Unraveling Gender, Development and Civil Society in the Caribbean

Abstract

The impact of relations, the dynamics of power between women and men, and the sexual division of labour is at the heart of development; it can define the options we have, the opportunities we get to embrace life to the fullest and the cultures we express. Gender, is recognized as a cross- cutting theme in challenges in the media, education, HIV/AIDs, health, trade, the economy, international relations, human rights, natural disasters, among others - all in ways that was not seen to be relevant before. At the same time, definitions of masculinity and femininity are being challenged by internal social changes and problems as well as external influences such as cable television, migration and the impact of neoliberalism and globalization. As the Caribbean is faced with challenges of globalization and the concurrent neoliberal ideological framework, it is also faced with increasing evidence of social disintegration and gender-based violence; a decline in health and education standards, productive employment, and an overall decline in economic development and the human condition. The aim of this volume is to speak to these increasing challenges and the myriad ways in which relations are affected. A need was recognized to focus on the gender work in the Caribbean region and the particular role that civil society has played. In November 1998, the United Nations declared the years 2001 to 2010 the Decade for a Culture of Peace and Nonviolence. In its declaration the UN called upon member states to institute peace education, from primary school to university, as a way to institutionalize non-violence. In its programme of action on a Culture of Peace, (UN Resolution 53/243) the UN identified actions to foster a culture of peace in areas such as education, sustainable development and democratic participation. Equality between men and women is identified as a key element in a securing a Culture of Peace. Ironically, this agenda for peace did not gain momentum, for in the year two thousand and six, we live with the constant reality that conflict, power, manipulation and intimidation are fast becoming common tools of engagement between people, nations and leaders, all in a fight for resources. Gender remains at the core as it is often expressed through culture-bound gendered identities. It is a world where men still dominate, flexing financial, physical and economic muscles, in board rooms, in banks, in homes, in schools, and in court rooms, in Iraq, in Lebanon, in the Palestine, and other war-torn and conflict ridden places much closer to us such as Haiti, Jamaica and Guyana. It is also a world in which women have continued to make strides professionally, politically and economically, regardless of the obstacles. Ascendancies to political leadership in Liberia (Ellen Johnson Sirleaf), Germany (Gerhard Schroder), Chile (Michelle Bachelet) and Jamaica (Portia Simpson Miller) are recent examples. Ann Marie Adams' commentary speaks to this by writing on the dynamics surrounding Portia Simpson Miller's ascendancy as Jamaica's first female Prime Minister. At the level of the episteme, feminism(s), women in development, the women's movement has gone through several experiences since the 1960s, which have provided us with challenges, lessons, reflections and redefinitions. The contributions by June Castello, Judith Soares, and the personal essay by Ava Gail Gardner address these issues from different angles. We have witnessed two critical backlashes of feminist activism - the feminist backlash of gains won by women in the 1960s and 1970s; and the patriarchal backlash whereby the restrictions of the very model of hegemonic masculinity and the pressures thereof to be the dominant economic actor and decision maker in families and communities, have isolated working class men, and men of African descent in particular. Trends in male criminality, aggressive masculinities, under-achievement and under-performance in education systems are increasing preoccupations. …