilineality, Water Knowledge And Networks, And The Position Of Women In Rural Tanzania, Ruth Aernout, Sara Dewachter, Nathalie Holvoet

Journal of International Women's Studies

This article reports on a study of the effect of matrilineality on a community’s social fabric in the Morogoro region of Tanzania. We used water information-sharing networks as a proxy for social interaction, with water accessibility, functionality, and quality being highly problematic in the area under study. This is a situation that particularly affects women, who are generally responsible for household water provision yet are excluded from water management institutions. Drawing on network and survey data and focus group discussions, the differences in inter-gender interaction, inclusiveness, and women’s status were explored by comparing a matrilineal and mixed patri-matrilineal community. We …

Women’S Microenterprise And The Sdgs: Reframing Success In Women’S Economic Development In Sri Lanka, Melissa Langworthy

Journal of International Women's Studies

This research utilizes a capability approach to query the extent to which dominant conceptualizations of women’s micro-entrepreneurship enhance both economic and social development outcomes. Microenterprise programs speak directly to achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly regarding poverty (SDG 1), gender equality (SDG 5), and decent work (SDG 8). However, microenterprise programs are embedded in institutional and normative definitions that limit women as “entrepreneurial,” thereby affecting women’s microenterprise motivations, characteristics, and capabilities. As a result, women’s enterprises continue to be largely informal and home-based subsistence enterprises that offer a low-quality employment option and fail to deliver “empowerment” outcomes. …

The Emancipation Of A Harem Girl: Resisting The Gendered Division Of Space In Wafa Faith Hallam’S The Road From Morocco, Rachid Lamghari

Journal of International Women's Studies

This article examines the challenging of Orientalist and Western discourses and of patriarchal authority over Eastern women in Wafa Faith Hallam’s memoir The Road from Morocco. The conventional representation of these women is revisited as Saadia in the memoir debunks the passivity and docility with which they are associated by exercising her agency and trespassing the sacred cultural and physical frontiers. Regardless of being introduced to confinement in the private space of a harem since her infancy, Saadia manages to liberate herself first through leaving the allegedly sacred frontiers of the house and trespassing in public space which is discursively …

Balancing The Protection And Participation Of Refugee Women Through The Women, Peace, And Security Agenda: Notes From Turkey, Ebru Demir, Bilge Sahin, Irem Sengul

Journal of International Women's Studies

This article examines whether incorporating the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda of the United Nations Security Council into the international refugee regime may give refugee women greater potential to participate in decision-making processes. In addition to recognizing the need to protect women in conflict settings, the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda also promotes women’s participation in order to achieve sustainable peace. The article focuses on Turkey, which hosts the largest number of refugees globally. The article explores the extent to which the protection and participation of refugee women in Turkey are balanced in the activities of national and international actors, …

Gender Empowerment In Transoceanic Feminine Folklore And Shrines: A Kin Study Of Siddi Women’S Participation In Mai Misra Worship In Gujarat, India, Sayan Dey, Tias Maity, Tanmay Srivastava

Journal of International Women's Studies

The term Siddi refers to the African diaspora communities in India, who initially arrived in the 13th century with the Islamic invaders in Gujarat (then Sindh) as slaves, palace guards, traders, and musicians from the eastern parts of Africa, including Ethiopia, Zanzibar, Sudan, and Tanzania. In the 15th century, another group of Africans from South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique were brought to India by the Portuguese colonizers as slaves. The majority of the histories of the Siddi community are androcentric in nature, focusing on the contributions of African men and male spiritual figures towards the development of the Siddi community …

Reproductive Homonationalism And In/Ter/Dependence In Spain And Catalonia: “Feminazis” And Queer And Trans Reproduction, Doris Leibetseder, Leon Freude

Journal of International Women's Studies

Spain and Catalonia are timely and crucial examples for analyzing homonationalism and queer and trans reproduction with Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART). This essay employs Puar’s (2013) formulation of “homonationalism” as an ideology that privileges LGBTIQ people while simultaneously discriminating against other types of people. The Catalan independence process provides us with important insights into the relationship and interdependence between queer and trans reproduction and the state or nation. Queer and trans people’s reproduction is dependent on the laws of the state, the state depends on the reproduction of its population, and most Western EU-states want to appear as LGBTIQ-friendly. A …

