Money-earning activities and empowerment experiences of rural migrant women in the city

Abstract

Synopsis -This article investigates empowerment in relation to money-earning activities in the context of rural-to-urban migrant women in poor families in Turkey. Acknowledging the exploitative character of employment accessible to migrant women, it asks whether working migrant women gain something in their families in return for their economic contributions. The article points to the traditional role of men as the heads of the family and family honor (namus) as the cultural basis which acts against the empowerment of migrant women in Turkish society. It attempts to understand empowerment as articulated by the women themselves based upon their lived experiences. While doing so, it examines women's positions in the family with regard to their role in the intra-family decision making, their degree of control over their earned money, and male violence in the family. It further discusses whether or not the experiences of migrant women can be considered as empowerment, and in this way it aims to contribute to the theoretical development of the concept ''empowerment.'' D

Gender Inequality in Schooling: The Case of Turkey

“…In addition, as in other parts of the Muslim world, Islam is resurgent in Turkey, and its implications for the status of women are not well understood. Earlier research that linked Islam to female subordination (Toprak 1995) is contrasted with recent research that has highlighted the diversity of Islamic discourse on gender, including the articulation of a feminist perspective (Göle 1998) and claims that a commitment to Islam can empower women (Erman 2001). As such, the relationship between Islam and female education may be highly contingent.…”

“…Other reforms included equal rights for women and men in divorce and inheritance and, in 1934, the right of women to vote in national elections. While the reforms are generally viewed as having a positive effect on women's lives, educated women from urban backgrounds were the primary beneficiaries (Erman 1998;Kagıt çıbaşı 1995).…”

“…Turkish society is often described as patriarchal with a rigid gender-based division of labor (Arat 1989;Bolak 1997;Erman 2001;Kandiyoti 1988). Signs of traditional patriarchal beliefs are evident in a variety of cultural practicesthe head covering worn by women, arranged marriages, bride-price, physical segregation of the sexes within the household, and the preference for sons (Atalay et al 1993;Kagıt çıbaşı 1995;Kandiyoti 1977;Timur 1972).…”

“…Signs of traditional patriarchal beliefs are evident in a variety of cultural practicesthe head covering worn by women, arranged marriages, bride-price, physical segregation of the sexes within the household, and the preference for sons (Atalay et al 1993;Kagıt çıbaşı 1995;Kandiyoti 1977;Timur 1972). Commonly held beliefs reinforce the centrality of the roles of wife and mother for females, which are assumed to require little education beyond basic literacy, while males assume the role of breadwinner and, as the head of the household, the protector of family honor (Erman 2002). This division of labor is enshrined in the popular proverb "Kız evde, oglan işte" ("Girl at home, boy at work").…”

The Clothing Industry in Istanbul in the Era of Globalisation and Fast Fashion

“…6. Here, we need to be sensitive to cultural factors and avoid what Erman et al (2002) call "the trap of Western ethnocentricism" (emphasising individualism against family and community). We have never felt any resentment on the part of these women when they explained their priorities with respect to the significance of family and children.…”