Militarism, Conflict and Women's Activism in the Global Era

Challenges and Prospects for Women in Three West African Contexts

Bibliographic Data

ID3945593
AuthorsAmina Mama (0000-0003-4755-8274), Margo Okazawa-Rey
Year2012
Volume101
Issue1
Pages97-123
Publication date2012-07-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueFeminist Review (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0141-7789 • E-ISSN: 1466-4380
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1057/fr.2011.57
OpenAlexW2087170469
LanguageEN
Citations received36
References cited28

This article develops a feminist perspective on militarism in Africa, drawing examples from the Nigerian, Sierra Leonean and Liberian civil wars spanning several decades to examine women's participation in the conflict, their survival and livelihood strategies, and their activism. We argue that postcolonial conflicts epitomise some of the worst excesses of militarism in the era of neoliberal globalisation, and that the economic, organisational and ideological features of militarism undermine the prospects for democratisation, social justice and genuine security, especially for women, in post-war societies. Theorisations of 'new wars' and the war economy are taken as entry points to a discussion of the conceptual and policy challenges posed by the enduring and systemic cultural and material aspects of militarism. These include the contradictory ways in which women are affected by the complex relationship between gendered capitalist processes and militarism, and the manner in which women negotiate their lives through both. Finally, we highlight the potential of transnational feminist theorising and activism for strengthening intellectual and political solidarities and argue that the globalised military security system can be our 'common context for struggle' 1 as contemporary feminist activist scholars. 1 Mohanty, 2003

Context (archaeology) · Democracy · Democratization · Globalization · Militarism · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Gender Politics and Representation · Gender Studies · Gender, Security, and Conflict · Historical Gender and Feminism Studies · Law