Abstract

In this session, we will analyse two fundamental texts to discuss the relationship between feminist ideals and cultural rights: "Is Multiculturalism Bad for Women?" (1999) by Susan Moller Okin or "Feminism versus Multiculturalism" (2001) by Leti Volpp. Oki, based on a "typically European liberal-feminist" perspective, states that the cultural rights of certain immigrant communities may pose a threat to the individual rights of the women within those groups, concluding that there is, in fact, an unsolvable conflict between feminism and multiculturalism. Volpp reveals the historical and ideological origins of Okin's argument and points out the harmful consequences of this king of discourse: it obscures the role of the non-cultural powers of gender discrimination, ignores the women's diligence within the patriarchy and turns our attention away from the serious forms of discrimination in the North. Though a critical discussion about these two texts, we hope to contribute toward a more diversified understanding of the relationship between women's rights as individuals and cultural rights, an extremely contemporary issue within ongoing debates about the integration of difference in Europe.

Texts to be analysed:

Feminism versus Multiculturalism

Is Multiculturalism Bad for Women?

Biographic Note

Mihaela Mihai is, currently, a Post-Doctoral student at CES. She holds a PhD in Political Sciences by the Toronto University (Canada), with political theory as her main research area.

Organization: Gisele Wolkoff and Júlia Garraio (NHUMEP)

Note: The «Gender Workshop series» is a space for discussion around one or two texts
on gender which takes place once a month.