A Different Gramscian Turn: The Counter-Hegemonic Tactics of the Dominican Feminist Movement

• In Event: Movimientos sociales de mujeres y feminismos

Abstract

This paper analyzes the counter-hegemonic tactics employed by the Dominican feminist movement in its attempts to place women’s sexual and reproductive rights on the country’s public policy agenda during the last two decades. As it is the case in most of Latin America and the Spanish Caribbean, the Dominican feminist movement has to reckon with the extensive influence of the Catholic Church.

The paper looks at the movement from a Gramscian vantage point by focusing on how feminist activists challenge dominant narratives regarding women’s rights to choose by (a) focusing on three extreme situations where the majority of the population agrees that abortion should not be penalized (when the woman’s life is in danger, when she has been the victim of rape or incest, and when the fetus is not viable outside the womb); (b) emphasizing that the unsafe ways in which abortion is currently practiced mainly affect poor women, and (c) highlighting the secular character of the Dominican State.

This issue speaks to the entrenchment of conservative ideologies in the region, as the Dominican Republic is still one of only 5 countries in the world that penalize abortion under all circumstances. Additionally, it contributes to the literature on the strategies used by progressive social movement including the enrollment of new allies ever since conservatives managed to establish an anti-choice provision in the constitutional reform of 2010. The paper draws upon Dominican and international media as well as interviews with feminist leaders, journalists, academics, and other key informants.

Author

• Esther Hernández Medina, INTEC