Sex Discrimination in Uncertain Times

Thornton, Margaret

doi:10.26530/oapen_459527

Cited by 4 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…Reaffirming the equality norms and addressing issues related to economic and social rights, maternity protection, and exploitation through prostitution, the Declaration informed the content of The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). Adopted in 1979, CEDAW constituted an important effort to redress the male bias in the UN-led human rights regime (Charlesworth 1995; Thornton 2010).…”

Section: From Liberal Feminism To Intersectionality: Theoretical Advamentioning

confidence: 99%

Feminisms, Women's Rights, and the UN: Would Achieving Gender Equality Empower Women?

Arat¹

2015

Am Polit Sci Rev

102

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Although all theories that oppose the subordination of women can be called feminist, beyond this common denominator, feminisms vary in terms of what they see as the cause of women's subordination, alternatives to patriarchal society, and proposed strategies to achieve the desired change. This article offers a critical examination of the interaction of feminist theories and the international human rights discourses as articulated at the UN forums and documents. It contends that although a range of feminisms that elucidate the diversity of women's experiences and complexities of oppression have been incorporated into some UN documents, the overall women's rights approach of the UN is still informed by the demands and expectations of liberal feminism. This is particularly evident in the aggregate indicators that are employed to assess the “empowerment of women.” In addition to explaining why liberal feminism trumps other feminisms, the article addresses the problems with following policies that are informed by liberal feminism. Noting that the integrative approach of liberal feminism may establish gender equality without empowering the majority of women, it criticizes using aggregate indicators of empowerment for conflating sources of power with empowerment and making false assumptions.

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Section: From Liberal Feminism To Intersectionality: Theoretical Advamentioning

confidence: 99%

Feminisms, Women's Rights, and the UN: Would Achieving Gender Equality Empower Women?

Arat¹

2015

Am Polit Sci Rev

102

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“…I also consider the fortunes of affirmative action (AA) legislation, as well as a number of other ill-fated initiatives designed to overcome the limitations of the SDA and effect substantive equality. The historical detail and doctrinal analysis are beyond the scope of the article and can be pursued elsewhere [3][4][5][6].…”

Section: Open Accessmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Political Contingency of Sex Discrimination Legislation: The Case of Australia

Thornton

2015

Laws

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There has been a marked shift away from social liberalism in many parts of the world which has profound ramifications for women, whose status remains contingent on the good graces of public institutions that remain resolutely masculinist. Neoliberalism, with its focus on the privatisation of public goods and promotion of the self within the market has become the dominant political ideology everywhere and is further undermining the interests of the majority of women. This essay will address the changing fortunes of sex discrimination legislation as a specific example of an initiative designed to improve the status of women. Australia will be used as a case study because of its passionate embrace of, first, social liberalism, and then, neoliberalism. Issues pertaining to affirmative action (positive action), intersection with human rights instruments, reporting requirements and incentives will also be addressed. Although Australia is a multi-jurisdictional federation, the essay will focus primarily on the federal arena in terms of legislative initiatives, policy and jurisprudence.

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“…If so many barriers faced by workers with caring responsibilities can be characterised as discrimination, why have our anti-discrimination laws been unable to challenge and transform them? There is extensive scholarship on the limitations of our anti-discrimination laws (Chapman, 2012;Charlesworth, 2004Charlesworth, , 2005Gaze, 2002;Gaze and Hunter, 2010;Hunter, 1992;Murray, 2005;Rees et al, 2008;Smith, 2006aSmith, , 2006bThornton, 1990Thornton, , 2010. In this paper, I want to focus on one particular aspect of the regulatory framework that limits its effectiveness: the law says 'do not discriminate', but does little to help people work out what discrimination is and how not to do it.…”

Section: Why Don't Anti-discrimination Laws Address the Problem?mentioning

confidence: 99%

How might information bolster anti-discrimination laws to promote more family-friendly workplaces?

Smith

2014

Journal of Industrial Relations

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Anti-discrimination laws by themselves have proven ineffective at countering discrimination against women and workers with caring responsibilities. This paper recommends ways that anti-discrimination laws could be made more effective by combining them with tools of information such as guidance materials. It examines the possible reasons for non-compliance and how different types of guidance materials could help address each of these compliance barriers. Ultimately, however, to achieve equality, organisations have to look internally and produce local and contextual information about how discrimination manifests and can be addressed, and this requires more than the provision of information by external agencies.

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Sex Discrimination in Uncertain Times

Cited by 4 publications

References 6 publications

Feminisms, Women's Rights, and the UN: Would Achieving Gender Equality Empower Women?

Feminisms, Women's Rights, and the UN: Would Achieving Gender Equality Empower Women?

The Political Contingency of Sex Discrimination Legislation: The Case of Australia

How might information bolster anti-discrimination laws to promote more family-friendly workplaces?

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