The Other Dimensions Of Dalit Oppression: Tracing Intersectionality Through Ants Among Elephants, Arundhati Sen

Journal of International Women's Studies

This paper demonstrates how gender abuse is not merely restricted to hierarchical gender oppression but also operates within an intersectional framework where gender is intertwined with hierarchical caste exploitation. While revisiting White bourgeois feminism, bell hooks emphasizes the incorporation of different marginal perspectives to make feminism an all-encompassing radical movement, accessible to everyone. Inspired by the lens that hooks uses to interpret Black feminism and the Indian scholars who approach Dalit feminism from an intersectional standpoint, I analyze Sujatha Gidla’s autobiography Ants among Elephants (2017), a family story of a lower-middle-class rural South Indian Dalit woman. I argue for the …

Editor's Introduction, Kimberly Davis, Priyanka Tripathi, Catherine Ndinda

Journal of International Women's Studies

No abstract provided.

In The Summers, Christopher R. Deacy

Journal of Religion & Film

This is a film review of In the Summers (2023), directed by Alessandra Lacorazza.

The Evolution Of The Pan African Women’S Organization (Pawo): A Case Study Of Women’S Involvement In Pan-Africanism, Shukri Abdirahman Mohamed

Theses - ALL

The thesis investigates how PAWO has engaged with and defined African cultural values and practices, while also examining the social and political challenges it has faced and its prospects as a social and political organization. The research explores the formation of PAWO during liberation movements in Africa, when women played pivotal roles in the creation of new nations. As the continent transitioned from liberation movements to government development, PAWO underwent significant transformations influenced by socioeconomic events and social developments. Key factors shaping PAWO's evolution include the emergence of "femnocrats" as women gained formal political roles, a decline in local women's …

The Experience Of The Stigma Of Divorce For Christian Women In Violent Marriages, Sonya L. Cowart

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

No abstract provided.

Leilani's Fortune, William L. Blizek, Monica Blizek

Journal of Religion & Film

This is a film review of Leilani's Fortune (2024), directed by Loveleen Kaur.

Exploring Women’S Education And Employment Opportunities In India, Syria, And The Philippines, Emma R. Sarcol, Ines Coutinho, Elle Maguire, Helen C. Collins, Patricia A. Jolliffe Dr

The Qualitative Report

The implementation of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals in 2015 marked a new chapter in global development and laid the foundations for addressing inequalities that hinder holistic progress. However, gender gaps pose a significant threat to achieving these goals. Project DREAM (Developing Resilience, Education, Aspiration, and Motivation) sought to explore women’s sense of aspiration, achievement, and lived experience in India, Syria, and the Philippines, as well as develop pilot interventions to address gender disparities. Semi-structured interviews with 69 young women from India, Syria, and the Philippines informed the development of three interventions, namely an aspiration and job skills workshop …

When Communities Fall: A Critical Analysis Of Toni Morrison's Sula, Sami Saigh

Rushton Journal of Undergraduate Humanities Research

When women dare to self-actualize they frequently face barriers that tear their spirits down, leading to guilt, shame, and feelings of inadequacy. For the lineage of women in Toni Morrison’s Sula, these consequences are fatal for everyone. As these factors thwart fundamental social development, communal collapse becomes easier, leaving entire cultures vulnerable to erasure. Whether self-determination is expressed through promiscuity or properness, paradoxical moralism leaves no room for either. This essay explores how Morrison offers a retrospective look from the graveyard of a town while illustrating the impact of the loss of friends, lovers, and communities.

The Role Of Maasai Women In Traditional Conflict Resolution And Peace-Making: A Case Study In Tanzania, Naisiligaki Japhet Loisimaye

Journal of African Conflicts and Peace Studies

This paper has addressed the problem of traditional conflict in Maasai societies and the role of Maasai women in traditional conflict resolution and peace-making in Tanzania. This qualitative research analyzed if Maasai women are involved in traditional conflict resolution and peace-making and their roles in traditional conflict resolution and peace-making. The findings revealed from the interview process shows that due to strict Maasai traditions and nature of Maasai being male dominant, Maasai women are either not allowed to participate or get involved in the traditional conflict resolution and peace-making. As their roles towards conflict resolution and peace-making is not seen. …

The Authors

Textile Crossroads: Exploring European Clothing, Identity, and Culture across Millennia

