In recent years, there has been a wave of opposition to feminism, gender equality, and minority rights in various national and international contexts. While there is a growing number of works that examine anti-gender campaigns, less attention has been devoted to the potential consequences of the anti-gender mobilizations for the internal relations within socially progressive (feminist and LGBTQ+) organizations. The present article examines how the discursive boundary making within the progressive camp unfolds in the context of increased polarization around gender in two countries: Italy and Sweden. Instead of adopting a movement-countermovement view, we propose conceptualizing the discursive struggles around gender through the lens of a “field of contention.” Such a perspective allows us to see that the field of contention around gender is currently undergoing an intense process of transformation: the discursive boundaries between the feminist movement and the anti-gender movement have become increasingly blurred, and there are instances of discursive overlap between these two broad communities, which at times lead to cooperation across the boundary, all the while strengthening divisions within progressive movements.
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December 2024
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December 31 2024
WHO’S THE REAL FEMINIST? FEMINIST DISCURSIVE BOUNDARY MAKING IN THE CONTEXT OF ANTI-GENDER CAMPAIGNS*
Kerstin Jacobsson;
Kerstin Jacobsson
†Kerstin Jacobsson is Professor of Sociology at University of Gothenburg. Eva Karlberg is a lecturer in Sociology at Södertörn University, Elżbieta Korolczuk is Associate Professor at Södertörn University and University of Warsaw, and Anna Meeuwisse is Professor of Social Work at Lund University. All authors are equal contributors.
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Eva Karlberg;
Eva Karlberg
†Kerstin Jacobsson is Professor of Sociology at University of Gothenburg. Eva Karlberg is a lecturer in Sociology at Södertörn University, Elżbieta Korolczuk is Associate Professor at Södertörn University and University of Warsaw, and Anna Meeuwisse is Professor of Social Work at Lund University. All authors are equal contributors.
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Elżbieta Korolczuk;
Elżbieta Korolczuk
†Kerstin Jacobsson is Professor of Sociology at University of Gothenburg. Eva Karlberg is a lecturer in Sociology at Södertörn University, Elżbieta Korolczuk is Associate Professor at Södertörn University and University of Warsaw, and Anna Meeuwisse is Professor of Social Work at Lund University. All authors are equal contributors.
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Anna Meeuwisse
†Kerstin Jacobsson is Professor of Sociology at University of Gothenburg. Eva Karlberg is a lecturer in Sociology at Södertörn University, Elżbieta Korolczuk is Associate Professor at Södertörn University and University of Warsaw, and Anna Meeuwisse is Professor of Social Work at Lund University. All authors are equal contributors.
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Mobilization: An International Quarterly (2024) 29 (4): 561–579.
Citation
Kerstin Jacobsson, Eva Karlberg, Elżbieta Korolczuk, Anna Meeuwisse; WHO’S THE REAL FEMINIST? FEMINIST DISCURSIVE BOUNDARY MAKING IN THE CONTEXT OF ANTI-GENDER CAMPAIGNS. Mobilization: An International Quarterly 31 December 2024; 29 (4): 561–579. doi: https://doi.org/10.17813/1086-671X-29-4-561
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