Horizontality and gender in contemporary social movements

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 236-270 ◽  
Author(s):  
Naomi Orton ◽  
Liana de Andrade Biar

Abstract The notion of horizontal, “structureless” organisation continues to hold resounding appeal for those seeking to create more egalitarian societies. Given horizontality’s comfortable status as the golden child of contemporary social movements, in this article we ask to what extent symmetrical relations may materialize discursively within an ostensibly horizontal group. To do so, we analyse two narratives of resistance which emerge during a meeting of bicycle advocates in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Uniting insider and outsider perspectives, our analysis suggests that gendered asymmetries are simultaneously contested and reified during the activists’ narrative and interactional practice. As such, this study highlights the need to take a critical stance towards discursive practice in order to further understand the construction of horizontality. In so doing, it may then be possible to build communities which foster minority groups’ active participation and the very transformative practice sought out by those who engage in social movements.

2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 35-52
Author(s):  
Jeffrey Escoffier

After the publication of his pioneering book Sexual Excitement in 1979, Robert Stoller devoted the last 12 years of his life to the study of the pornographic film industry. To do so, he conducted an ethnographic study of people working in the industry in order to find out how it produced ‘perverse fantasies’ that successfully communicated sexual excitement to other people. In the course of his investigation he observed and interviewed those involved in the making of pornographic films. He hypothesized that the ‘scenarios’ developed and performed by people in the porn industry were based on their own perverse fantasies and their frustrations, injuries and conflicts over sexuality and gender; and that the porn industry had developed a systematic method and accumulated a sophisticated body of knowledge about the production of sexual excitement. This paper explores Stoller's theses and shows how they fared in his investigation.


Author(s):  
Nicholas Owen

Other People’s Struggles is the first attempt in over forty years to explain the place of “conscience constituents” in social movements. Conscience constituents are people who participate in a movement but do not stand to benefit if it succeeds. Why do such people participate when they do not stand to benefit? Why are they sometimes present and sometimes absent in social movements? Why and when is their participation welcome to those who do stand to benefit, and why and when is it not? The work proposes an original theory to answer these questions, crossing discipline boundaries to draw on the findings of social psychology, philosophy, and normative political theory, in search of explanations of why people act altruistically and what it means to others when they do so. The theory is illustrated by examples from British history, including the antislavery movement, the women’s suffrage and liberation movements, labor and socialist movements, anticolonial movements, antipoverty movements, and movements for global justice. Other People’s Struggles also contributes to new debates concerning the rights and wrongs of “speaking for others.” Debates concerning the limits of solidarity—who can be an “ally” and on what terms—have become very topical in contemporary politics, especially in identity politics and in the new “populist” movements. The book provides a theoretical and empirical account of how these questions have been addressed in the past and how they might be framed today.


Author(s):  
Barbara J. Risman

This final chapter suggests that the incompatibilities of expectations and realities at different levels of the gender structure create “crises tendencies” that may provide leverage that future activists can use to push for social change. While some contemporary social movements agitating for a more feminist and gender inclusive society appear to conflict with each other, Risman argues that using a gender structure framework allows seemingly contradictory feminist and gender inclusive movements to understood they are not alternatives but rather a tapestry, each one taking aim at a different level of our complex gender structure. The chapter concludes with a utopian vision: a call for a fourth wave of feminism to dismantle the gender structure. Since the gender structure constrains freedom, to move toward a more just future we must leave it behind.


Linguistics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tanja Ackermann ◽  
Christian Zimmer

Abstract Our article is dedicated to the relation of a given name’s phonological structure and the gender of the referent. Phonology has been shown to play an important role with regard to gender marking on a name in some (Germanic) languages. For example, studies on English and on German have shown in detail that female and male names have significantly different phonological structures. However, little is known whether these phonological patterns are valid beyond (closely related) individual languages. This study, therefore, sets out to assess the relation of gender and the phonological structures of names across different languages/cultures. In order to do so, we analyzed a sample of popular given names from 13 countries. Our results indicate that there are both language/culture-overarching similarities between names used for people of the same gender and language/culture-specific correlations. Finally, our results are interpreted against the backdrop of conventional and synesthetic sound symbolism.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Leticia Micheli ◽  
Nickolas Gagnon

