scholarly journals The Cost of Doing Politics? Analyzing Violence and Harassment against Female Politicians

2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 740-755 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mona Lena Krook ◽  
Juliana Restrepo Sanín
Keyword(s):  
Gender Bias ◽  
Political Violence ◽  
Violence Against Women ◽  
Hate Crimes ◽  
Women In Politics ◽  
Cultural Violence ◽  
Political Roles ◽  
Significant Barrier ◽  
Female Politicians ◽  
The Cost

Violence against women in politics is increasingly recognized around the world as a significant barrier to women’s political participation, following a troubling rise in reports of assault, intimidation, and abuse directed at female politicians. Yet conceptual ambiguities remain as to the exact contours of this phenomenon. In this article, we seek to strengthen its theoretical, empirical, and methodological foundations. We propose that the presence of bias against women in political roles—originating in structural violence, employing cultural violence, and resulting in symbolic violence—distinguishes this phenomenon from other forms of political violence. We identify five types of violence against women in politics—physical, psychological, sexual, economic, and semiotic—and three methodological challenges related to underreporting, comparing men’s and women’s experiences, and intersectionality. Inspired by the literature on hate crimes, we develop an empirical approach for identifying cases of violence against women in politics, offering six criteria to ascertain whether an attack was potentially motivated by gender bias. We apply this framework to analyze three cases: the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, the impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, and the murder of Jo Cox. We conclude with the negative implications of violence against women in politics and point to emerging solutions around the globe.

A Bias Event Approach

2020 ◽  
pp. 104-114
Author(s):  
Mona Lena Krook
Keyword(s):  
Violence Against Women ◽  
Hate Crimes ◽  
Women In Politics ◽  
Methodological Challenges ◽  
Political Roles ◽  
Motivating Factor

Chapter 10 develops an approach for identifying empirical cases of violence against women in politics. It begins by outlining methodological challenges related to under-reporting, comparisons, and intersectionality. The chapter argues that work on hate crimes offers a way forward, as this approach explicitly seeks to develop tools to ascertain whether bias against particular groups was a motivating factor behind a given crime. Because not all acts of violence against women in politics constitute crimes, the chapter proposes to focus instead on “bias events”: actions of both a criminal and non-criminal nature driven by bias against women in political roles. It then builds on existing legal guidance to propose six criteria for determining whether an incident was potentially motivated by bias.

A Distinct Phenomenon

2020 ◽  
pp. 89-103
Author(s):  
Mona Lena Krook
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
Political Violence ◽  
Violence Against Women ◽  
Structural Violence ◽  
Symbolic Violence ◽  
The Political ◽  
Women In Politics ◽  
Political Sphere ◽  
Cultural Violence

Chapter 9 argues that violence against women in politics is not simply a gendered version of already-recognized forms of political violence. Rather, it constitutes a distinct phenomenon that specifically aims to exclude women as women from the political sphere. Rather than being an incidental feature, gender is central to the logic of violence, shaping its origins, manifestations, and outcomes. The chapter elaborates on this distinction by proposing that violence against women in politics originates in structural violence against women, is manifested through cultural violence against women, and results in symbolic violence against women. This distinction means that violence against women in politics poses threats to democracy, human rights, and gender equality.

Violence against Women in Politics

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mona Lena Krook
Keyword(s):  
Political Violence ◽  
Violence Against Women ◽  
Political Life ◽  
Women In Politics ◽  
Equal Rights ◽  
Political Actors ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The World ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Ongoing Dialogue

Women have made significant inroads into politics in recent years, but in many parts of the world, their increased engagement has spurred attacks, intimidation, and harassment intended to deter their participation. This book provides the first comprehensive account of this phenomenon, exploring how women came to give these experiences a name—violence against women in politics—and lobby for its increased recognition by citizens, states, and international organizations. Drawing on research in multiple disciplines, the volume resolves lingering ambiguities regarding its contours by arguing that violence against women in politics is not simply a gendered extension of existing definitions of political violence privileging physical aggressions against rivals. Rather, it is a distinct phenomenon involving a broad range of harms to attack and undermine women as political actors. Incorporating a wide range of country examples, the book illustrates what this violence looks like in practice, catalogues emerging solutions around the world, and considers how to document this phenomenon more effectively. Highlighting its implications for democracy, human rights, and gender equality, the volume concludes that tackling violence against women in politics requires ongoing dialogue and collaboration to ensure women’s equal rights to participate—freely and safely—in political life around the globe.

scholarly journals Violence against Women in Politics: A Rising Global Trend

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 673-675 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mona Lena Krook
Keyword(s):  
Political Violence ◽  
Violence Against Women ◽  
Zero Tolerance ◽  
General Assembly ◽  
Women In Politics ◽  
Female Candidates ◽  
United Nations General ◽  
Global Trend ◽  
United Nations General Assembly ◽  
Politically Active

Recent years have witnessed a troubling rise in reports of assault, intimidation, and abuse directed at politically active women. The United Nations General Assembly first called for zero tolerance for violence against female candidates and elected officials in Resolution 66/130 in 2011. In 2012, Bolivia became the first country in the world to criminalize political violence and harassment against women, in response to a more than decade-long campaign by locally elected women to document the numerous injuries and abuses they confronted. Resonating across the region, this development led the states-parties to the Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment and Eradication of Violence against Women to endorse a Declaration on Political Violence and Harassment against Women in 2015.

