Gender, Democracy and Inclusion in Northern Ireland (Women's Studies at York/Macmillan)

Mainstream politics in Northern Ireland has not been welcoming to women, but many women have been present in community and voluntary organizations where their contribution has been outstanding. This book examines four organizations (including the recently-formed Northern Ireland Women's Coalition) where women have been active. It discusses the processes and structures created by these groups in order to work democratically across differences and argues that their experiences are invaluable to the development of feminist debates on democracy and difference. "International Perspective on Gender and Democratisation examines and addresses four broad themes. First is the participation of women in political movements; second, the importance of women's participation in processes of institutional - constitutional and legal - design: third, institutional practice at different levels - the national and the international; and finally, the need for constant vigilance in any engagement with state-initiated and dominated processes of democratisation. The contributors bring to it experiences of women's democratic struggles from different parts of the world - both North and South - to address the themes of the book. The emphasis is on the historical and political specificities of regions, movements and ideas and on the ways that women's movements assess their immediate and long-term interests. With its focus on women's struggles for a political presence in human rights, citizenship rights and democratic institutional entitlements to citizenship, this volume is an important contribution to the literature on gender and democratisation."--Jacket Front Matter....Pages i-xviii Front Matter....Pages 1-1 Women, Community and Politics in Northern Ireland....Pages 3-23 Democracy and the Challenge of Gender: New Visions, New Processes....Pages 24-46 Front Matter....Pages 47-47 ‘We are these Women ...’: Self-Conscious Structures for a Women’s Centre....Pages 49-69 ‘Equal in the Sight of the Lord’: A Religious Reconciliation Group....Pages 70-92 ‘Wide Awake to Women’: Gender and Other Disturbances in a Trade Union....Pages 93-116 Swimming against the mainstream: the Northern Ireland Women’s Coalition....Pages 117-137 Front Matter....Pages 139-139 Participatory Democracy and the Challenge of Dialogue across Difference....Pages 141-163 Women in Northern Irish Politics: Difference Matters....Pages 164-186 Back Matter....Pages 187-197 "This book provides an in-depth examination of the 'fruit explosion' in Chile and its effect on rural women. It explores the structure of the agro-export sector and the role of seasonal female employment. The authors ask how women combine this new type of work with their more traditional roles, and consider state policies to support seasonal workers. Both the local and global implications of women working in this sector of agribusiness are considered. The book ends by discussing the possible effects of supermarket codes of conduct on temporary, female workers in agribusiness. The book takes an interdisciplinary perspective and provides an important contribution to research on women and agribusiness."--Jacket Mainstream politics in Northern Ireland have not been welcoming to women, but many women have been present in community and voluntary organizations, where their contribution has been outstanding. This book examines four organizations (including the recently-formed Northern Ireland Women's Coalition) where women have been active. It discusses the processes and structures created by these groups in order to work democratically across differences and argue that their experiences are invaluable to the development of feminist debates on democracy and difference. Mainstream politics in Ireland has not been welcoming to women, but many women have been present in community and voluntary organizations, where their contribution has been significant.;This work examines four organizations (including the Northern Ireland Women's Coalition) where women have been active. It discusses the processes and structures created by these groups in order to work democratically across differences, arguing that their experiences are invaluable to the development of feminist debates on democracy and difference Comprises 11 papers which explore the contradictory and fragmented impact of globalization on the lives of women in diverse local contexts within different cultures and faiths in the development world. Includes an essay on the comparative effects of flexible female employment in the fruit supply chain linking Chile and the UK The process of globalization has had an impact on the lives of women in developing countries in the past decade. This text explores the experiences of women in diverse local contexts within different cultures and faiths, drawing on case studies from Asia, Africa and Latin America.