AbstractUnequal financial outcomes often originate from unequal chances. Yet, compared to outcomes, little is known about how individuals perceive unequal distributions of chances. We investigate empirically the role of different sources of unequal chances in shaping inequality perceptions. Importantly, we do so from an ex ante perspective—i.e., before the chances are realized—which has rarely been explored. In an online survey, we asked uninvolved respondents to evaluate ex ante the fairness of unequal allocations of chances. We varied the source of inequality of chances, using a comprehensive range of factors which resemble several real world situations. Respondents also evaluated how much control individuals hold over the distribution of chances. Results show that different sources generate different ex ante perception of fairness. That is, unequal chances based on socioeconomic and biological factors, such as gender, family income and ethnicity, are evaluated to be unfair relative to the same chances based on effort, knowledge, and benevolence. Results also show that, for most individuals, there is a positive correlation between perceived control of a factor and fairness of unequal chances based on that factor. Luck appears to be an exception to this correlation, ranking as high in fairness as effort, knowledge, and benevolence, but similarly low in individual control as ethnicity, family income, and gender.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S517-S518
Author(s):  
Shane Hebel ◽  
Elijah Kahn-Woods ◽  
Casper Enghuus ◽  
Helen Koenig ◽  
Linden Lalley-Chareczko ◽  
...  

Abstract Background HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is 99% effective at preventing new HIV infections if taken daily. To be successful, PrEP requires concurrent efforts to optimize uptake, persistence, and adherence. In 2018, cisgender (cis) women accounted for 19% of new HIV infections in the US but comprised only 7% of all PrEP users. Studies show poor PrEP adherence amongst cis women, but there is a paucity of real-world clinical data describing PrEP adherence among cis women and gender minority people. Methods An adherence test that measures the concentration of tenofovir in urine samples using a liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was used to assess recent PrEP adherence at 8 clinics. Urine samples were collected during routine visits and analyzed using the LC-MS/MS assay. Test results were retrospectively paired with gender data, when available, and sex assigned at birth (SAAB) data. Adherence data were aggregated and analyzed to assess non-adherence proportions by sub-population. Results Gender data were available from 1,461 patients at 5 clinics, 1,344 (92%) of whom were cis males (Figure 1). From the 5 clinics where gender and SAAB data were available, 3,835 tests were conducted and 517 (13.5%) indicated non-adherence (Figure 2). 3 additional clinics conduct routine adherence testing and collect SAAB data (gender data not available). At these 8 clinics, SAAB data were available for 2,773 PrEP patients, totaling 5,602 urine tests (Figure 3). Among these 5,602 adherence tests, 813 (14.5%) indicated non-adherence (Figure 4). SAAB females demonstrated significantly higher non-adherence than SAAB males (22% vs 14%, p< 0.001). Across clinics, 89%-98% of PrEP patients are SAAB male (Figure 5). Within these 8 clinics, SAAB female demonstrated consistently higher non-adherence (17%-44%, vs 12%-17% for SAAB males) (Figure 6). Figures 1 and 2 Figures 3 and 4 Figures 5 and 6 Conclusion Real-world data align with nationwide trends in PrEP utilization and show that the majority of PrEP patients are cis men. When initiated on PrEP, cis women exhibit higher rates of non-adherence than cis men. These data underscore the need to collect gender-identity data to monitor PrEP disparities and suggest that greater efforts are needed to target PrEP access, utilization, and accompanying support services to cis women and gender minority groups. Disclosures All Authors: No reported disclosures


