Negotiating in/security: Women’s activism in Kashmir

Br�nnlund, Emma

Abstract

This paper aims to interrogate the relationship between women’s activism and in/security through a narrative approach to feminist security studies. The investigation of women’s activism in the Kashmir Valley highlights gendered notions of in/security and brings to fore in/securities experienced by local women and men.

Kashmir is neither a state of open war, nor a post-conflict situation, but a rough terrain of in/security. This terrain is highly gendered as large presence of hyper-masculinised military troops, anti-government militants and “unidentified gunmen”, as well as robust gender roles, govern social and political life. The in/security terrain, both discursive and embodied, is constituting the Kashmiri population and, significantly, women activists.

In this paper I explore how women engaging in activism negotiate the in/security terrain through various strategies. The key tactic involves the telling of stories to oneself; narratives that externalise threats and demonstrate one’s own agency. Importantly, this paper brings insights into how women challenge gendered in/securities in order to partake in political activities.

• Presentation Conference Type: Conference Paper (unpublished)
• Conference Name: Pint of Research: Global Society
• Start Date: Apr 14, 2018
• End Date: Apr 14, 2018
• Acceptance Date: May 14, 2018
• Peer Reviewed: Not Peer Reviewed
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/868105
• Publisher URL: https://pintofscience.co.uk/event/a-global-society
• Additional Information: Title of Conference or Conference Proceedings : Pint of Science