Short professional biographies of the Contributors: Dimitra Andrianou, Giacomo Bardelli, Magali An Berthon, Tina Boloti, Cecilie Brøns, Ana Cabrera-Lafuente, Francesca Coletti, Roxana Coman, Catarina Costeira, Cristina Cumbo, Camilla Cziffery Nielsen, Klara Dankova, Anna Maria Desiderio, Kerstin Droß-Krüpe, Arianna Esposito, Astrid Fendt, Nade Genevska Brachikj, Francisco B. Gomes, Judith Goris, Audrey Gouy, Karina Grömer, Morten Grymer-Hansen, Mary Harlow, Susanna Harris, Sophia Larissa Hayda, Angela Huang, Floor Huisman, Alina Iancu, Zofia Kaczmarek, Marisa Kerbizi, Meghan Korten, Tetiana Krupa, Karolina Anna Kulpa, Lena Larsson Lovén, Ronja Lau, Yuliia Lazorenko, Susanne Lervad, Petra Linscheid, Christina Margariti, Maria João Melo, Elena Miramontes Seijas, Leyre Morgado-Roncal, …

The Euroweb Textile And Clothing Terminology Network And The Digital Atlas Of European Textile Heritage: Some Reflections And Results, Louise Quillien, Alina Iancu, Meghan Korten, Susanne Lervad, Joana Sequeira, Catarina Costeira

Textile Crossroads: Exploring European Clothing, Identity, and Culture across Millennia

One of the research areas of the EuroWeb project during the four years of the COST Action (November 2020 – October 2024) is the comparative study of textile and clothing terminologies in European languages across time. Inside the EuroWeb network, the research group on Textile and clothing terminologies has three topics of particular interest: 1. the specificities of these terminologies, and the strategies for naming textiles and garments; 2. the impact of European geography on textile and clothing terminologies, especially visible through textile terms formed after a toponym or through the circulation of loanwords; 3. the influence of textile and …

Exploring Dress, Gender, And Bodily Capital Through Pre- And Protohistoric Funerary Contexts: Case Studies From Southwestern Europe, Francisco B. Gomes, Catarina Costeira, Anna Maria Desiderio, Arianna Esposito, Giacomo Bardelli

Textile Crossroads: Exploring European Clothing, Identity, and Culture across Millennia

While uneven in their scope and reach, studies of dress and dress complements (fibulae, belt buckles, buttons, etc.) have a significant tradition within the broader study of the pre- and protohistory of Mediterranean Europe. Many of these studies, however, have had a strong focus on the typology of the dress complements and ornaments themselves, either as chronological indicators, ethnic markers, or both. In more recent years, however, a shift in research agendas has ushered in the introduction of new perspectives and new ways of thinking about dress and bodily adornment.

This contribution explores one such perspective in particular — namely, …

Displaying And Experiencing Dress Identities In Museums: Case Studies From The Etruscan Period To Modern Times, Karina Grömer, Astrid Fendt, Morten Grymer-Hansen, Anna Zimmermann, Kayleigh Saunderson, Camilla Cziffery Nielsen, Francisco B. Gomes

Textile Crossroads: Exploring European Clothing, Identity, and Culture across Millennia

Dress, clothes, and accessories receive and give meaning through their nearness to the human body. As P. Stallybrass writes: “Bodies come and go: the clothes that have received those bodies survive.” It is through the close interaction between dress and person that they both receive their meaning. Clothes shape the human body, and we in return shape our clothes. Dress communicates class, gender, nationality, and marital status, and we leave behind parts of us in its smell, wrinkles, wear, and tear: “Clothes receive the human imprint.” Archaeological and historical dress — no matter how ancient — remain intrinsically linked to …

Red Dyes From West To East In Medieval Europe: From Portuguese Manuscript Illuminations To Romanian Textiles, Irina Petroviciu, Paula Nabais, Maria J. Melo

Textile Crossroads: Exploring European Clothing, Identity, and Culture across Millennia

Red is the color par excellence, its symbolism being linked with protection and magic through its primary attributes, fire and blood. It was the predominant color from the earliest times, certainly during the Greek and Roman periods and into Medieval Europe, until blue became a competitor around the 13th century. Mineral pigments, like iron oxides, were the first red sources, used to draw lines, dots, or spots on cave walls or stones. Later, other mineral red pigments were also exploited: Cinnabar, natural mercury sulfide, since the Neolithic, and realgar, arsenic trisulfide, in Ancient Egypt. Scientific investigation revealed that, although …

