Evoking Equality: The Gender Sensitivity of Parliaments through their Symbolic Function

Abstract

This article examines parliaments as symbol-makers beyond the actions of individual Members of Parliament or parliamentary party groups. In doing so, it develops an analytical framework for studying how legislatures symbolically represent women and, more generally, how they stand for gender equality. The article identifies who are the symbol-makers on behalf of the institution and outlines several indicators that allow assessing how the symbolic may further the gender sensitivity of parliaments. The indicators are clustered into two domains: on one hand, physical spaces, and, on the other hand, communications and public outreach. Drawing on examples from parliaments around the world, the article documents the wide range of available repertoires aimed at eroding the association between politics and masculinity. It also discusses the expected impact of symbolic activity on the targeted audiences and pinpoints the ways in which descriptive, substantive and symbolic representation build onto each other.