State-led antigender politics, Islamism, and the university: experiences of gender studies scholars in Turkey

Özbay, Cenk and İpekçi, İlkan Can (2023) State-led antigender politics, Islamism, and the university: experiences of gender studies scholars in Turkey. Journal of Middle East Women's Studies . ISSN 1552-5864 (Print) 1558-9579 (Online) Published Online First http://dx.doi.org/10.1215/15525864-10961794

Warning
There is a more recent version of this item available.
Full text not available from this repository. (Request a copy)

Abstract

Gender studies and its professors are attacked and oppressed by patriarchal, masculinist, antifeminist, and anti-LGBTI discourses and institutional practices. This trend is not limited to white- and/or Christian-majority countries, as the literature has documented thus far. Antigender campaigns can easily infiltrate Middle Eastern and/or Muslim-majority contexts in which feminists and queers have long struggled to transform societies, cultures, and states. In Turkey a state-led antigender movement has been unfolding, with burdensome outcomes for women and sexual minorities as well as activists and faculty members. The most recent step taken in the state-led antigender turn was Turkey’s withdrawal from the Council of Europe’s Istanbul Convention Action by a precipitous presidential decree. Drawing on thirty- three interviews with gender studies scholars, this article documents their ambivalent and perturbing connection with the state. The recent antigender atmosphere may make them feel downtrodden, silenced, and vulnerable in personal and professional domains, while it reju- venates their resilience, renders their ongoing feminist/queer struggles meaningful and pas- sionate, and cultivates an air of hope and optimism. To fight ostracism by public institutions and to attain their academic rights, the respondents use their empowering feelings, hope, and commitment against patriarchal and homophobic state forces.
Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: antigender politics, the state, Islamism, university, Turkey
Subjects: H Social Sciences > HM Sociology
H Social Sciences > HQ The family. Marriage. Woman > HQ1088-1090.7 Men
H Social Sciences > HQ The family. Marriage. Woman > HQ1101-2030.7 Women. Feminism
J Political Science > JQ Political institutions and public administration (Asia, Africa, Australia, Pacific Area etc.) > JQ 1800-1809 Turkey
Divisions: Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences > Academic programs > Cultural Studies
Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences > Academic programs > Gender Studies
Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
Depositing User: Cenk Özbay
Date Deposited: 08 Feb 2024 16:32
Last Modified: 08 Feb 2024 16:32
URI: https://research.sabanciuniv.edu/id/eprint/48917

Available Versions of this Item

Actions (login required)

View Item
View Item