Feminism : A Transnational Feminist Approach

Sex trafficking is a global problem that involves the exploitation and abuse of girls as well as women. This paper will discuss the problem, with an emphasis on the views expressed by Paola Monzini in her book Sex Traffic: Prostitution, Crime and Exploitation. The paper will look at the causes, consequences and prevalence rates of sex trafficking and will consider the impact of such factors as globalization and women’s poverty in perpetuating the problem or making it worse. The paper will conclude with a discussion of the ways in which a human rights perspective might translate into positive action to eliminate the trafficking of girls and women.

Claire E. Sterk 's article Tricking and Tripping: Fieldwork on Prostitution in Era of AIDS ' published by Social Change Press in 2000 takes into account the patterns and procedures that anthropologists take into practice during fieldwork. She provides some useful insights and learnt lessons during her studies with prostitutes. She also provides a close and intimate account of their lives and mental state in their own words. Her findings are substantiated with proper examples in the accounts of the daily lives of these women. Unlike most student’s expectation of fieldwork as a leisure activity at some serene place, Sterk observes the pain associated with the lifestyle and brings into light some important patterns and procedures that anthropologists must consider while interviewing a research group.

Brennan explored the women's economic survival strategies in the face of extreme poverty, and for most, single motherhood. In What's Love Got to Do with It? Transnational Desires and Sex Tourism in the Dominican Republic the sex workers, and this sex tourism are more than a means of survival they are an advancement strategy that hinges on participants successful performance. This type of performance is a relationship of convenience and not love. However, what is new for sex workers is how they turned a commercialized sexual transaction into a marriage as transaction operation in a globalized world where legal crossing of national borders requires passports and visas.

The first assumption argues that “western” feminist discourses emphasize that all women are bound together by a shared oppression and are powerless (53-54). Mohanty systemically explores this theory through an in depth analysis of five categories in which women of the third world are traditionally presented as homogenous victims by “western” feminist. The first two categories, women as victims of male violence and women as universal dependents, arguably offer the most straightforward deconstruction of the gendered body of knowledge that is power. Women, especially women of the third world, are all seen as victims of male violence and control (54). All women are defined as powerless, and all men are defined as powerful (55). Similarly, all women are defined as powerless dependents in the second category. Mohanty argues, “this is because descriptive gender differences are transformed into the divisions between men and women” (55). This division possesses a privileged position as the explanation for the oppression of women (56). Therefore, women are seen as a powerless group no matter what the historical or cultural situation because they are deemed so prior to any analysis (56).

Lydia’s Open Door by American Anthropologist Patty Kelly is an intriguing case study about both the hidden and not so hidden aspects of sex work in Chiapas, Mexico. Her book proves the usefulness of ethnographic works where she engages with unconventional ways of knowing in order to determine the complex relationships that help to reproduce gender inequality. Lydia’s Open Door contextualizes prostitution within a political and economic framework revealing how it is impossible to diagnose one without the others. She uses both macro and micro-analysis to deconstruct the variability in how prostitution is practiced, regulated and perceived through space and time. Throughout her ethnography she discusses how globalization and

The author begins her reading explaining different views and what they mean. She uses these two views to argue that in order to understand the status of women in Europe, demands consideration of the perspectives of these typically illegal workers. The purpose of this reading is to destabilize the two-sided tension by foregrounding how the women who are being discussed talk about themselves and their projects. In the first part of the reading is describing the contours of the current migration of women to Europe and how it became characterized in the “trafficking” discourse. The second part discussed the problematic politics of defining some women as victims, and others as helpers. The last part of the reading discusses the position that

In this essay I will discuss constrained sexual subjects, such as black female sexual subjects in Patricia Hill Collin’s chapter titled “The Sexual Politics’ of Black Womanhood” in her book “Black Feminist Thought” in comparison with Gayle Rubin’s article “Thinking Sex: Notes for Radical Theory of the Politics of Sexuality.” In this essay, I will compare and contrast both theorists on the topic of black female sexual subjects in the context of constrained sexual subjects; and with Rubin’s sex-positive theories, her sexual hierarchy theories, and her desire to create an autonomous sexuality theoretical focus. I will compare how intersectional each theorist is and how they may negate or buttress the other theorist’s theories, and also discuss

Daddy’s princess. Big brother’s responsibility. Daddy’s little girl. Some people view these as a sweet pet names for young ladies, but these verbal cues inexplicitly condition women to view themselves as the property of men starting at a young age. These learned notions may take hold as women begin to develop. As young girls mature, they find themselves striving to please their fathers and other male figures as one of their main aspirations in life due to this conditioning from society. (Rholetter p. 1) The submissive nature of young girls is a common theme in literature, but looking through the Feminist Lens offers readers a better understanding of the struggle surrounding remaining submissive or demanding power occurs.

