Date & Time: 14:00-15:30, 14 February (Tues.) 2017
Venue: Room 201(Tonantei), the 2nd floor, Inamori Foundation Memorial Building, CSEAS, Kyoto University

Title: Subverting Sexism: Women in the Academic World
Speaker: Prof. Chalidaporn Songsamphan

Abstract:
Despite the fact that women outnumber men, as lecturers and students, in the universities in so many countries, they are still facing many problems relating to gender stereotypes and biases. The belief in the incompatibility between femininity and academic activities has influenced the perception and assessment of women as researchers/lecturers. This line of thinking reflects the cultural images of women in different cultures. The experiences and understanding regarding the impact of gender can be distinctive among women in the universities due to differences in social and class positions and the academic disciplines. Women in the academic world can have different views on the gender situation and its impacts and the approaches to deal with hierarchical genders. Although academic women are quite divisive, their contribution and presence will gradually change many beliefs and values of sexism. This presentation will depict the interaction between gender, intersectionality, sexism and the experiences of women as academics by pointing out several important issues and using the experiences or situations in Thailand and Japan to elaborate some of the points. The implication of the establishment of women’s studies as a distinctive arena for women’s academic activities will be addressed.

About Speaker:
Chalidaporn Songsamphan is an associate professor of political science at Thammasat University in Bangkok. She is currently the head of Department of Politics and Government, a Vice-President of the Association of Asian Women’s Studies (AAWS), and the president of the Service Workers in Groups Foundation (SWING). Her main research interest include feminist political theory, politics of sexuality, and gender – based/sexual violence. Her current research projects are “Femininity, Pop Culture and Beauty Industry”and “Supernatural Prophecy: Construction/Reflection of Hope and Fear in Thai Politics.”
Some of her publications are:
“The Political and Gender Power Relations: Contemporary Discourse on Sexuality in Thai Society,” in _Women’s Studies in Thailand: Power, Knowledge and Justice_, edited by Suwanna Satha-anand (Seoul, South Korea: Ewha Womans University Press, 2004; History of Sexuality: Sexual History/Sexuality in Thai History (2008); “Localizing Feminism: Women’s Voices and Social Activism in Thai Context” (2011); Reproductive Autonomy and Public Policy: Contestation on Unintended Pregnancy/Abortion in Thai Society (forthcoming)

Moderator: Narumi Shitara (CSEAS)

*This seminar is supported by the MEXT Research Program Promoting the Study of Sustainable Humanosphere in Southeast Asia.