Post-Soviet Women - Ways to Empowerment

Soviet society and politicians emphasized equality across sexes, social classes, and ethnic groups in all Soviet republics within the state socialist order. After the demise of the Soviet Union scholars and activists critically scrutinized the fulfillment of such values and undertook many activities in the 1990s to popularize and implement the principles of gender equality, including LGBT rights. These principles were expected to take fruition through the creation of a solid legislative basis ensuring equal rights and opportunities and state guarantees of gender equality. 
Starting in the early 2000s the Russian legislation had a tendency to mitigate women rights and gender equality, including violence in the family. The state commission for Improvement of the Situation of Women ceased to exist in 2004. Alongside, a state ideological campaign was initiated and moral conservatism was arising under the banner of 'traditional values', addressing areas such as family, patriotism, and Orthodoxy.

The purpose of the workshop is to gather scholars from different disciplines and countries in Uppsala to discuss gender equality in Russia and Eurasia: 1) the consequences of and reactions to these policies, such as open political protests, public discussion and academic research; 2) to what extent such political and ideological campaigns influence gendered and family practices in Russia, where high women employment continues to be norm; 3) what indicators are observed in society to protect the rights of women and what kind of scholarly debate is ongoing.