From state feminism to market feminism?

Abstract

This article argues that the concept of 'state feminism' no longer adequately captures the complexity of emerging feminist engagements with new forms of governance. It suggests that 'market feminism' offers a new conceptual framework from which feminist engagements with the state can be analysed and evaluated, and the changes within state feminism can be understood. The article documents the growing feminist embrace of the logic of the market, which manifests itself in changed practices and priorities. The article gives examples of 'market feminism' and argues that the move from state feminism to market feminism impacts on both the political practices and policy priorities of women's policy agencies.

From feminism to FemInc.ism: On the uneasy relationship between feminism, entrepreneurship and the Nordic welfare state

“…In Sweden, this policy has marginalized women in academia (Sandström et al 2010). Kantola & Squires (2012) have coined the term market feminism to describe how neoliberalism and new forms of governance, as well as changes in the feminist movement from strong national movements to more loosely coupled transnational networks, are changing feminist engagement with public policy. Feminist action is becoming increasingly mediated through private sector organizations that operate operating according to the logic of the market.…”

“…They, therefore, use arguments that are couched in terms of 'efficiency', 'resource utilization', and 'evidence-based practices', which also transforms their critique. Kantola & Squires (2012) claim that radical feminist critique might be difficult to sustain under such conditions, for example.…”

“…This is, in our view, a phenomenon in search for a name. The term market feminism, as described by Kantola & Squires (2012) something other than merely an increase in economic clout or economic parity with men through business ownership, which is often how gender equality is assumed in entrepreneurship research (Gatewood et al 2014). …”

Cosmopolitismo feminista contra globalización

“…Tornada en una teoría política discursiva, meramente representacional, desconectada de lo colectivo, lo social y lo material y sin posible conexión con las relaciones de poder subyacentes a toda experiencia, es fácilmente asimilada en los discursos y propuestas políticas de las instituciones defensoras del proyecto neoliberal; podemos decir que es incluso cooptada por esas instituciones (Calkin 2015). Así, la estrategia de cooptación ha sido observada por las feministas (Hunt 2002, Kantola & Squires 2012, Mohanty 2013, quienes alertan del peligro de las políticas pro-mujeres (por ejemplo las políticas denominadas Business-woman) que acaban vaciando de contenido las tesis de transformación de las sociedades. Es entonces cuando el discurso de "justicia-de-género" se hace compatible con formas de prácticas económicas y de desarrollo contaminadas por el neoliberalismo más aberrante y deshumanizador 2 .…”

Domestic minor sex trafficking and the detention-to-protection pipeline

“…For antitrafficking advocates, neo-abolitionist interventions are mounted to reform an unresponsive state oblivious to the exploitative forced labor practices taking place in its own backyard. Yet, rather than focus on the intersecting racial, economic, and gendered root causes of the problem or the devastating effects wrought by neoliberal economic policies, this brand of abolitionism strives to bring the state back; namely by underwriting carceral expansion and expanding the reach of the criminal and juvenile justice systems through what Kantola and Squires (2012) describe as a form of ''roll-out neoliberalism,'' a process where state authority, control, and power are delegated to non-state anti-trafficking actors such as NGO advocates and social service providers. As illuminated by some of my research findings, advocacy and social service efforts have been leveraged to expand the anti-trafficking law enforcement apparatus and to affirm its underlying goals such as arrest, incarceration, and prosecution of traffickers.…”