Browsing by Subject "feminism"

Denna magisteravhandlings syfte är att undersöka perspektiv på sexförsäljning i artiklar från fyra olika dagstidningar. Två av dessa dagstidningar är finländska medan de två övriga är sverigesvenska. En av de finländska tidningarna är finskspråkig och den andra är finlandssvensk. Mitt syfte har varit att undersöka huruvida det förekommer likheter och skillnader i perspektiven på sexförsäljning mellan de finländska och de sverigesvenska artiklarna. Eftersom mitt finländska undersökningsmaterial utgjorts av både en finskspråkig och en finlandssvensk tidning har avsikten också varit att jämföra perspektiven på sexförsäljning som framgår av de finländska tidningarna. Detta för att se ifall det finns variationer mellan den finskspråkiga och den finlandssvenska tidningen. Jag har undersökt ämnet genom att utföra en kvalitativ och komparativ innehållsanalys av dessa tidningars artiklar som berör sexförsäljning. Mitt undersökningsmaterial har därmed bestått av artiklar om sexförsäljning som hämtats från de finländska tidningarna Helsingin Sanomat och Hufvudstadsbladet samt de sverigesvenska tidningarna Dagens Nyheter och Svenska Dagbladet. Artiklarna som jag analyserat har publicerats mellan år 2016 till år 2022. Jag har valt en sådan tidsperiod, då jag önskat undersöka perspektiven på sexförsäljning från en så aktuell tidsperiod som möjligt. Antalet artiklar som jag analyserat har varierat mellan två till totalt 68, vilket visar på en stor variation. Utfallen av min undersökning har analyserats mot bakgrund av feministisk teori, som fungerat som min teoretiska referensram. Utfallen som min undersökning resulterat i visar att det förekommer både likheter och skillnader i perspektiven på sexförsäljning mellan de finländska och de sverigesvenska tidningarna. De båda tidningarna pekar på att utsatthet är en aspekt som starkt sammankopplas med sexförsäljning. Samtidigt lyfter båda tidningarna också fram att det även förekommer självständigt och frivilligt sexsäljande. Både i Finland och i Sverige lyfts det fram kritik mot ländernas nuvarande lagstiftningar samt funderingar om vilket juridiskt förhållningssätt som är det mest lämpliga gällande sexförsäljning. Skillnaderna mellan perspektiven syns bl.a. i hur olika mycket uppmärksamhet ett sexköp av en person i en särskild yrkesposition väckt. Offentliga personer som köpt sex har t.ex. observerats betydligt mer i Sverige. En annan skillnad är också att artiklarna om stödåtgärder för sexsäljare och sexköpare behandlats mer i de sverigesvenska artiklarna. Den finlandssvenska tidningen har betonat utsatthet något starkare än den finskspråkiga. Den finskspråkiga tidningen lyfter även fram fler exempel på sexförsäljning i många olika länder medan den finlandssvenska ger fler exempel på fall av sexköp som ägt rum i Sverige. Den finskspråkiga tidningen talar om sexförsäljning som ett arbete mer ofta än den finlandssvenska tidningen. Sexförsäljning förekommer inte lika mycket i gatumiljöer i Finland som i Sverige. Ett mycket tydligt gemensamt utfall är även att det är tydligt att ämnet är komplext och att det finns många olika perspektiv som bör tas i beaktande i diskussioner om fenomenet.

This thesis is a contribution to the discussion on gendered representations of Global South subjects in development NGOs’ communication in the West, and the imaginaries of development they create and maintain. Empirically, it focuses on the context of Finland and particularly, on Finnish NGO fundraising campaigns that concentrate on girls’ and women’s rights in the Global South. The changes in the Finnish political field within which NGOs operate gives contextual relevance to studying NGOs’ private fundraising in Finland. In 2016, the Finnish government cut public funding for development NGOs by 43 %, which forced many organisations to rethink their funding channels. NGOs have since reported increase in competition for donors, which has contributed to the NGO fundraising ‘markets’ increasingly functioning with a capitalistic market logic. Public discussions on development and distant human rights issues thus get increasingly reduced to advertisement appeals, as NGOs must to ‘sell’ the rights-holders’ deservingness of donations. At the same time, the Finnish spectator-donors’ imaginary power in ‘making a change’ is reinforced. This trend is not compatible with NGOs’ other important societal mission, which is the global education of Finnish citizens. A study conducted in 2015 shows that Finnish people’s knowledge on development in the Global South is extremely pessimistic. From a postcolonial perspective on knowledge production and power, this thesis challenges the ‘ends justify means’ argument by questioning whether pessimistic and colonial imaginaries should be the price to pay for fight against inequality – and ultimately, are these means productive for global equality. The empirical example campaigns for this thesis were Uncut by the International Solidarity Foundation, Maternity Wear for a 12-year-old by Plan International Finland, and Women’s Bank Walk by the Finn Church Aid –administered Women’s Bank. The ethnographic research consisted of 10 NGO and expert interviews, 8 short interviews with participants and volunteers in a campaign event, document analysis, discussions, participant observation, and online data collection. The data was analysed using qualitative and visual discourse analysis tools, against the theoretical framework of relevant postcolonial, post-humanitarian, feminist, and de-colonial theories. The main findings of the research are that although NGOs consciously strive for the ‘respectful representation’ of women and girls in the Global South, the capitalist marketing framework used in fundraising communication is not productive for challenging the underpinning colonial discourse. Rather, by a rhetorical logic of empowerment, the power relations are denied – which only reinforces subordination, albeit disguises it better. However, there are significant differences between NGOs on how their power in representation and knowledge production is understood and reflected upon.

