POL 553 - Global Politics and Women’s Hum Rights

3 credits
Matriculated students must be a graduate student in good standing. Non matriculated students must possess an earned bachelor’s degree. Any exceptions require the permission of one of the following: the course instructor, the graduate program director or the Department Chair. Comparative examination of human rights issues that affect women’s lives and the ways that women’s experiences of human rights violations are gendered throughout the world. The course will explore how the attainment of women’s rights in the economic, social, and political realms vary significantly by cultural, geographic, and national boundaries, and the strategies that women use to challenge and overcome obstacles to the realization of these rights. The course investigates a range of global policy issues, including international human rights conventions; gender-based violence; cultural relativism versus universalism, religious fundamentalisms and the oppression of women; harmful tradtitional practices; women’s political and civil rights; the impact of authoritarianism and democratization on women’s status; the impact of economic globalization on women’s economic and labor rights; and the shortcomings of the international human rights regime in protecting women’s human rights.