A special United Nations Peace Keeping Police Unit comprised of only women has been implemented in Liberia to regulate the streets. These women in strict and professional attire exert a military, as well as socially regulatory force in the streets of Monrovia, Liberia. The 100th International Women’s Day was on March 8,marking the United Nations intensifying efforts to recruit women for peacekeeping missions that seek to mend what war has wrought.
Many critical theorists argue that the presence of women as authority figures instills a respect and order in society. “When female soldiers are present, the situation is closer to real life, and as a result the men tend to behave,” said Gerard J. DeGroot, a history professor at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland who has written books about women in the military. “Any conflict where you have an all-male army, it’s like a holiday from reality. If you inject women into that situation, they do have a civilizing effect.” This situation exemplifies an approach to international politics that reaches outside the realm of traditional ideas about security, conflict and resolution. Manipulating pre-existing social standards (gender roles) in a situation of conflict is a way to change the way that people act, and react. Exemplifying critical theory, the implementation of women as peace keeping soldiers questions the "standard" or "common sense" response to most security issues surrounding war torn areas. Furthermore, inequalities are being recognized, as are the flaws that come along with social inequalities, and this article illuminates the affects when these inequalities are worked against.
The result of gender roles can be clearly seen in this example. The presence of women makes one think twice about creating trouble. A constructivist or a critical theorist would ask why this is. They would look at universal norms established growing up, for instance, of why women are viewed with greater respect in militaristic conditions. The situation takes typically looked down upon stereotypes and uses them for good in this instance. I wonder how long it would take for the women's presence to be considered equal to that of men. Would it return Liberia to its previous state they had before with the male force or would people realize the respect they have for women in the police force can be applied to men in the police force?
ReplyDeleteGreat post, Anja, and great comment, Courtney. This is a question that we'll be talking about more in the next few weeks. Critical feminists would definitely ask why women are perceived to be better peacemakers, less violent, etc. Gender roles and gendered perceptions of men and women definitely play a role in international politics, this is a great example. Sometimes, "good" stereotypes of women can be as problematic as "bad" steroetypes of women. Related to this example, the image of women as morally upright, and worthy of respect and protection from men has been linked to the incidence of rape as a weapons of war in the Balkans, where one side would rape the women of the other side as an insult to the men for not being able to protect them, and 'sully the honor' of both.
ReplyDeleteI understand the stereotype that women might be better peacekeepers because of their supposed "peaceful nature," but I am skeptical of how effective an all-women force will be in a war-torn area like Liberia. I can see how troublemakers might be deterred by the presence of women because violent acts are generally less acceptable in the presence of females. However, since men are stereotypically "tougher," wouldn't they command more respect and fear from criminals? If women are considered "soft" and undervalued in a society, they will not be taken seriously, and troublemakers will try to get away with crimes that they would not attempt if there were "tough" men around. Hopefully, these women in Liberia are just as "tough," "hard," and "powerful" as any men and will be able to do good work.
ReplyDelete