Topos

Thu, 28 Dec 2023 15:12:38 +0000

WOMEN AND IMMATERIAL LABOUR: UNVEILING THE UNSEEN DYNAMICS

Antonina Stebur, Almira Ousmanova — Thu, 28 Dec 2023 15:19:57 +0000

This thematic volume of the journal Topos sprang from the international conference entitled Gender and Im/Material Labour, which was organized by the Center for Gender Studies at the the European Humanities University and held in Vilnius on June 15–16, 2023. The con- ference was part of the Women in Tech educational and research project, the project was launched by the EHU Center for Gender Studies and is funded by the European Union. Apart of the articles, submitted by the participants of the given conference, the volume also features the outcomes of the Women in Tech research grant program (held in 2022–2023), that was aimed specifically at the young female scholars, whose research has been focused on various gender-related issues of the IT industry in Belarus and in the region in the period of 2020–2023.

GENDER DYNAMICS AND COLONIAL DEPENDENCIES IN THE BELARUSIAN IT SECTOR

Antonina Stebur — Thu, 28 Dec 2023 15:21:04 +0000

This article delves into the complex relationship between colonial dependencies and gender representation in Belarus’s IT industry. It highlights how, on the basis of colonialism/modernity, the standard of gender equality in Belarusian IT becomes not the equal representation of men and women, but the performance of first-world countries in the field of gender equality in IT. The study emphasizes how outsourcing, a significant component of the IT sector in Belarus, perpetuates gender discrimination by removing decision-making power and agency, particularly impacting women’s ability to advocate for gender equality. Additionally, the article explores the intersectionality of these issues, examining how the commodification of human capital in IT, influenced by past Soviet policies, creates a network of dependencies that hinders the promotion of gender equality in Belarus’s IT landscape.

JUST THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF CARING: CONTRADICTORY DEMANDS OF HR WORK IN BELARUSIAN IT INDUSTRY

Yana Sanko — Thu, 28 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0000

This article discusses the tensions of Human Resources (HR) work in Belarusian IT companies by examining it within the context of an ongoing crisis in the industry. HR workers in Belarusian IT are predominantly female, and various gendered expectations are assigned to them, both formally and informally. Based on the qualitative study conducted in 2021, I examine how care (Fisher & Tronto, 1990), emotional labor (Hochschild, 2012), and intimate labor (Zelizer, 2010) manifest in HR work, regulated by the idea of balancing the interests of different groups and employer branding rationale. HRs have to perform several kinds of emotional work that are not officially part of their job and even can be regarded as unprofessional, but that are nevertheless perceived as unavoidable. I discuss how performing impartiality involves what Hochschild calls deep and surface acting (2012) with several audiences in mind. I argue that the ambiguity of this role is strategic in the sense that it serves the businesses, by allowing them to benefit from emotional labor without acknowledging it.

LEGAL ASPECTS OF GENDER EQUALITY IN THE LABOUR MARKET

Maryia Zharylouskaya — Thu, 28 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0000

The article elaborates on existing international standards for gender equality in the labour market and the main challenges that cause its insufficient effectiveness. The object of the research is the norms of international law establishing human rights standards related to ensuring gender equality in the labour market at the worldwide level through the UN system and, in particular, such legal instruments as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966), the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966), the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (1979), and the ILO jurisprudence.

The research methodology is based on a comprehensive approach, including an analysis of acts of international law, case law of relevant international organisations, and authorities. Inter alia the following methods of scientific knowledge were used in the research: (i) general methods, in particular: scientific abstraction, analysis, synthesis, generalisation, comparison, principles of dialectics and formal logic, historical and systemic approaches; (ii) specific methods, in particular: method of comparative legal research.

Based on the research conducted, three main contemporary challenges for the legal regulation of gender aspects of the labour market were identified:

(i) the historically determined predominant use of binary perception of sex as a basis for gender discrimination, including in the labour market. Despite the existence of positive implementation practices of HRC, the ILO and CEDAW legal concepts on sex-based and gender-based discrimination should be further developed through both holistic theoretical analysis and the incorporation of relevant legal norms into acts of “hard” international law;

(ii) the legal status of men with family responsibilities does not have enough legal regulation on the level of obligatory international guarantees, therefore, subsequent international law should to be adopted;

(iii) enforcement mechanisms are weak enough and their implementation is often conditional on the “goodwill” of a State concerned without the possibility of international external enforcement (with the exception of certain ILO mechanisms, which are, however, procedurally difficult to enforce due to the tripartite system of organisation).

