Contesting Globalization: A Feminist Perspective on the Future of Human Rights

In this article, the author questions whether feminist concerns about globalization can be adequately addressed within a human rights framework. The author discusses how the programs and policies of the World Bank and the World Trade Organization (WTO) create conditions that undermine human rights and facilitate violations. She outlines several structural and theoretical impediments that limit the ability of human rights law to respond to these challenges, noting, in particular, limited recognition for the rights of women. The author concludes by discussing how feminist strategies for engaging globalization may prove useful to human rights lawyers in confronting the threats posed by global economic restructuring.