Women, Power, and Property: The Paradox of Gender Equality Laws in India (Cambridge Studies in Gender and Politics)

Quotas for women in government have swept the globe. Yet we know little about their capacity to upend entrenched social, political, and economic hierarchies. ​Property and Power seeks to explore this issue within the context of India, the world's largest democracy. Brulé uses cutting-edge research design and extensive field research to make connections among political representation, backlash, and economic empowerment. Her findings show that women in government catalyze access to fundamental economic rights: property rights. Women in politics also have the power to support constituent rights at critical junctures, such as marriage negotiations, sparking integrative solutions to intra-household bargaining. Although they can lead to backlash, quotas are essential for enforcement ​of rights. In this groundbreaking study, Brulé shows how quotas can operate as a crucial tool to foster equality and benefit the women they are meant to empower. Quotas for women in government have swept the globe. Yet we know little about their capacity to upend entrenched social, political, and economic hierarchies. Women, Power, and Property explores this question within the context of India, the world's largest democracy. Brulé employs a research design that maximizes causal inference alongside extensive field research to explain the relationship between political representation, backlash, and economic empowerment. Her findings show that women in government – gatekeepers – catalyze access to fundamental economic rights to property. Women in politics have the power to support constituent rights at critical junctures, such as marriage negotiations, when they can strike integrative solutions to intrahousehold bargaining. Yet there is a paradox: quotas are essential for enforcement of rights, but they generate backlash against women who gain rights without bargaining leverage. In this groundbreaking study, Brulé shows how well-designed quotas can operate as a crucial tool to foster equality and benefit the women they are meant to empower. "Quotas for women in government have become a crucial tool for advancing female political inclusion across the globe. Yet ultimately, do quotas enable representatives and constituents to upend social, economic, and political hierarchies in favor of the women they are meant to empower? Women's Representation and Resistance seeks to answer this question in the world's largest democracy: India. It builds and tests a theory linking political representation and economic empowerment. Cutting- edge research design and extensive field research maximize causal inference and insight. It finds that women at the helm of government catalyze the claiming and enforcement of fundamental economic rights to inherit property. Women's voice has a cost. It energizes resistance, particularly in the short-term. However, where female representatives can support constituent claims to rights at critical junctures-here marriage negotiations-women can strike integrative solutions to intra-household bargaining. Where successful, they transform resistance to support for equality"-- Provided by publisher Quotas for women in government have swept the globe. Yet we know little about their capacity to upend entrenched social, political, and economic hierarchies. ​Property and Power seeks to explore this issue within the context of India, the world's largest democracy. BruleÌ#x81; uses cutting-edge research design and extensive field research to make connections among political representation, backlash, and economic empowerment. Her findings show that women in government catalyze access to fundamental economic rights: property rights. Women in politics also have the power to support constituent rights at critical junctures, such as marriage negotiations, sparking integrative solutions to intra-household bargaining. Although they can lead to backlash, quotas are essential for enforcement ​of rights. In this groundbreaking study, BruleÌ#x81; shows how quotas can operate as a crucial tool to foster equality and benefit the women they are meant to empower Quotas for women in government have swept the globe. Yet we know little about their capacity to upend entrenched social, political, and economic hierarchies. ​Property and Power seeks to explore this issue within the context of India, the world's largest democracy. BruleÌĩ uses cutting-edge research design and extensive field research to make connections among political representation, backlash, and economic empowerment. Her findings show that women in government catalyze access to fundamental economic rights: property rights. Women in politics also have the power to support constituent rights at critical junctures, such as marriage negotiations, sparking integrative solutions to intra-household bargaining. Although they can lead to backlash, quotas are essential for enforcement ​of rights. In this groundbreaking study, BruleÌĩ shows how quotas can operate as a crucial tool to foster equality and benefit the women they are meant to empower "Can political representation help women upend entrenched systems of power? Property and Power finds evidence that quotas improve women's ability to claim fundamental economic rights. Yet greater voice is costly. Whether women experience benefits or backlash depends on individual bargaining power at the time a woman is elected" (ed.)