Deploying Feminism

A detailed account, based on fieldwork and interviews, of how Women, Peace and Security norms are militarized and put at the service of operational effectiveness.

International organizations and governments want to increase women's participation in military operations and peacebuilding. Gender equality is increasingly seen as the antidote to conflict, a key factor in achieving stability. While feminist activism inspired the emergence of these norms on gender and conflict, they were institutionalized through the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda, with the military at the forefront of those changes.

In Deploying Feminism, Stéfanie von Hlatky tells the story of how the military has been delegated authority to advance gender equality as part of their activities, while simultaneously tackling increasingly complex threats. Drawing upon fieldwork and interviews, she illustrates how NATO, the world's foremost alliance, has even embedded these ideas in the planning and execution of its missions. For troops deployed on NATO missions, this often means seeking out women in their operating area to improve intelligence gathering activities. While this helps the mission, does it help women and conflict-affected communities? Because of the military's focus on operational effectiveness above all else, von Hlatky argues that there is a distortion of WPS norms, as gender equality concerns fade into the background.

Looking at NATO's ongoing operations in Iraq, Kosovo, and the Baltics, Deploying Feminism details the process by which Women, Peace and Security norms are militarized and put at the service of operational effectiveness. Further, it shows why an adjustment is necessary for gender equality to become a true planning priority.

A timely and important contribution that bridges long standing gaps between feminist theory, strategic studies, and civil-military analysis. Von Hlatky's expert and careful analysis, particularly her brilliant development of the concept of 'norm distortion,' helps address a question that has plagued feminists for the past decade: Why and how has institutional adoption of feminist concepts failed to translate into radical and transformative agendas? Through her international case studies, and clear expertise of NATO operations, the WPS agenda, feminist theory, and foreign policy, von Hlatky draws out unique conclusions about the process through which feminist ideals can be filtered, diluted, and militarized in military organizations, while at the same time, militaries 'deploying' this rhetoric remain largely unchanged.

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