Women and Work: Feminism, Labour, and Social Reproduction

by Susan Ferguson

Feminism is once again on the political agenda. Across the world women are taking to the streets to protest unfair working conditions, abortion laws, and sexual violence. They are demanding decent wages, better schools and free childcare. But why do some feminists choose to fight for more women CEOs, while others fight for a world without CEOs?

To understand these divergent approaches, Susan Ferguson looks at the ideas that have inspired women to protest, exploring the ways in which feminists have placed work at the centre of their struggle for emancipation. Two distinct trajectories emerge: 'equality feminism' and 'social reproduction feminism'. Ferguson argues that socialists have too often embraced the 'liberal' tendencies of equality feminism, while neglecting the insights of social reproduction feminism.

Engaging with feminist anti-work critiques, Ferguson proposes that women's emancipation depends upon a radical reimagining of all labour and advocates for a renewed social reproduction framework as a powerful basis for an inclusive feminist politics.

Genres: Feminism, Nonfiction, Politics, Gender, Womens, Grad School, Research

192 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 20, 2019

Reviews

[Gosia Damek · Rating 4 out of 5]

Świetnie systematyzuje ścieżki zachodniego feminizmu, a następnie rekonceptualizuje pojęcie reprodukcji społecznej. Essential read żeby uporządkować sobie teorię w głowie i stosować ją do problemów współczesności.

[Aral · Rating 4 out of 5]

Potent. Contextualització i característiques dels feminismes de la igualtat, la igualtat crítica i feminisme de la reproducció social. Diferents teories al voltant de la reproducció social. Amb molts detalls i molta bibliografia

[#Cyberphunkisms (search it) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally a feminist work that doesn't advocate for the total destruction of solidarity, western-individualist "autonomy from males," or fragmentary forms of "intersectionality".

Unfortunately, there is little hope to moving towards an "authentic progressivism" unless "social reproduction"-conscious feminists start actually calling out feminisms that destroy solidarity by commodifying emotional labor, subsuming every aspect of life into neoliberal capitalism through "keep your politics out of my vagina" movements, and continually reiterating historical traumas by refusing to engage with feminisms outside of their own polarized echo chambers, miring whatever is left of "the left" into endless civil war (ie terfs vs trans activists) by explaining that it is "too much emotional labor" to educate each other.

Unless I read this work wrong, my only critique is that "we" (If there is indeed a we, and if I am included in this we, I am tired of being called a white male for disagreeing even though I am not) need a much more robust movement to critique feminisms that are actively destroying solidarity.

This includes menslib. God I hate menslib.

[Feargal McGovern · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very very very good. Essential reading for all communists.

[Kennedy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great overview of social reproduction theory, highlighting not only key historical moments in the development of social reproductive feminism but also where it went wrong, specifically the lack of inclusion of Black feminist voices. The ending of the book, looking at where the theory will hopefully go while including aspects like racialization is very affective. Overall, worth the read.

[Eulàlia Duran · Rating 4 out of 5]

És un llibre molt interessant que fa una panoràmica de les diferents aportacions teòriques des del segle XVIII a la teoria de la reproducció social. L'últim capítol em sembla el central del llibre i és imprescindible. Tot i això, he de dir que l'organització dels capítols, ordre, títols, etc. és molt poc clara i això dificulta entendre de què parla el llibre (o, almenys, a mi m'ha costat, però potser només cosa meva). Per exemple, no explica ben bé en què consisteix el feminisme de la reproducció social fins al final.

[fowzia. · Rating 4 out of 5]

really love how it showed the way social reproduction workers can resist against capital both on its terrain and outside of it, and how we can create a labour for life over capital.