After the earthquake: gender inequality and transformation in post-disaster Haiti

Overview

This paper explores gender inequalities and transformations following Haiti’s devastating 2010 earthquake. Post-disaster experiences of women are located in a wider context of a longer term gender crisis. The paper argues that patterns of gender exclusion occur on multiple levels from the transnational to the local, and identifies gender-specific obstacles in the recovery and reconstruction period. In Haiti, these include meeting family survival needs, violence and exploitation, and class and racially based stigmatisation. The paper concludes with an exploration of the post-disaster organisational and caretaking work of Haitian women. It contends that recognition and support of women’s capacities is critical in shifting from short-term relief to longer-term gender transformation.

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