Feminist and queer perspectives on peace, justice and (in)security in Eurasia

Abstract

This panel brings together four contributions exploring the gendered dynamics of multiple security crises in Eurasia. In the background of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, militarised tensions at the Kosovo-Serbia border, as well as mass forced displacement of Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians, the panel contributes to critically considering the complex entanglements of gender norms, collective memory, peace- and solidarity-building amidst conflict and (in)security in the region. By examining the perspectives of a diverse range of actors - including feminist and queer activists, scholars, security professionals, representatives of donor agencies and international organizations - the panel foregrounds grassroots feminist and queer agency in navigating (in)security while also querying the role of states and international organizations in finding solutions to crises. In line with feminist and queer ethics, the four contributions build on qualitative methodologies that centre the lived realities of marginalized individuals and communities. While exposing how war, territorial invasion, and the dominance of nationalist discourses constrain political imagination, the contributions in the panel also cast light on how shifting security landscapes may engender unexpected repertoires of action and new responses to crises. Importantly, they reveal grassroots attempts to reimagine global politics in more emancipatory, queer and feminist ways that challenge unjust state orders and hierarchies in the international system. While remaining committed to context-sensitivity and drawing on empirical data generated across the Balkans, Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus, the panel contributes to ongoing scholarly debates on feminist peace, contestation of LGBTQ+ politics, Women Peace and Security (WPS) and transnational feminist solidarities - connecting Eurasia with other parts of the world.

Title	Details
Gender norms amid multidimensional security crisis in Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh: from resistance to opportunity	View Paper Details
Securitising gender: Implications of Russia's Invasion of Ukraine for LGBTQ Movements in Eastern Europe	View Paper Details
Transforming Collective Memory Amongst Feminist Activists in Kosovo and Serbia: a feminist perspective	View Paper Details
Women, Peace, and Security: the landscape of ‘core’ and ‘new’ issues amid the ongoing war on Ukraine	View Paper Details
Women Leaders in the Baltic States: Untying the Double-Bind	View Paper Details