Introduction: Undressing Patriarchy and Masculinities to Re?politicise Gender

Abstract

Much has happened in debates, practice and policy on gender in development since the millennium, when an IDS Bulletin was first published on ‘Men, Masculinities and Development’. The present issue picks up on several developments in the interim, by drawing contributions from participants at a recent international symposium, ‘Undressing Patriarchy’. It explores the shifting field of men and masculinities in development and how the field's often conflicted engagements with the feminist project of redressing gender inequalities might be radicalised through a deeper analysis of patriarchy and our relationship to it, as well as by linking it to other struggles for sexual and human rights, or social justice. The introduction sets the context and gives a brief background to our rationale for ‘undressing patriarchy’ as our chosen approach. The authors then comment on the contributions to each section of the IDS Bulletin , and conclude with an outline of some future priorities.