THE IMPACT OF WOMEN’S FEARS ON GENDER INEQUALITY IN BELARUSIAN IT

Marina Mentusova — Thu, 28 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0000

This research aims to understand the gender disparity in the IT sector within Belarus by examining both overt and covert factors dissuading women from pursuing careers in the domain. Using a blend of quantitative and qualitative methodologies, the study identifies socio-cultural stereotypes, structural impediments, and the ramifications of gender inequality on women’s career choices and overall well-being in the industry. The quantitative facet of the study, involving a comprehensive electronic survey, revealed that societal stereotypes about women are primary barriers discouraging 75% of the interested respondents from pursuing IT-related professions. To delve deeper into the on-ground experiences of women in the IT sector, a subsequent qualitative investigation employing semi-structured interviews was undertaken with 23 Belarusian women actively engaged in the field. Preliminary findings suggest that even within the modern IT landscape, societal norms, internalized misogyny, and emotional challenges linked to a predominantly male-centric workspace significantly affect the experiences of women professionals. This research, backed by the “Gender Studies” Master’s program at the European Humanities University and the Women in TECH initiative, underscores the need for holistic strategies to bridge the gender divide in the IT sector. The insights from this study not only spotlight the challenges confronting Belarusian women in IT but also pave the way for future research and policy interventions to foster a more inclusive and gender-equitable IT landscape.

MEDIA COMMUNITIES OF UKRAINIAN MIGRANT WOMEN (REFUGEES FROM WAR) IN LITHUANIA AND GERMANY: APPROACHES TO STUDYING

Olena Pavlova, Mariya Rohozha, Iryna Maslikova — Thu, 28 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0000

This article examines the empirical data from media channels established by Ukrainian women migrants and refugees fleeing war residing in Lithuania and Germany. Additionally, the article seeks to develop theoretical insights into the organization and community dynamics of these migrant groups, with a particular focus on territorial distinctions and the distribution of gender roles. The article employs a case analysis method to examine the media communities of Ukrainian migrants in Germany and Lithuania during Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The study involves a relational content analysis of text messages and metadata from these communication channels. The resulting empirical data is framed within the context of Kant’s well-being structure, considering its evolution under current circumstances. The media communities within the realm of immigration are examined through the lenses of the “digital text” and “vernacular writing on the web” concepts. Special attention is given to the diverse forms of “the network of networks” and their localization strategies. Ukrainian media communities, notably with women as a dominant social group, exhibit a form of “‘undirected’ being-together”, which involves reproduction or even integration into existing channels on a new territory to seek support and establish social networks in foreign countries. The article underscores the pivotal role of women’s participation, economy platforms, and immaterial labor in this process.

IN SEARCH OF SOLIDARITY: DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION OF BELARUSIAN FEMINIST ACTIVIST PROJECTS

Vera Syrakvash — Thu, 28 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0000

The article explores the interlink between the digital transformation process of Belarusian feminist activist projects and solidarity within the feminist community. The article aims to characterize the process of Belarusian feminist activist projects’ digital transformation, as well as to answer the question, how the digital transformation of Belarusian feminist activist projects influences the solidarity of the Belarusian feminist community as an ability to maintain horizontal networking and practices of care, as well as to form autonomous political subjectivities and unite for collective action.

The article theorizes the concepts of feminist solidarity, the essence of digitalized activism and approaches to defining feminist civil society in Belarus. Building on existing scholarship and semi-structured interviews results, the article identifies how feminist projects underwent digitalization, presented by sixteen interlocutors, and contributes to understanding feminist solidarity, its challenges, and its further potential.

The results provide an overview of the most significant features of feminist projects’ digital transformation in Belarus, including evidence of the uniqueness of the online space for the birth of a new generation of Belarusian feminists and related intergenerational transfer of knowledge both within and outside the community, overcoming the digital divide and boosting the dissemination of feminist values among Belarusians through the digitalization of feminist projects, rethinking the possible ways to strengthening solidarity within the community, and the need to constantly defend the feminist language within the political process of democratization in Belarus highlighted through digital activism.

SUBJECTIVITY, POWER, AND WOMEN’S POLITICAL ACTIVISM IN THE BELARUSIAN DIGITAL SOCIETY

Natallia Sarakavik — Thu, 28 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0000

This article explores the intricate relationship between women’s political activism and power dynamics in patriarchal societies. Using the context of Belarus as a case study, the article delves into the profound impacts of digital media on women’s political participation. The first part draws from Foucault’s notion of power as tangible, present in relationships, and influencing subject formation. Butler’s insights into attachment, submission, and power relationships further elucidate the intricate interplay between power and subjectivity. The second part examines the contrasting models of the internet’s effect on protest movements proposed by Tufekci. Through the lens of the Belarusian protests, it becomes evident that digital tools aid in activism but might not always achieve long-term goals. This article, from a scientific perspective, explores the phenomenon of digital activism, referring to the example of its effective use within the context of the Belarusian women’s protests in 2020. Additionally, the article draws attention to the transience of this effectiveness and seeks methods of engaging with it.

