Beyond “Market” and “State” Feminism: Gender Knowledge at the Intersections of Marketization and Securitization

Citation:

Stachowitsch, Saskia. 2019. “Beyond ‘Market’ and ‘State’ Feminism: Gender Knowledge at the Intersections of Marketization and Securitization.” Politics & Gender 15 (1): 151–73.

Author: Saskia Stachowitsch

Abstract:

This article assesses the implications of the shifting market-state relationship for feminism in the neoliberal era. In a case study of the private military and security industry as an actor that is uniquely positioned at the intersections of security governance and global markets, the analysis combines feminist security studies’ critique of securitized gender discourses and feminist global political economy scholarship on corporate-led equality initiatives. Based on a critical discourse analysis of documents from industry and nongovernmental organizations, such as codes of conduct and policy recommendations, I argue that the discourses on gender put forward in the context of security privatization merge securitized and marketized discourses to the effect that the emancipatory potential of “gender” is further curtailed, raising new challenges for feminist knowledge in powerful organizations. The article thus contributes to the critical gender research on private security, debates on the neoliberalization and securitization of feminism, and the integration of feminist security studies and feminist global political economy.

Topics: Economies, Feminist Economics, Feminisms, Feminist Political Economy, Feminist Foreign Policy, Military Forces & Armed Groups, Private Military & Security, Security Sector Reform

Year: 2019