Searching For The Exotic: Textiles, Orientalism, And Identities, Ana Cabrera, Roxana Coman, Karolina A. Kulpa, Tim Parry-Williams

Textile Crossroads: Exploring European Clothing, Identity, and Culture across Millennia

Textiles, with their economic, sartorial, and identity-constructing functions, have long been at the center of cultural discourses, whether narrative or visual. Objects of desire, but also objects of curiosity, textiles have been the topic of costume books, offered in diplomatic exchanges, collected by private collectors and museums alike, and have traveled, sometimes as sample books. Their Othering function did not only differentiate between members of different civilizations, but also the members of the same society, where clothing was used to signal rank and function. The case studies presented intend to elaborate further on the role and symbolism associated with textiles, …

Clothing In Transition: Social, Symbolic, And Legal Aspects Of Garments From Prehistory To The Early Byzantine Period, Tina Boloti, Francesca Scotti, Cristina Cumbo, Petra Linscheid

Textile Crossroads: Exploring European Clothing, Identity, and Culture across Millennia

Since ancient times, garments served a wide range of purposes: Either functional, providing protection by covering the body, or symbolic, as an element of non-verbal communication and marker of identity. In particular, this stimulates the development of specific characteristics in shape, decoration, or material composition, which generate distinctions among garments, as acknowledged by Roman jurists too.

These distinctions are determined by various factors. One important factor is the social meaning of clothing: There are garments for public life, garments expressing rank, garments suited for special professions, or garments intended for sacred/priestly rites reflecting particular religious symbols. And, of course, clothes …

Louise Farrenc: A Woman Composer's Voice Rising Out Of Obscurity, Allika Polowchak

All Zyzzogeton Presentations

Louise Farrenc (1804-1875) was a prolific composer, performer, and teacher of art music in Romantic-era France. Widely regarded during her lifetime for her incredible natural talent and hard work, her compositions fell into obscurity after her death due to general disinterest in women’s contributions to art. As Louise Farrenc started to become more recognized in the later 20th century, efforts were focused on reviving her instrumental works, but little is known about her choral and vocal pieces to this day.

Communicative Capacities Of German Marriage Portraits: Portrait Of A Daughter Of Dietrich Bromsen, Victoria Brey

Joyce Durham Essay Contest in Women's and Gender Studies

BreyAhh, portraiture: the Facebook, Instagram, and Tinder profiles of 1635. Portraiture has historically been one of the most powerful means for constructing and performing identity, whether viewers of portraits realize this or not. Rarely are portraits objective representations of their sitters. Instead, they are constructs, carefully crafted narratives about people’s identities that the people in the portraits want us, the viewers, to believe. Do they want to show us their authentic selves, though? Returning to the social media example—has anyone ever swiped right on a hot guy and discovered too late that he looks like a tortoise in real life? …

Ua68/6 Newsletter, Wku Gender & Women's Studies

WKU Administration Documents

Newsletter created by and about the WKU Gender & Women's Studies Program.

Ua19/16/2 Tennis Press Releases, Wku Athletic Media Relations

WKU Administration Documents

Press releases and match statistics for WKU tennis team in 2024.

Ua19/16/2 Softball Press Releases, Wku Athletic Media Relations

WKU Administration Documents

Press releases and game statistics for WKU softball team in 2024.

Ua1c11/122 Wku Panhellenic Council Photo Collection, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Photographs removed from Panhellenic Council scrapbooks.

Parodies Of Pleasure: Remedios Varo's Queer Surrealism In Narrative And Painting, Kathryn Everly

Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics - All Scholarship

Remedios Varo (1908-1963) wrote numerous surrealist texts that dialogue with her prolific artistic production. Alchemy, feminism, and psychoanalysis have been studied as central themes in her paintings, yet this paper focuses on humor and parody in Varo’s written works –including her letters, short stories, and dreams– to uncover the seminal ideas and images that emerge in her visual art. Humor and parody are fundamental links between Varo’s narrative and paintings. She embraces the spontaneity of the surrealist écriture automatique and the illogical amor fou but at the same time pushes the limits of surrealist dogma and creates a uniquely nonpatriarchal …

Ua19/16/2 Volleyball Press Releases, Wku Athletic Media Relations

WKU Administration Documents

Press releases and game statistics for WKU volleyball team in 2024.