Week 8
imperial feminism
Key Questions
What is imperial feminism? Why are non-Western women viewed as in need of “saving”?
What are examples of how feminist narratives have been deployed to justify imperialist intervention? How does this imperialist intervention impact women?
How can imperial feminism be resisted? What does global feminist solidarity look like?
Required Materials:
Huibin Amelia Chew, Feminism and War: Confronting US Imperialism, “What’s Left? After ‘Imperial Feminist’ Hijackings”
Ann Russo, Feminist Accountability: Disrupting Violence and Transforming Power, “Disentangling US Feminism from US Imperialism”
Maya Mikdashi, “Can Palestinian Men Be Victims? Gendering Israel’s War on Gaza”
Supplementary Materials:
Shahnaz Khan, Feminism and War: Confronting US Imperialism, “Afghan Women: The Limits of Colonial Rescue”
Ann Russo, Feminist Accountability: Disrupting Violence and Transforming Power, “Resisting the ‘Savior’ Complex”
Dean Spade and Sarah Lazare, “Women Now Run the Military Industrial Complex. That’s Nothing to Celebrate.”
Natalie Shure, “The Phony Feminism of America’s War Cheerleaders”
exercise
The United States withdrew from Afghanistan in 2021, resulting in a Taliban takeover and a media firestorm lamenting the situation of women and children (i.e., a resuscitation of the imperial feminist discourse). What does solidarity with people in Afghanistan look like? How can feminists support those in Afghanistan without advocating for intervention (militarisitc or economic)?