THE RADICAL ROLE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES IN POLITICAL IMAGINATION AND PRODUCTION OF COMMON FUTURE IN BELARUSIAN PROTESTS

Volha Davydzik — Thu, 28 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0000

The following article explores the idea of how information technologies could serve the idea of a common future in the world of catastrophe. In a world of socio-political catastrophes, violent suppression of rights and freedoms, oppressive state machines and covert control tactics, attempts are being made to find soft tactics of resistance, non-violent forms of confrontation that would allow to overcome the existing patriarchal order and reveal neo-colonial practices. The digital environment can be not only a tool for the production of machines of total control or the maintenance of the capitalist order of consumption. They can also serve as a tool for soft, nonviolent resistance to rigid structures, creating emancipatory tools for overcoming oppressive power relations and transforming the socio-political environment into a more inclusive, open structure. The article also attempts to return to the discussion about the critical potential of the theory of cyberfeminism, which not only analyzes the social and political, but also revises information technologies from the point of view of their emancipatory potential.

TRAJECTORIES OF DISPLACEMENT: (NON)WRITTEN AND ERASED BIOGRAPHIES

Tania Arcimovich — Thu, 28 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0000

The paper examines some ‘stories’ of female artists who were connected (in different ways) to Belarusian cultural space, mainly in the first half of the twentieth century. Despite women’s prominent and incontestable contribution to art, firstly, as producers, their role and place are still mainly invisible in ‘global’ and ‘local’ art history, whose ‘canon’ is oriented on the male experience.

Exploring history and the strategies of displacement, erasing, forgetting, and non-recognition of female producers in art, the paper asks about so-called universal common patterns of how this marginalisation (and, as a result, absent) still happens, no matter what field — art, science, technology — in any area which is considered as a male realm. Discussing several obstacles scholars might face in the process of reconstructing women’s biographies, the author argues that the feminist approach of storytelling aims not merely to extend ‘history’. It is a strategy to trouble the existing male-oriented ‘canon’ that contributes to creating multidiverse and plural ‘epistemic spaces’ as the fundamental matter of transnational feminism.

WOMEN’S WRITING AS IMMATERIAL LABOUR IN THE CONTEXT OF CONTEMPORARY BELARUSIAN LITERATURE

Kseniya Shtalenkova — Thu, 28 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0000

The goal of this article is to analyse women’s writing as immaterial labour, focusing on the case of contemporary Belarusian literature as the contribution to the de-Westernizing of creative labour studies. First, the paper focuses on language choice specific for contemporary Belarusian literature and educational opportunities as the prerequisites to begin a writing career set in the 1990–2000s. Second, the paper outlines the environment providing publishing and showcase opportunities, emphasising the mid-2010s as the period of increased diversity. And third, the paper assesses the conditions that influence creative expression sustaining the labour of creating writing in 2020–2023. Within this argumentation, the paper investigates the state of specifically women’s writing in Belarus, considering the problematics of equal opportunities. Thus, in the 1990– 2000s women’s writing wasn’t on the agenda aimed at the preservation of the field and relating it to the Belarusian language. In the 2010s educative and showcase opportunities supporting the efforts of young writers provided an equally beneficial environment for men and women writing in Belarusian or Russian. The representation of women writers increased, including more women writers awarded with book prizes by both state and independent organizations although still not equal with men writers. During 2020–2023 it is mostly recognized women writers over 40 years old, especially currently in emigration, who produce literary works that are successfully published in Belarusian or Russian. Younger women writers have less opportunities for publication and showcase, switching to autofiction of shorter formats barely sustaining their efforts as labour. Interestingly, in both cases the most common themes are ancestry and corporality, making women representation in contemporary Belarusian literature less diverse. This affects the demand in literary works by women writers among diverse groups of women as the reading audience, making the labour of women writers in Belarus more precarious.

GENDERING LABOUR IN THE AGE OF AI

Elena Gapova — Thu, 28 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0000

With the rise of post-industrial society, an ever bigger share of work takes the form of immaterial labour. While organizations of post-industrial economy continue to be gendered, the mechanisms for reproducing gender disparities are different than those in the traditional career path of the industrial era. Gender, which is the anchoring of a certain group of individuals in a specific sphere of social activities, gets reproduced as the segregation into ‘more’ and ‘less’ efficient workers takes place: quite often this is segregation into women and men.

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