Women Collectives and Challenging the Gender Stereotypes: A Case Study on Kudumbashree in Kerala
摘要
Kudumbashree, as a women’s collective, was introduced by the State Government of Kerala in 1998 to eradicate poverty and empower women in the region. Currently, it has organised Kerala’s 460,000 women into a community network comprising 316,800 Neighbourhood Groups (NHGs), 19,470 Area Development Societies (ADS), and 1070 Community Development Societies (CDS). These women’s collectives have achieved significant milestones, including challenging gender stereotypes that hinder women’s empowerment at various levels. Gender stereotyping is detrimental as it restricts women from developing their self-reliance and leads to discrimination, various forms of abuse, limited social mobility, constrained political participation, and reduced freedom to engage in work—all of which contradict the constitutional rights of women as citizens of the country, which serves as a framework for dismantling entrenched gender stereotypes. Exploring the experiences of Kudumbashree women regarding their struggle to combat these stereotypes in order to integrate into mainstream society is crucial, as the narratives of women provide valuable lessons and guidance for the future. This chapter employs a mixed-method approach to illustrate how women members of these collectives confront the daily gender stereotyping they encounter. The research is grounded in qualitative and quantitative data collected from women who have navigated the challenges of gender stereotyping after joining Kudumbashree in the Thrissur district of Kerala. It illuminates the various dimensions of gender stereotypes and how the women in this study have addressed these challenges in their daily lives. To this end, the authors utilised the Capacities and Vulnerabilities Analysis Framework (CVA) and the Gender Analytical Framework (CVA Matrix) to identify the areas where Kudumbashree members were most significantly affected by gender stereotyping across three dimensions: physical/material, social/organisational, and motivational/attitudinal. The study highlights Kudumbashree’s role in overcoming gendered stereotyping in Kerala.