Mobility Towards Work and Politics for Women in Kerala State, India: A View from the Histories of Gender and Space

Abstract

In this paper, historical analysis and qualitative fieldwork are combined to question the belief that recent efforts in Kerala to induct women into local governance and mobilize poor women into self-help groups implies continuity with the earlier history of women's mobility into the spaces of paid work and politics. For a longer view, the histories of gender-coding of spaces and of women's mobility into paid work and politics are examined. In the twentieth century, while the subversive potential of paid work was contained through casting it within 'feminine terms', politics was unquestionably 'unfeminine space'. However, recent efforts have not advanced women's mobility in any simple sense. The subversive potential of women's mobility towards work in self-help groups is still limited. In local governance, unlike the experience of an earlier generation of women, the ability to conform to norms of elite femininity now appears to be a valuable resource.

Performing Participatory Citizenship – Politics and Power in Kerala'sKudumbashreeProgramme

“…Such active participation within Kudumbashree groups can also be the first step towards a local political career. The reservation of 33 per cent of seats for women within local government institutions provides opportunities for those who have demonstrated their competence and leadership potential within neighbourhood groups and the ADSs: evidence from our field sites and elsewhere (Devika and Thampi, 2010) shows that this can be one path towards women's engagement with formal politics.…”

The Gendering of Entrepreneurship Context

“…In this section we present emerging themes from the review of the literature. Generally, the literature on geography and space concentrates on how gender is distributed in space and place, the mechanisms spatial constraints influence women, on elaborating different spaces such as urbanity or rurality (Forsberg, 2001b); workplaces, household and homes (Estrada, 2002); specific peoples (Abu-Rabia-Queder & Karplus, 2013; Devika & Thampi, 2010;Essers & Benschop, 2009), countries or groups of women and their role in creating, influencing and changing space and place (Essers & Benschop, 2007;Estrada, 2002;Kern, 2013;Rudaz & Debarbieux, 2012;Ude, 2008). We subsequently focus on three themes: the discussion around how to conceptualise the spatial context, informed by geography, gender and entrepreneurship studies; the paradox of empowering women and the debate around mumpreneurship.…”

The Gendering of Entrepreneurship Context

“…In this section we present emerging themes from the review of the literature. Generally, the literature on geography and space concentrates on how gender is distributed in space and place, the mechanisms spatial constraints influence women, on elaborating different spaces such as urbanity or rurality (Forsberg, 2001b); workplaces, household and homes (Estrada, 2002); specific peoples (Abu-Rabia-Queder & Karplus, 2013; Devika & Thampi, 2010;Essers & Benschop, 2009), countries or groups of women and their role in creating, influencing and changing space and place (Essers & Benschop, 2007;Estrada, 2002;Kern, 2013;Rudaz & Debarbieux, 2012;Ude, 2008). We subsequently focus on three themes: the discussion around how to conceptualise the spatial context, informed by geography, gender and entrepreneurship studies; the paradox of empowering women and the debate around mumpreneurship.…”