Feminist Regulatory Relationships with 'the Usefulness' of the Law and Sex

女权主义监管与法律和性的“有用性”的关系

• 批准号: ES/Y009851/1
• 负责人: Thomas Ebbs
• 金额: $ 13.53万
• 依托单位: Birkbeck, University of London
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Fellowship
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2023 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=ES%2FY009851%2F1
• 关键词: Feminist; Regulatory; Relationships; Usefulness; Law

There are ongoing discussions in activist, research, and policy circles about which legal regimes are able to limit or even abolish harms perceived to be associated with types of sexual conduct. This is particularly noticeable in contemporary legal efforts to regulate interactions between sex workers, their clients, and state actors. Despite the widespread and often contentious nature of these discussions, relatively limited attention has been paid to how 'the law' became the paramount response to problems of sexual conduct or whether this fixation has prevented other types of political organising.My doctoral research investigated how the law came to hold such a critical position as a 'useful tool' for contemporary feminist responses to problems of sexual conduct. Feminist responses are particularly fascinating to study because at other points of time many of its supporters and advocates treated the law with deep suspicion and were even repulsed by the idea it might be useful for achieving feminist objectives. My doctoral research revealed that the story of how the law became useful in feminist activist thinking is not only an interesting and often forgotten history, but also provides insights into the role law plays in shaping contemporary activist decisions. My research revealed how attitudes towards the usefulness of law impact who should do the photocopying at a feminist organisation, how activists should speak to one another, and what exactly is wrong when police introduce measures such as curfews. It also demonstrated that the law is intimately linked to how feminist identities are established, what activities become associated with 'doing feminism', and understandings of what objectives feminists should strive to achieve.Through the production of academic publications, accessible materials, and workshops with stakeholders, this project's overall objective is to build on these research findings to create conversations that encourage nuanced understandings of legal power. It hopes to expand non-academic audiences' perceptions of the 'usefulness' of law and its affects, moving beyond imaginations from court rooms and police raids. The project will encourage its beneficiaries to participate in strategic thinking about the consequences of what we do with the law. These conversations are potentially highly impactful on the work of activist organisations, academics and policy makers. It provides a new opportunity to recognise how our attitudes towards the law as useful shape our activities, identities and ways of living together.

在活动家、研究和政策界，关于哪些法律制度能够限制甚至废除被认为与各种性行为有关的伤害的讨论正在进行中。这一点在当代管理性工作者、他们的客户和国家演员之间的互动的法律努力中尤为明显。尽管这些讨论的性质是广泛的，而且往往是有争议的，但相对较少的关注是：法律如何成为性行为问题的最高回应，或者这种执着是否阻止了其他类型的政治组织。我的博士研究调查了法律是如何成为当代女权主义者应对性行为问题的“有用工具”的关键地位。研究女权主义者的回应尤其令人着迷，因为在其他时候，它的许多支持者和倡导者对这项法律深表怀疑，甚至对它可能有助于实现女权主义目标的想法感到反感。我的博士研究表明，这部法律如何在女权主义激进主义思维中变得有用的故事，不仅是一段有趣但往往被遗忘的历史，也为人们提供了关于法律在塑造当代激进主义决策中所扮演的角色的洞察力。我的研究揭示了对法律有用性的态度如何影响女权主义组织中谁应该复印，活动人士应该如何相互交谈，以及当警方引入宵禁等措施时，到底哪里出了问题。它还表明，法律与女权主义身份是如何建立的，什么活动成为与女权主义者相关的，以及对女权主义者应该努力实现的目标的理解是密切相关的。通过制作学术出版物、可获得的材料和与利益相关者的研讨会，该项目的总体目标是在这些研究成果的基础上进行对话，鼓励对法律权力的微妙理解。它希望扩大非学术受众对法律的“有用性”及其影响的认知，超越法庭和警察突击搜查的想象。该项目将鼓励其受益者参与对我们利用法律所产生的后果的战略思考。这些对话可能对维权组织、学者和政策制定者的工作产生极大影响。它提供了一个新的机会，让我们认识到我们对法律的态度是如何塑造我们的活动、身份和共同生活方式的。