Gender, Power, and Agency: Empowerment Under Conditions of Structural Injustice

This paper explores the concept of gender as both enabling and constraining within social structures influenced by norms and meanings that shape our actions and identities. It argues that social structures, framed as networks of practices, establish relations which often embody sites of injustice by distributing power and opportunities unfairly. The paper further addresses how structural power and social injustice, particularly regarding gender, emerge through practices and norms deeply embedded in cultural frameworks. Finally, the paper discusses mechanisms of social critique and change, emphasizing the role of collective action in challenging dominant norms and ideologies.