Seriously!: Investigating Crashes and Crises as If Women Mattered

and#147;This is simply a brilliant book. It is timely and necessary. In the shining of her feminist spotlight on deepest fissures of the structures of our modern world, she uncovers and explains; patriarchy, misogyny and masculinity, she moves effortlessly from militarism to financial institutions and shows that the triumvirate of P, M and M, still defines politics and power across all spectrums. In exposing how it works, she also exposes something we, as feminists, have been ashamed to confront, (save for the brave few), our own fear of not being taken seriously, our tacit and#145;collaborationand#8217;. Its time for us to change, and as the imaginary dinner table concluded; and#145;Now not laterand#8217;! Thank you Cynthia!and#8221;and#151;Madeleine Rees, Secretary General, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom

and#147;Of all the lessons I have learned from Cynthia Enloeand#8217;s pathbreaking scholarship, perhaps the most important is that to understand how any system of power works, one must examine who is on the margins of that system and how they are kept there. And to do that, one must pay close attention to the lives of those who live and operate on the margins, women in particular. In her new book, Enloe shows exactly what scholars, activists and officials lose when they fail to take the lives of women seriously. It is a must-read for any social scientist or graduate student.and#8221;and#151;Aaron Belkin, Author of How We Won: Progressive Lessons from the Repeal of and#145;Don't Ask, Don't Telland#8217;

and#147;Cynthia Enloeand#8217;s work is unique in that it challenges us alland#151;policymakers, activists, scholars and students alike to take gender seriously. She asks provocative questions that are not normally asked about global politics and is always questioning our and#145;common senseand#8217; understanding about the way the world works.and#8221;and#151;J. Ann Tickner, author of Gendering World Politics: Issues and Approaches in the Post-Cold War Era

and#147;Cynthia Enloe is the leading authority in the field of gender, feminism, women and international relations.and#8221;and#151;Amrita Basu, Paino Professor of Political Science, Women and Gender Studies, Amherst College

"Enloe offers vivid illustrations from around the world of how women's perspectives and needs are ignored or trivialized, both in public discourse and policymaking."

In Seriously!, Cynthia Enloe, author of the groundbreaking analysis of globalization, Bananas, Beaches, and Bases, addresses two deeply gendered and contested questions: Who is taken seriously? And who gets to bestow the label and#147;seriousand#8221; on others? With a strategy of taking both women and gender dynamics seriously, Cynthia Enloe investigates the Dominique Strauss-Kahn affair and the banking crash of 2008, the subsequent recession, as well as UN peacekeeping and the ongoing Egyptian revolution. Each case study highlights the gritty experiences of women in diverse circumstancesand#151;in banks, on the job market, in war zones, and in revolutions. The results of taking women seriously are fresh insights into what fuels the cultures of hyperand#150;risk taking, of sexual harassment, and the denial of womenand#8217;s post-war security.

Cynthia Enloe is research professor at Clark University and author of numerous books, including Bananas, Beaches and Bases: Making Feminist Sense of International Politics.

List of Illustrations

Preface

1. Who Is and#147;Taken Seriouslyand#8221;?

2. Launching and Naming: Sexual Harassment and One Womenand#8217;s-Studies Story

3. The Mundane Matters: Why Feminists Take Daily Life Seriously

4. DSK, Vikings, and the Smartest Guys: Masculinities in the Banking Crash of 2008

5. Women in Recession: Austerity and Misogyny

6. Militarism, Patriarchy, and Peace Movements: In Conversation with Cynthia Cockburn

7. Failing to Secure the Peace: Patriarchal Assumptions and Their Consequences for UN Operations in Haiti; A Conversation with Nadine Puechguirbal

8. Egyptian Women, Feminism, Revolutions: The Dinner Party

9. Conclusion: In the Eye of the Beholder

Notes

Bibliography

Index