This Master’s thesis studies feminist politics by exploring internal organizing practices and the principles guiding them in grassroots activism. The internal organizing practices of feminist movements have not been studied extensively; this thesis aims to fill some of that gap and underline the insights into the political ideas and desires of activists that can be gained when internal practices are analyzed. The research objectives are to shed light on the politics of internal practices, highlight the knowledge and experience generated in grassroots movements as well as analyze the political ideas and desires of feminists by focusing on their organizing practices. Ten semi-structured interviews were conducted with altogether twelve feminist grassroots organizers. The concept of knowledge-practices is used to highlight the perspective of activists as knowledge-producers and that knowledge is generated through embodied and lived experience. Prefigurative politics as a form of knowledge-practice is used to focus on the politics of practices and the groups as a space for experimenting with and creating the desired feminist future in the present. Feminist principles are identified and analyzed as well as how they are put to practice according to the research participants. The research shows that the feminist activists interviewed view feminism as a broad concept which entails an active strive for equality and a struggle against all forms of inequality. Additionally feminism is described as something in itself, as opposed to being only a reaction towards inequality. The study contributes with perspectives that view feminism as a particular way of being in and organizing the world in which all forms of oppression and inequalities are recognized and to be dismantled. The study finds that the activists emphasize low and transparent hierarchies over non-hierarchical organizing and that organizing should be according to the time and energy resources in a group. Despite their importance, the principles prove difficult in practice. The challenges and tensions that occur when organizing according to the discussed feminist principles become a central part of organizing as well as of this study. Diversity and inclusivity are presented as feminist principles by the research participants, but the analysis in the thesis shows that they also reproduce the power structures they are intended to dismantle. The study suggests that accessibility and safer spaces provide more practical perspective on organizing according to feminist principles. While the thesis gathers feminist practices and principles, it is also concluded that feminist practices are contextual and situated. Feminist principles are emphasized, but how organizers put the principles to practice varies according to the specific needs and desires of groups.

The #MeToo campaign started on social media in 2017, empowering women who had experienced sexual harassment and- violence. From the start the campaign was criticized for the lack of intersectionality in representation. In the autumn of 2018, the leading figure of the campaign, Asia Argento, was accused of having sexual relations with 17-year-old Jimmy Bennet. The new story presented a differing narrative from the main storyline of #metoo, that eventually resulted in heated online debates where gender, power relations and sexual violence were present and debated. The campaign has inevitably shaped society, and the way we talk about sexual violence in an online setting. This thesis focuses on the narrative of Asia Argento on social media; how she is narrated in relation to her gender and categories of #metoo and sexual harassment. Thus, the purpose of this thesis is to analyze how women are viewed on social media in the post #metoo context. The theoretical framework of this thesis builds on existing literature on feminism, gender as a cultural construct, sexual violence and power relations as part of gender and feminism, social media, hate speech and how these subjects are discussed on social media in the #metoo context in which its own communicative practices apply. The main source material is provided by Rossi (2015), Daniels (2016), Kantola (2015), Kitzinger & Thomas (1995) and Meikle (2016). The qualitative study applies feminist epistemology to analyze 75 comments collected from 5 news outlets: CNN International, the New York Times, CBS News, Fox News and ABC News. The data was collected with random sampling to enable a broad demographic of commentators, that were later fully anonymized apart from their gender. The analysis was conducted using categorical-content analysis. Argento is analyzed through three themes: women, #metoo and sexual violence. The findings indicate that white women are fair game on social media, as their appearance, merits and femininity is denied. The loss of credibility of #MeToo movement is highlighted through Asia Argento, whereas the women supporting her are processed similarly as Argento. The latest case further impacts the narrative of the victims, as the status of the victim is negotiated. The findings indicate that the power relation between genders strongly impacts how the society treats women. Victim blaming, and mob-shaming are apparent, as the social media has enabled freedom of speech. The findings further indicate that social media is a patriarchal environment, that nurtures misogyny. Hence, hostility, stereotypes and generalizations are apparent, resulting in an environment where the weak are silenced and dominant voices are being emphasized. This does not only apply to women, but to men as well, as they too are being faced with belittling and emasculation. The thesis analyzes the narrative of a woman in the era in which gender and gender roles are still being defined. It takes a closer look at social media, and how women are perceived on social media in the post #metoo context.

Målsättningen för denna studie var att ta fasta på skillnader mellan kön när det kommer till att kandidera i val. För det första undersöktes om kvinnor i större utsträckning än män kandiderat i val till följd av uppmuntran från andra, snarare än på eget initiativ. För det andra granskades om nivån av politisk jämställdhet i de länder respondenterna kandiderar i påverkar eventuella könsskillnader, och om könsskillnaderna är större i länder med lägre politisk jämställdhet. Teorin inkluderade uppmuntran, ambition, jämställdhet och representation samt strukturella hinder för kvinnor i politiken. Detta är en kvantitativ studie med statistisk dataanalys och den data som användes för analysen är insamlad av Comparative Candidate Survey (CCS), ett gemensamt multinationellt som samlar in data om kandidater som kandiderar till nationella parlamentsval i olika länder. För att kunna jämföra resultaten från analysen med politisk jämställdhet användes ett för denna avhandling skapat jämställdhetsindex. Resultaten för denna studie var både förväntade men också överraskande. Som väntat kandiderar kvinnor i större utsträckning än män tack vare uppmuntran från andra. Förvånansvärt nog kunde vi konstatera att den politiska jämställdhetsnivån har en påverkan på skillnader mellan könen och att effekten av kön, och därmed könsskillnaderna, är större i länder med en högre nivå av politisk jämställdhet. Med detta sagt lyckades denna studie både fastställa men också förkasta antaganden grundade på tidigare politisk feministisk forskning.