1951 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
James K. Pollock

In presenting my valedictory to this distinguished Association which has honored me by selecting me as its President, I should like to point out by way of introduction what has happened to this office, and therefore to me, during the past year. I have heard of one of my distinguished predecessors some twenty-five years ago who had little else to do as President of this Association than work all year on his presidential address. This was important work and I have no word of criticism of it. But the Association has changed, and today it leaves to the harried wearer of its presidential toga little time to reflect about the status of political science and his own impact, if any, upon it. An active Association life, now happily centered in our new Washington office, is enough to occupy the full time of your President, and universities as well as this Association might well take note. Therefore, in presenting my own reflections to you this evening in accordance with the custom of our Association, I do so without the benefit of the generous time and scholarly leisure which were the privileges of some of my distinguished predecessors.Nevertheless I do base my presidential address today upon my own active participation in the problems of government, as well as upon my scholarly experience. I have extracted it in part from the dynamics of pulsating political life. It has whatever authority I may possess after having been exposed these twenty-five years to the cross-fire of politics, domestic and foreign, as well as to the benign and corrective influences of eager students and charitable colleagues.


2013 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebastian Saborio

<p>Rio de Janeiro is preparing to host two major sporting events in the coming years: the 2014 FIFA World Football Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games. Local authorities are promoting these mega events as an opportunity to increase the global competitiveness of the city. But in order to attract private capital from the global economy it is not enough for Rio to showcase the city as capable of organizing and implementing these events. Rather, the authorities must also demonstrate that what has been considered one of the most dangerous cities in the world can now become a safe place for business. To do so, what has been promoted as a new model of &lsquo;community policing&rsquo; the UPP (Pacifying Police Units) has been implemented since 2008 in 107 favelas. The majority of the favelas involved in the program are situated around the sites where these mega events will take place and around other wealthy areas of the city. This article analyses the relation between mega events, global competitiveness and the neutralization of local marginality.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Rio de Janeiro se pr&eacute;pare &agrave; accueillir les plus grands &eacute;v&eacute;nement sportifs des prochaines ann&eacute;es: la coupe du monde de football en 2014 et les jeux olympiques en 2016. Les autorit&eacute;s locales valorisent ces &eacute;v&eacute;nements mondiaux comme autant d&rsquo;opportunit&eacute;s pour augmenter la comp&eacute;titivit&eacute; de la ville.&nbsp; Cependant, il n&rsquo;est pas suffisant pour attirer les capitaux priv&eacute;s de l&rsquo;&eacute;conomie mondiale que Rio soit valoris&eacute;e comme une ville capable d&rsquo;organiser et de g&eacute;rer ces &eacute;v&eacute;nements. Les autorit&eacute;s doivent aussi d&eacute;montrer que, ce qui auparavant &eacute;tait consid&eacute;r&eacute; comme une des plus dangereuses villes du monde, peut maintenant devenir un endroit s&ucirc;r pour les entreprises. Dans ce but, l&rsquo; UPP (Pacifying Police Units) a &eacute;t&eacute; mis en place en 2008 dans 107 favelas et est d&eacute;crit comme le nouveau mod&egrave;le de la police communitarian. La plupart des favelas int&eacute;gr&eacute;es dans le programme sont situ&eacute;es autour des lieux qui accueilleront les &eacute;v&eacute;nements et dans d&rsquo;autres endroits confortables de la ville. Pour cette raisons, cette article analyse les relations entre les &eacute;v&eacute;nements mondiaux, la comp&eacute;titivit&eacute; mondiale et la neutralisation de la marginalit&eacute; locale.</p>


2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (17) ◽  
Author(s):  
Simone Gomes

O trabalho discute a organização prisional em facções a partir de paralelos com ações coletivas, com teorias dos movimentos sociais para lançar luz às práticas das facções prisionais. Dessa forma, baseado em um trabalho de inspiração etnográfica em prisões masculinas e femininas no Rio de Janeiro, Manaus e Fortaleza, abordaremos convergências e diferenças entre o modus operandi das facções prisionais do país, Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC), Comando Vermelho (CV), Facção do Norte (FDN) e Guardiões do Estado (GDE) e movimentos sociais. Desde 2006, aumentaram significativamente as rebeliões, queima de veículos e transferência de presos, como instrumentos de barganha, aqui entendidas como repertórios. A pesquisa aponta para um funcionamento das facções que, por ser empiricamente orientado, traz elementos inovadores para pensar os limites e as possibilidades das teorias da ação coletiva.


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