ICA Pre-conference: Patriarchal Worlds, Feminist Networks, and the Conjuncture

This ICA pre-conference will provide a forum to discuss contemporary developments within global patriarchies.

The contemporary conjuncture has been marked by continual struggles for gendered liberation - for education and equal pay, for an inclusive media, against violence, and by movements like Ni Una Menõs and #MeToo. Yet at the same time it has been characterized by the mutations of patriarchy into new forms. The past decade has witnessed the increased mediated visibility of misogyny, racism, xenophobia, homophobia, transphobia, nativism, and white nationalism throughout the world.

These violent forces have manifested themselves not just in terms of spectacular visibility, but also in policy, law, political actions and infrastructure. The UK voted to leave the European Union in “Brexit.” The United States elected Donald Trump as President, a candidate who ran on a racist, misogynistic and xenophobic platform.

Since 2020, when he lost the election, there has been an upsurge in white nationalism, racism and misogyny in all corners of the US. France has seen an increase in support for the National Front party, which advocates for stopping free movement at the French border. We have also seen the emergence of the ultra-conservative Alternative for Germany (AfD), and the Party for Freedom Party (PVV) in the Netherlands. Meanwhile, India’s Modi has encouraged and rewarded Hindutva politics, which, among other things, has resulted in brutal violence against women and marginalized communities. Poland has cracked down on reproductive freedom and abortion rights; Hungary has banned LGBT teaching in schools; Afghanistan has not yet let girls return to school. The Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated many pre-existing gendered inequalities, from income to homeschooling.

Media and communications have played a formative role within this conjuncture. From “fake news” to suppressing reporters and the free press, through the use of social media such as Twitter by politicians and openly partisan media outlets, to the now horrifically normalized abuse that women, people of color, trans people and other marginalized groups receive on social media. Alarmingly, in the media and elsewhere there have been increasing calls for a return to a traditional patriarchal system, where men, and white men in particular, assume a role of dominance.

What is happening to feminism within this conjuncture?

The visibility and currency of popular, post and neoliberal feminisms seem to be thriving. Ideas and sentiments such as feminist solidarity, mutual aid, and care have surfaced and been reinvigorated, particularly in the wake of the pandemic. Yet, at the very same time, we have seen the rise and increasing visibility of reactionary forces including misogynoir, anti-feminisms, and anti-gender movements. This ICA pre-conference will provide a forum to discuss these contemporary developments within global patriarchies.

Potential Topics

Potential topics include (but are not limited to):

• Black feminism and misogynoir
• Patriarchy and fascism
• Patriarchies and the Global South
• Patriarchy and Intersectionality
• Feminism and politics / political life
• Patriarchy and social media
• Feminism and solidarity
• Feminism and care
• Feminism and motherhood
• Feminisms and work
• Feminism and masculinity
• Feminism and nationalism
• Feminism and corporations
• Patriarchal mutations and feminist response

Format

This full day offsite preconference will include four panels and a roundtable. There will also be two breaks, where participants can interact more informally.

Submission Guidelines

We invite papers which grapple with the complexities of gender, patriarchy, culture and communications in the current conjuncture.

Abstracts of no more than 500 words (excluding references) are invited by 15 March 2022. All abstracts will be independently refereed. Decisions on acceptance will be communicated to authors by 1 April 2022. Abstracts should include full contact details and should be emailed to: sbanet@usc.edu.

Registration Fee

The registration fee is $25.00 USD.