Women, Power, and Property: The Paradox of Gender Equality Laws in India (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781108835824)

Quotas for women in government have swept the globe. Yet we know little about their capacity to upend entrenched social, political, and economic hierarchies. Women, Power, and Property explores this question within the context of India, the world's largest democracy. Brul employs a research design that maximizes causal inference alongside extensive field research to explain the relationship between political representation, backlash, and economic empowerment. Her findings show that women in government - gatekeepers - catalyze access to fundamental economic rights to property. Women in politics have the power to support constituent rights at critical junctures, such as marriage negotiations, when they can strike integrative solutions to intrahousehold bargaining. Yet there is a paradox: quotas are essential for enforcement of rights, but they generate backlash against women who gain rights without bargaining leverage. In this groundbreaking study, Brul shows how well-designed quotas can operate as a crucial tool to foster equality and benefit the women they are meant to empower.

Author: Rachel E. Brulé
ISBN-10: 1108835821
ISBN-13: 9781108835824
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Language: English
Published: 10/22/2020
Pages: 433
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.65lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.00w x 1.00d