In this paper, I will be exploring Black sexuality, particularly as it relates to Black women and the stereotypes the group faces. Previous research is entrenched in white dominance, so the majority of comparisons are to that group. Any call to change that I posit is a call to change the way that we look at Black sexuality, not Black sexuality itself; it is vital to not pathologize the behaviors of a

The purpose of this paper is to analyze to main questions. The first part of the paper will define transnational feminism and identify key factors within a transnational perspective. Another part will be discussing some transnational feminist critiques of mainstream “white/Western” feminism and will also give ideas that a transnational feminist would suggest in order to make positive changes for women. The second part of the paper will choose two concepts to define, as well as discuss how they relate to one another from a transnational perspective. In addition, the relation of how they related to gender or affect the political, social, and/or economic status of women in the world will be analyzed.

One of the main concerns nowadays in Brazil is what is called “sexual tourism”, which most of the times involves children and teenagers. Due to the well known poor economic situation of Brazil, some foreigners take advantage of that simply for the “cheap sex”. That usually happens in poor areas of the city, called “favelas” (slums). According to researchers, the city of Recife and its slums produce an estimate of 250,000 child prostitutes in the streets. Parents, hotels, and taxi drivers act many times as a form of connection between customers and these young girls, working as “pimps” and promoting the kids as a simple “merchandise” (Source).

In Transnational Cycles of Gendered Vulnerability: Theory of Global Gender, Alison Jaggar argues that across the globe, women are entrapped in cycles of poverty, abuse, and disenfranchisement of multiple varieties. Part of her argument emphasizes women 's lack of education, which contributes to their inability to find work, escape abusive relationships etc. While I agree that women worldwide are continuous victims of vicious patriarchal oppression and subjection, and that said despotism should be viewed as a universal injustice, Jaggar’s particular view of the role of education, race, socioeconomic status and sexuality is fallacious. Her criticism of Susan Moller Okin’s theory of gendered vulnerability relies heavily on her perceived privilege of the “traditional woman” in the United States that Okin was describing; White, upper class, and heterosexual. In doing this, Jaggar subsequently downplays the education levels and accomplishments of minority women, portraying their setbacks as correlated to race, or class, instead of gender. Additionally, she dismisses the subjective plights of white, straight, rich women, implying that they are not included in the realm of oppression and subjection to patriarchy because of the advantages they have in other spheres. This leads to a cycle that discredits and stigmatizes most women. I will be arguing that even though privilege in other spheres appears to transpire into an advantage in the sexual sphere, to use this as the basis of a

Marianne Marchand’s article ‘Challenging Globalisation: Towards a Feminist Understanding of Resistance’ was published in a 2003 edition of the Review of International Studies. It represents one of the first attempts within International Relations to elaborate a gendered politics of resistance in relation to Globalisation. For the most part, it offers sound and sophisticated analysis that is conceptually accessible, however, this review will point to some areas where the analysis is somewhat weaker than desired. Marchand’s analysis incorporates real world examples of resistance to globalisation. The paper will also seek to analyse whether the conceptual provisions made within the article are adequate to achieve her stated aims, and indeed if her conceptual apparatus is sound enough to be considered valid.

When one hears the term “Feminism”, she/he may have the idea that it is the urge and

Although Western feminism started in the 1900s, yet, it didn’t reach the Islamic world until most recently, a couple of hundred years later than the West. Despite the fact that both of the feminism movements come from totally different back grounds, and they are affected by different history and culture, still, both of them aimed for women’s best interests. Muslim women were profoundly feeling aggrieved by the discrimination they have against them. They stereotypical reputation about them in the West, and their presentation in the Western media didn’t help either. They started and supported a new fight to regain themselves the equal status they were granted by Islam centuries ago. Muslim women didn’t like to be looked at as being backward and oppressed by men in a male-dominant world. According to the feminist historian Margot Badran, “Islamic feminism is a feminist discourse and practice articulated within an Islamic paradigm. Islamic feminism, which derives its understanding and mandate from the Qur 'an, seeks rights and justice for women, and for men, in the totality of their existence.” (Badran, 2001)