Feminisms and Penal Expansion

The Role of Rights-based Discourses in Post-neoliberal Ecuador (2007-2017)

Authors

  • Silvana Tapia Tapia Universidad de Birmingham (Reino Unido)

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.61243/calamo.19.8

Keywords:

Carceral feminism, Violence against women, Criminal law, Human rights, Pink tide

Abstract

This article empirically explores feminist discourses on the criminalization of violence against women (VAW) in Ecuador, in a “post-neoliberal” period. It nuances the idea that penal expansion thrives primarily through neoliberalism and the co-optation of feminism, which now prioritizes punishment over social redistribution. In Ecuador, several feminisms that promoted the criminalization of VAW promoted a redistributive agenda. Thus, the Ecuadorian case complicates the debates on “carceral feminism”, its causes, effects, and dynamics. The findings indicate that human rights-based discourses enable a “benign” penal apparatus that allows progressives to justify criminality, while overlooking non-penal options to address VAW.

Author Biography

Silvana Tapia Tapia, Universidad de Birmingham (Reino Unido)

Becaria postdoctoral de investigación, patrocinada por el Leverhulme Trust en la Escuela de Derecho de Birmingham, Universidad de Birmingham, Reino Unido.

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Published

2023-07-01

How to Cite

Tapia Tapia, S. (2023). Feminisms and Penal Expansion: The Role of Rights-based Discourses in Post-neoliberal Ecuador (2007-2017). Cálamo, Journal of Legal Studies, (19), 27–47. https://doi.org/10.61243/calamo.19.8