About this episode
The episode discusses the backlash against feminist movements and presents new strategies to counter it as outlined by Saskia Brechenmacher.
On the same day that United States (U.S.) President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. would no longer fund United Nations (UN) Women and several other UN entities, Foreign Affairs published an article by Saskia Brechenmacher , titled “ How to Save the Fight for Women’s Rights: The Backlash Against Democracy Calls for New Strategies .” Brechenmacher, who is a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, started her article by discussing the “backlash” against feminist movements in 2025, citing a press release from the UN along the way. Brechenmacher then presented a “new template for action” to counter this backlash. Brechenmacher’s template consisted of the following recommendations for feminist groups": 1. Use “multilateral forums.” (By this, Brechenmacher presumably means the UN and ideologically similar international organizations.) 2. Focus on local level collaborations rather than efforts that are “solely technical and elite-driven.” (That Brechenmacher mentioned the “elitist” nature of previous “gender equality” efforts is an interesting admission.) 3. Invest in initiatives that include men and boys. 4. Connect messaging about women’s empowerment to…
People in this episode
Host: James L. Nuzzo
Topics covered
- women's rights
- feminism
- democracy
- backlash
- international relations
Keywords
- feminist movements
- backlash
- UN Women
- democratic institutions
- gender equality
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: United Nations (UN), Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
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