A multifactorial analysis of metaphors in political discourse

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 141-168
Author(s):  
Huiheng Zeng ◽  
Dennis Tay ◽  
Kathleen Ahrens
Keyword(s):  
Political Discourse ◽  
Women In Politics ◽  
Political Role ◽  
Political Roles ◽  
Female Politicians ◽  
Political Speeches ◽  
Metaphor Use ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Oriented Approach

Abstract The rising prominence of women in politics has sparked a growing interest in comparing the language of male and female politicians. Many researchers have explored whether gender in politics has had an impact on their metaphor styles. While these studies have been oriented qualitatively and have concentrated on the two-way interaction between metaphor and gender, the possibility that metaphor and gender may interact with other additional factors is largely overlooked. This article adopts a quantitatively oriented approach complemented with textual analysis to explore potential multiple-way interactions between ‘metaphor’, ‘gender’, ‘speech section’ and ‘political role’ in political discourse. By conducting a case study of metaphor use in Hong Kong political speeches, we found evidence of gendered metaphors and their variability according to politicians’ political roles and different rhetorical sections in their speeches.

Mexico gender equality is elusive despite progress

2018 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Political Violence ◽  
Gender Discrimination ◽  
Gender Violence ◽  
Women In Politics ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Gender Parity ◽  
Female Politicians ◽  
President Elect ◽  
And Gender

Subject Women in politics. Significance With eight women nominated to the 17-minister cabinet of President-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO), the incoming National Regeneration Movement (Morena) administration will be Mexico’s most gender balanced ever. Similarly, both chambers of the federal Congress formally established on August 29 have achieved near-gender parity. States and municipalities across the country saw the share of female politicians increase significantly in the July 1 elections. Impacts Gender equality will not be achievable until all states issue laws that define and penalise political violence against women. Efforts to end all forms of political gender violence -- physical, psychological, sexual and economic -- will be required. Indigenous women, facing racial and gender discrimination, will struggle to increase their participation in politics.

Data Collection and Documentation Challenges

2020 ◽  
pp. 231-246
Author(s):  
Mona Lena Krook
Keyword(s):  
Data Collection ◽  
Gender Bias ◽  
Violence Against Women ◽  
Public Awareness ◽  
Women In Politics ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
Clear Cut ◽  
Women's Lives ◽  
Future Work ◽  
Experiences Of Women

Chapter 18 surveys and evaluates existing attempts to collect data on violence against women in politics, which either modify existing datasets and approaches or develop new sources and methods of data collection. This work has been crucial in raising public awareness, establishing that the problem of violence against women in politics exists—as well as motivating action to address it. At this nascent stage, however, studies share a tendency to elide the theoretical distinction between violence in politics and violence against women in politics. Neither comparing the experiences of women and men, nor centering women’s lives, provides a clear cut methodological solution. A bias event approach offers a potential means forward: focused on collecting and evaluating evidence on the presence or absence of gender bias in particular incidents, it can assist both qualitative and quantitative researchers in distinguishing these phenomena in future work.

scholarly journals The Law and Violence against Women in Politics

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 676-680 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juliana Restrepo Sanín
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Costa Rica ◽  
Political Violence ◽  
Violence Against Women ◽  
Women In Politics ◽  
The Law ◽  
Model Law ◽  
Legislative Measures

Latin America has been at the vanguard in implementing diverse strategies to combat violence against women in politics (VAWIP). In 2012, Bolivia became the first country to criminalize “political violence and harassment against women” with Law 243. Soon, Ecuador, Peru, Costa Rica, and Mexico followed with similar proposals (Krook and Restrepo Sanín 2016). Despite high levels of criminal impunity (Piscopo 2016), legislative measures have been the preferred strategy to combat VAWIP within the region. The Inter-American Commission on Women (CIM) recently published a model law, drawing on experiences in Bolivia, to serve as inspiration for other legislative measures in the region. What can these legislative definitions tell us about the phenomenon of VAWIP, its limits, and its challenges?

Criminalizing Violence against Women in Politics: Innovation, Diffusion, and Transformation

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-32
Author(s):  
Juliana Restrepo Sanín
Keyword(s):  
Political Violence ◽  
Violence Against Women ◽  
Women Politicians ◽  
Political Representation ◽  
Local Level ◽  
International Norms ◽  
Women In Politics ◽  
State Apparatus ◽  
Innovative Solution ◽  
Similar Legislation

Abstract Violence against women politicians is increasingly recognized as an issue that undermines women's presence in politics. Latin America has been at the vanguard of this global discussion. In 2012, Bolivia became the only country in the world to criminalize “political violence and harassment against women.” Several other countries have similar legislation in the works. What explains the emergence of these bill proposals? This article argues that the creation of these bills is the result of three processes: activism at the local level used international norms to propose an innovative solution to a problem; women politicians and “femocrats” worked within the state apparatus to overcome resistance; and international actors worked to foster connections among activists and politicians across the region. In this process, international norms have been transformed, with important implications for women's political representation.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document