Gender politics and post-communism

In the wake of communism's decline, women's concerns have become increasingly important in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. The issue of abortion, for example, has been bitterly contested in virtually all the countries. Women's role in Eastern European societies has been central to the post-communist restructuring, yet most discussions of post-communist changes have neglected women's experiences. Gender Politics and Post-Communism is the first collection of its kind, presenting original essays by women scholars, politicians, activists, and former dissidents from Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. They discuss gender politics during the often turbulent transition and crises of post-communism, offering vivid accounts and analyses of the conditions facing women in each country. These essays provide the philosophical, economic, historical, cultural, and sociological contexts needed to understand women's position and the possibilities for women's activities in post-communism. The book aims to provoke public discourse on the myriad issues facing women in the East, including nationalism, the economic transformation, women and the state, abortion, and sexuality. They expose the anti-feminism of state socialism and discuss what women have gained and lost with the fall of communism. They also ask whether Western feminism has any place in post-communist countries. The book includes controversial critiques of Western feminism by post-communist women as well as essays by Western feminists and scholars. Exploring misunderstandings between women in the East and West, the book will stimulate reflection on the global implications of feminist theories.