Sida vid sida : En studie av jämställdhetspolitikens genealogi 1971-2006

Sammanfattning: The history of gender equality policies is part of the modern heritage in Sweden. The contemporary narrative contains milestones such as female suffrage, anti-discrimination legislation, equal representation and parental leave. And yet, ambivalences also imbue this modern contemporary saga. While all political parties from left to right claims to be in favor of gender equality, it seems as if the goal is never fully attained.This thesis examines the conditions for gender equality policies in the Swedish parliamentary debates during the period from 1971 to 2006. The ambition is to trace the (historical) agreements, conflicts and erasures upon which our contemporary understandings of the gender equality policies are based. What political actions are favored when the contemporary history seems enigmatic and incomprehensible? What forces and power relations are obscured by our current historiography?The theoretical framework is informed by genealogy, feminist theory and discourse theory. Rather then representing the struggle for women’s interests the analysis seeks to investigate the historical present and emergence of gender in this specific political context. The main contribution is a reworked understanding of contemporary history with an emphasis on how neoliberalism and class politics constitute the political space for gender equality. One overall conclusion of the analysis is that a confined narrative on feminist waves as showdowns between male resistance and women’s struggle or party political competitions tends to obscure the fact that the political process in relation to gender equality policy has evolved closely with neoliberalism.