THE POLITICS OF GENDER

Authors

  • Karin Gwinn Wilkins University of Texas

Abstract

Gender, like any other construct of social demarcation, embodies and perpetuates political systems of oppression. Feminist theory reminds us of the ways that artificial divisions into dichotomies of male and female serve to benefit groups in power. Critical theory implores us to recognize the intersections across gender, ethnicity/race, class, religious affiliation, sexual orientation and more. The underlying issues here concern systems of power, operating through the language and structure of development to bolster prominent institutions and to constrain potential for resistance.

Recognizing the connections across various dimensions that mark privilege and oppression, here I focus on gender as one illustration of this larger dynamic.

Author Biography

Karin Gwinn Wilkins, University of Texas

PhD, University of Pennsylvania, 1991. Associate Professor with the Department of Radio-TV-Film at the University of Texas at Austin, holding affiliations with the Center for Middle Eastern Studies and the Population Research Center. Currently, she holds an Abe Fellowship sponsored by the Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership. Her research focuses on development and international communication, as well as media and social change.

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Published

2005-05-27

Issue

No. 1 (2005)

Section

Articles