The Revolution Question: Feminisms in El Salvador, Chile, and Cuba

by Julie D. Shayne

What do women do for revolutions? And what do revolutions do for women? Julie Shayne explores the roles of women in revolutionary struggles and the relationship of these movements to the emergence of feminism. Focusing upon the three very different cases of El Salvador, Chile, and Cuba, Shayne documents the roles of women in armed and unarmed political activities. She argues that women contribute to and participate in revolutionary movements in ways quite distinct from men. Despite the fact that their political contributions tend to be seen as less important than those of their male comrades, the roles that women play are actually quite significant to the expansion of revolutionary movements. Shayne also explains how, given the convergence of political and ideological factors, feminism is often born in the wake of revolutionary movements. As a result, revolutionary feminism is a struggle that addresses larger structures of political and economic inequalities. Based on extensive in-depth interviews with activists in all three countries, The Revolution Question offers new insight into the complex gender relations underlying revolutionary social movements and enables us to re-assess both the ways that women affect political struggle and the ways in which political struggle affects women.

Genres: History, Feminism

368 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

I was born and raised in California. I received a BA and MA in Women's Studies from San Francisco State University and a second MA and Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of California at Santa Barbara. I became active in Latin American politics during the Reagan administration as a result of the intensive U.S. intervention in Central America.

As a solidarity activist I traveled to El Salvador for the first time in 1985. Since then, I have been able to incorporate my political convictions into my intellectual pursuits. My areas of interest include revolution, gender, feminism, exile, and development in Latin America and the diaspora.

I started my academic career at Emory University in Women's Studies and Sociology but after six years in Atlanta, and a very difficult decision, my husband and I decided we had to return to the west coast and I resigned to move to the Seattle area. (For more on that decision see my essay "Mother's Day: https://www.uwb.edu/getattachment/ias...).

I am currently a Principal Lecturer in Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences at the University of Washington, Bothell, and Affiliate Principal Lecturer in Gender, Women, and Sexuality Studies & Latin American and Caribbean Studies at the University of Washington, Seattle.
http://www.uwb.edu/ias/faculty/jshayne

When not working, I enjoy the natural beauty of the Puget Sound area with my family - my husband Dave, daughter Barrie, and son Aaron. And, of course, I love to read!

Reviews

[Jared Houston · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book that demonstrates how feminism is inextricably linked and necessary to the success of socialist revolution.

[Bianca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read up on revolutions. See that women are not the weaker sex and be amazed that we never learn about any of this in school.