TY - JOUR
T1 - Gender equality in the name of the state
T2 - state feminism or femonationalism in civic orientation for newly arrived migrants in Sweden?
AU - Bauer, Simon
AU - Milani, Tommaso M.
AU - von Brömssen, Kerstin
AU - Spehar, Andrea
N1 - Funding Information:
We would like to thank the anonymous reviewers for the constructive comments, and the Swedish Research Council for the financial support to the research project upon which this article is based (Dnr. 2018-04091).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
PY - 2023
Y1 - 2023
N2 - This article contributes to ongoing discussions in the social sciences about how to interpret the incorporation of gender equality into integration policies–is it a form of state feminism or femonationalism? Drawing upon intersectionality, we analyse how gender equality is presented, discussed and negotiated in relation to ethnicity and nationality in Sweden. Methodologically, we employ a bifocal lens that combines (1) a quantitative investigation of representations of civic orientation programmes in Swedish policy documents and mainstream media, and (2) a qualitative analysis of ethnographic data collected in six civic orientation courses–three in English and three in Arabic–in three large municipalities. Such a two-pronged approach, which connects policy and media discourses with interactions in civic orientation classes, offers a granular picture of the complex and often ambivalent intersections of ethnicity and gender in relation to migration in Sweden. Ultimately, the co-optation of feminist values brings with it the risk of warping feminism into a trait of national/ethnic distinctiveness. Crucially, femonationalism is not the prerogative of far-right parties but is already becoming institutionalised, informing both mainstream media and educational practices in a feminist state like Sweden.
AB - This article contributes to ongoing discussions in the social sciences about how to interpret the incorporation of gender equality into integration policies–is it a form of state feminism or femonationalism? Drawing upon intersectionality, we analyse how gender equality is presented, discussed and negotiated in relation to ethnicity and nationality in Sweden. Methodologically, we employ a bifocal lens that combines (1) a quantitative investigation of representations of civic orientation programmes in Swedish policy documents and mainstream media, and (2) a qualitative analysis of ethnographic data collected in six civic orientation courses–three in English and three in Arabic–in three large municipalities. Such a two-pronged approach, which connects policy and media discourses with interactions in civic orientation classes, offers a granular picture of the complex and often ambivalent intersections of ethnicity and gender in relation to migration in Sweden. Ultimately, the co-optation of feminist values brings with it the risk of warping feminism into a trait of national/ethnic distinctiveness. Crucially, femonationalism is not the prerogative of far-right parties but is already becoming institutionalised, informing both mainstream media and educational practices in a feminist state like Sweden.
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U2 - 10.1080/17405904.2023.2228933
DO - 10.1080/17405904.2023.2228933
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85163560502
SN - 1740-5904
JO - Critical Discourse Studies
JF - Critical Discourse Studies
ER -