Reframing the language of human rights? Political group contestations on women’s and LGBTQI rights in European Parliament debates

Ahrens, Petra; Gaweda, Barbara; Kantola, Johanna

doi:10.1080/07036337.2021.2001647

Cited by 21 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 34 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…They have highlighted the productive nature of this rhetoric, which redefines the gender equality field by imbuing it with new illiberal and ultraconservative meanings (cf. Ahrens et al, 2021). As argued by Pető (2021, p. 319), the "illiberal offer" consists of "opposing 'gender ideology' and political correctness [while] also offer[ing] a livable, viable alternative centered on the family, the nation, religious values, and freedom of speech."…”

Section: Conceptualizing Gendered Illiberalismmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Pető, 2021) in two different countries and across the EU/non-EU divide. While the article draws on the insights of the growing literature on "anti-gender" mobilizations (see for instance Graff & Korolczuk, 2021;Grzebalska & Pető, 2018;Korolczuk & Graff, 2018;Kováts & Põim, 2015;Lombardo et al, 2021), it aims to contribute to the strand that focuses on the constructive projects and the new "politics of knowledge" offered by the opponents of gender equality (Ahrens et al, 2021;Bracke & Paternotte, 2016;Paternotte & Verloo, 2021). Thus, the analytical focus is not on the dismantling and destructive powers of illiberal forces in politics.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The Gendered Discourses of Illiberal Demographic Policy in Poland and in Russia

Gaweda

2022

PaG

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Despite being dissimilar cases, both Poland and Russia exhibit strong anti-liberal and democratic backsliding tendencies. Concomitantly, politicians are spreading a demographic moral panic, employing the argument that both nations are in danger of demise. There is scaremongering concerning below-replacement population growth rates and, in parallel, a tightening grasp on reproductive health rights and a growing fear of non-binary gender identities, people of color, and homosexuality. The political anti-gender mobilization in Poland in the 2010s and the gendered anti-Western and anti-gay conspiracy narratives in Russia are examples of this phenomenon. How are the policy responses to “demographic crises” constructed and gendered in political discourses today? What lies behind it and what is its role in illiberal politics? In this article, I discuss the current demographic discourses in Poland and in Russia. I argue that the politics of rallying against “demographic crises” surfaced on the wave of growing dominance of ultraconservative and nationalist discourses in East-Central Europe in response to perceived socio-economic pressures. I demonstrate how Polish and Russian politicians have been utilizing nativism, familialism, and “tradition” discourses for reasons of political legitimacy and expediency. Looking at political debates and concrete demographic strategies, I trace how the rhetoric of “democratic crises” is deployed to shore up illiberalism in both countries.

show abstract

Section: Conceptualizing Gendered Illiberalismmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Gendered Discourses of Illiberal Demographic Policy in Poland and in Russia

Gaweda

2022

PaG

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Some studies examine the role of lawmakers in bringing human rights issues into parliamentary debates. 51 However, other studies investigate the role of parliamentary opposition and, among functions of opposition, identify those related to preserving democratic values, such as liberty, political equality, and the rule of law. 52,53,54 All in all, parliaments in liberal democracies are institutions of direct oversight of human rights and act as a public space where issues related to the protection of human rights are put on the political agenda and discussed.…”

Section: Covid-19 Pandemic and Parliament As An Arena Of Human Rights...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Appeals to Human Rights in the Context of Managing the COVID-19 Pandemic: Analysis of Government Hours in the Lithuanian Parliament in 2020–2021

Valentinavičius

Morkevičius

Žvaliauskas

et al. 2022

POL

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The securitization of the COVID-19 pandemic allowed governments in democratic countries to introduce extraordinary management measures that involved limiting various human rights. However, sound democratic governance always requires public debate on any policies introduced. These debates occur in multiple arenas and the parliament is among the most notable. In the context of human rights, some studies identified parliament as one of the most important agencies that promote human rights protection and oversee executive authorities (Lyer, 2019; Ncube, 2020). This article examines whether and how Lithuanian parliamentarians and government members addressed human rights during the Seimas debates when issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic were discussed. It investigates whether the Seimas could be considered an important agent contributing to the oversight of human rights in Lithuania. The article employs transcripts from the Seimas plenary debates as a data source, particularly speeches from the government question time from 2020.03 to 2021.01. The results of the qualitative thematic analysis revealed that human rights were generally not the main topic of the COVID-19 pandemic debates on the Seimas floor during government hours. It also showed that the attitudes of political parties toward specific human rights tended to shift when they switched from the opposition to the ruling majority and vice versa.

show abstract

“…In sharp contradiction, anti-gender groups known as 'reframers' (Ahrens et al, 2021) strongly opposed the above constructions by problematizing a competition of rights with anti-gender arguments. Here, the radical-right populist and Eurosceptic groups ECR and 14 VoteWatch (2021) FEMM resolution (as whole).…”

Section: Debating the Content Of The Rightmentioning

confidence: 99%

United in Crisis: Abortion Politics in the European Parliament and Political Groups' Disputes over EU Values

Berthet

2022

J of Common Market Studies

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Safe and legal access to abortion is precondition for gender equality. Yet, in many EU Member States they remain controversial, endangered or absent. Recently, the European Parliament passed a resolution articulating a defence for a right to abortion in the EU: the Matić resolution. Via an analysis of debates and parliamentary processes around the resolution, this article analyses the different discursive constructions of a right to abortion within the EP by political groups, the different meanings attributed to EU values during abortion debates, and the impact of these constructions on gender equality policymaking in the EP. It found that internal attacks on abortion were increasingly constructed as alien to EU values despite efforts by opponents to reframe such values. Although EU values are undefined, attempts to renegotiate a common EU identity around shared values, even symbolically, are possible because they are dynamic and prone to facilitating unity during crises.

show abstract

Reframing the language of human rights? Political group contestations on women’s and LGBTQI rights in European Parliament debates

Cited by 21 publications

References 34 publications

The Gendered Discourses of Illiberal Demographic Policy in Poland and in Russia

The Gendered Discourses of Illiberal Demographic Policy in Poland and in Russia

Appeals to Human Rights in the Context of Managing the COVID-19 Pandemic: Analysis of Government Hours in the Lithuanian Parliament in 2020–2021

United in Crisis: Abortion Politics in the European Parliament and Political Groups' Disputes over EU Values

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About