The Feminist Files

Faith Cunningham speaks with Kwaku Adomako about heteronationalism, colonialism and Ghana's 2021 "Promotion of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill." They discuss how anti-LGBTQ+ legislation reshapes Ghanaian cultural identity and the role of political actors in framing sexual and gender diversity as a national threat. NOTE: The NDC should be referred to as the National Democratic Congress. Read Kwaku's work:Adomako, K. (2022). An Overwhelming Consensus? How Moral Panics About Sexual and Gender Diversity Help Reshape Local Traditions in Ghana. Politique africaine, 168(4), 75-94. https://doi.org/10.3917/polaf.168.0075 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

An interview with Professor Shazia Choudhry

An interview with Dr Daisy Dixon

In this episode, Asha Metcalfe and Rosie Hillary sit down with Lauren Sayers and Rosie Freeman after the debate: This House Would Abolish Prisons, held by Gender Agenda, the University of Cambridge’s largest feminist collective. In our first episode out in the field (breaking free from the recording studio), we are joined by two fellow Human, Social, and Political Science students to discuss abolitionism, crime, and systems of power and oppression. We move beyond the prison system to discuss theorists like Michel Foucault, Judith Butler, and Max Weber to explore the ways power and surveillance can be theorised in society. We apply these theories to our lives to examine how relationships and institutions are impacted by systems of power and control. What do we gain from understanding these topics? What is the benefit of social critique? If you are interested in our discussion, consider reading:The Right to Sex by Amia SrinivasanExperiments in Imagining Otherwise by Lola OlufemiThe New Spirit of Capitalism by Luc Boltanski and Ève ChiapelloDecolonial Feminism in Anya Yala: Caribbean, Meso, and Southern American Contributions and Challenges by Espinosa, Lugones and Maldonado Torres - particularly the chapter by Iris Hernandez MoralesIf you enjoyed this episode, please follow us on Instagram and Substack!https://www.instagram.com/the_feminist_files_/https://substack.com/@thefeministfiles  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We have been nominated for the Political Podcast Awards' People’s Choice Award, please vote for us here: https://politicalpodcastawards.co.uk/the-peoples-choice-award/ In this episode, we explore commercial sexual exploitation: its specificities, how it can be combated, and its evolving technological manifestations. In an era of rapid digital expansion, how can feminist organising and policy-making respond to this growing form of misogynistic violence?Drawing on eighteen years of experience across research institutions, frontline child protection services, and policy-making, Gemma Kelly unpacks the perverse dynamics of commercial sexual exploitation and its increasingly digital nature. Her work highlights the centrality of structural change, particularly through legislative and regulatory interventions, in addressing exploitation at its roots.This conversation probes the contradictions at the heart of feminist debates: how can we reconcile individual choice with structural misogynistic violence? Can the former ever truly be disentangled from the latter?We also discuss attempts to regulate the online space, often perceived as opaque and impenetrable, where regulatory efforts frequently fall short despite mounting harms.About the GuestGemma Kelly is a Policy Consultant at the SERP Institute (Sexual Exploitation Research and Policy Institute), Ireland’s only independent research body dedicated to the study of sexual exploitation.Throughout her career, she has worked on combatting human trafficking and addressing sexual exploitation in both online and offline contexts, with a particular focus on women’s rights, gender-based violence, and child rights.She holds an MA in Human Trafficking, Migration and Organised Crime from St Mary’s University, an MA in Equality Studies from University College Dublin, and a BA in Social Care from Dublin Institute of Technology.Get in TouchIf you’d like to respond to something discussed in this episode or propose an episode of your own, get in touch via email at [email protected] or on Instagram @the_feminist_files.CreditsHosted by Helena Kondak and Astrid Healy CarrascoJoined by Gemma KellyEdited by Rowan BerkleyCover design by Madeleine BaberMusic by Jacob Carey Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.