Question

Explain how intersectionality impacts gender health disparities – local or global – by discussing an example from the news.

Answer 1

Critiques of gender mainstreaming (GM) as the officially agreed strategy to promote gender equity in health internationally have reached a critical mass. There has been a notable lack of dialogue between gender advocates in the global north and south, from policy and practice, governments and non-governmental organisations (NGOs). This paper contributes to the debate on the shape of future action for gender equity in health, by uniquely bringing together the voices of disparate actors, first heard in a series of four seminars held during 2008 and 2009, involving almost 200 participants from 15 different country contexts. The series used (Feminist) Participatory Action Research (FPAR) methodology to create a productive dialogue on the developing theory around GM and the at times disconnected empirical experience of policy and practice. We analyse the debates and experiences shared at the seminar series using concrete, context specific examples from research, advocacy, policy and programme development perspectives, as presented by participants from southern and northern settings, including Kenya, Mozambique, India, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Canada and Australia.Focussing on key discussions around sexualities and (dis)ability and their interactions with gender, we explore issues around intersectionality across the five key themes for research and action identified by participants: 1) Addressing the disconnect between gender mainstreaming praxis and contemporary feminist theory; 2) Developing appropriate analysis methodologies; 3) Developing a coherent theory of change; 4) Seeking resolution to the dilemmas and uncertainties around the ‘place’ of men and boys in GM as a feminist project; and 5) Developing a politics of intersectionality. We conclude that there needs to be a coherent and inclusive strategic direction to improve policy and practice for promoting gender equity in health which requires the full and equal participation of practitioners and policy makers working alongside their academic partners.Gendered power relations have been identified among the most influential social determinants of health inequalities due to their damaging effects on women's and men's health at different levels over their lifetime. Last year, Global Health Action presented for the first time a call for articles on Gender and Health aimed to include a variety of empirical and theoretical perspectives, among them sexual and reproductive health and rights, gender-based violence, ageing and gender, health systems, climate change, and globalization; all with respect to gender. A total of 19 articles were published and the closing editorial for that special issue, entitled ‘Gender and health aspects of importance for understanding health and illness in the world’, pointed out the most prevalent topics and also hinted at gaps and lacking perspectives. One of the identified gaps was the lack of available studies tackling the complex interaction between gender and other markers of inequalities in understanding and targeting health inequalities. The complex nature of these interactions usually limits our knowledge about gender and social inequalities in health.As has been introduced in different theoretical frameworks, notably feminist theory and social epidemiology, gender inequalities in health in the field of violence, cardiovascular disease, or HIV/AIDS risk among other issues cannot be reduced to being a matter of gendered power relations. They are inseparably amplified by other axes of social stratification and oppression related to racism, classism, heterosexism, or ageism. Three (or more) dimensional lenses are needed to develop a more comprehensive research approach to these social inequalities in health. The complex interaction between gender (in)equality and health (inequality) also deserves further research. On the one hand, gender inequality has been strongly connected with harmful health effects for men, children, and women. On the other hand, the deteriorating mental health of young women in countries that rank highest for gender equality calls for further research on the connections between gender (equality), health, age, and other conditions as well as the gaps between policy achievements and lived experiences. The question of whether increased gender equality will (always) come hand in hand with better health for all deserves still further exploration.