Low-Income Islamist Women and Social Economy in Iran
By: by Roksana Bahramitash, Atena Sadegh , Negin Sattari
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This book presents an innovative analysis of the solidarity/social economy among low-income religious women in Iran. For years, the role of low-income women in community care and poverty reduction has been underestimated and under-researched in the broader academic community, due to the “invisible” nature of these informal and predominantly religious networks. As economic hardship in Iran increases, women in the community have mobilized to bring assistance to those struggling to make ends meet. The culmination of years of fieldwork in different parts of the country, this book sheds light on how religious women form the backbone of Iran’s social safety net as the welfare state fails and social protection policies dwindle.
Political and Socio-Economic Change in the Middle East and North Africa: Gender Perspectives and Survival Strategies (Paperback June 5 2016)
By: by Roksana Bahramitash (Editor), Hadi Salehi Esfahani (Editor)
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The contributions to this collection examine the shortcomings of the economic development policies in the MENA region before and after the Arab Spring, with particular attention to the role of gender and the ways in which policies translate into economic outcomes.
Gender and Entrepreneurship in Iran: Microenterprise and the Informal Sector
By: Roksana Bahramitash
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Iran is estimated to have the third largest informal sector in the MENA region a major source of income for many low-income households whose numbers are growing as sanctions tighten. Gender and Entrepreneurship in Iran provides insight into the role of informal networks in employment creation in Iran from a gender perspective. Drawing upon theories of social capital, social network, and the postcolonial feminist critique of mainstream development, this analysis sheds light on the ways in which poverty and unemployment may be tackled.
Gender in Contemporary Iran: Pushing the Boundaries
By: by Roksana Bahramitash (Editor), Eric Hooglund (Editor)
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This book examines gender and the dynamics of social change in contemporary Iran, documenting the changes in women’s lives and showing how women have now become agents of social change rather than victims. Bringing together the detailed primary research of a number of eminent scholars working in Iran, this collection provides unique perspectives on the past decade in Iranian society. Chapters document and examine how different Iranian groups and classes are negotiating, resisting, and pressing for political and social change, to explore the complexity of a society that often is portrayed in monolithic stereotypes in the international media. Thematically arranged sections explore discourses around gender and the impact of these discourses on women; the gendered impact of educational, employment, communications, and cultural changes; changing gender attitudes among the post-revolutionary generation of youth; and the ways economic changes have been affecting women. Providing an important basis for understanding social and political developments in a country that has been a focus of international attention for much of the last decade, this collection will be an important reference for scholars of Iranian studies, gender studies, political science and sociology.
Veiled Employment: Islamism and the Political Economy of Women's Employment in Iran Hardcover – Illustrated, April 15 2011
By: by Roksana Bahramitash (Editor), Hadi Esfahani (Editor)
The popularity of neoliberal economic policies is based, in part, on the argument that the liberalization of markets promotes growth and increases employment opportunities for women. Although the latest research bears this out, it also presents a grim portrait of the state of women’s employment. Approximately 70 percent of those living on less than a dollar a day are women or girls. In Veiled Employment, the contributors examine these stark disparities, focusing on the evolving role of women’s employment in Iran. Based on empirical field research in Iran, their essays document the accelerating trend in the size and diversity of women’s employment since the 1990s and explore the impact of various governmental policies on women. The volume analyzes such issues as the effect of global trade on female employment, women’s contributions to the informal work sector, and Iranian female migrant workers in the United States. Rejecting the commonly held view that centers on Islam as the primary cause of women’s status in the Muslim world, the authors emphasize the role of national and international political economies. Drawing on postcolonial feminist theory, they reveal the ways in which women in Iran have resisted and challenged Islamism, revealing them as agents of social transformation rather than as victims of religious fundamentalism.
Liberation from Liberalization: Gender and Globalization in South East Asia Paperback – Illustrated, Nov. 5 2005
By: by Roksana Bahramitash (Author)
This book focuses on Southeast Asia and the role the state has played in the economies of Taiwan, Indonesia and the Philippines. While showing that the role of women in the economy has contributed significantly to economic growth, limiting the role of the state under the influence of neo-liberal globalization, particularly with welfare state reduction, has been responsible for growing poverty, especially among women. The book argues in favor of a system that incorporates women's groups into the decision-making process of the state while making sure the state remains both transparent and subject to the political advocacy of its citizens