The Struggle for Gender Equality in Human Rights: Beyond Legal Recognition
La Larga Lucha por la Igualdad de Género en los Derechos Humanos: Más Allá del Reconocimiento Legal
Keywords:
Gender equality, Human rights, Intersectionality, Feminist theory, Legal reformsAbstract
This article critically examines the ongoing struggle for gender equality within human rights frameworks, emphasizing the limitations of legal recognition alone in achieving substantive equality. Through a multidisciplinary analysis incorporating feminist theory, human rights law, and intersectionality, the study explores how structural inequalities related to gender, race, class, and sexuality persist despite formal legal protections. Case studies from South Africa, Sweden, and India illustrate the gap between legal reforms and lived realities, highlighting the need for transformative approaches that address social norms, economic disparities, and political representation. The novelty of this research lies in its advocacy for integrating socio-cultural change and grassroots activism into gender equality strategies, moving beyond juridical recognition towards genuine empowerment. This article contributes to expanding the human rights discourse by bridging legal frameworks with intersectional feminist praxis.
Este artículo examina críticamente la lucha continua por la igualdad de género dentro de los marcos de derechos humanos, enfatizando las limitaciones del reconocimiento legal para alcanzar una igualdad sustantiva. A través de un análisis multidisciplinario que incorpora teoría feminista, derecho de los derechos humanos e interseccionalidad, el estudio explora cómo las desigualdades estructurales relacionadas con género, raza, clase y sexualidad persisten a pesar de las protecciones legales formales. Estudios de caso en Sudáfrica, Suecia e India ilustran la brecha entre las reformas legales y las realidades vividas, destacando la necesidad de enfoques transformadores que aborden normas sociales, disparidades económicas y representación política. La novedad de esta investigación radica en su defensa de integrar el cambio sociocultural y el activismo de base en las estrategias de igualdad de género, avanzando más allá del reconocimiento jurídico hacia el empoderamiento genuino. Este artículo contribuye a ampliar el discurso de derechos humanos al articular marcos legales con la praxis feminista interseccional.
References
Agamben, G. (1998). Homo Sacer: Sovereign Power and Bare Life. Stanford University Press.
Aleinikoff, T. A., & Zamore, L. (2019). The Arc of Protection: Reforming the International Refugee Regime. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
Arendt, H. (1951). The Origins of Totalitarianism. Schocken Books.
Betts, A., & Collier, P. (2017). Refuge: Transforming a Broken Refugee System. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Chetail, V. (2014). Are Refugee Rights Human Rights? In The Oxford Handbook of Refugee and Forced Migration Studies. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Chetail, V. (2019). International Migration Law. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Costello, C. (2016). The Human Rights of Migrants and Refugees in European Law. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Crenshaw, K. (1989). Demarginalizing the Intersection of Race and Sex: A Black Feminist Critique of Antidiscrimination Doctrine, Feminist Theory and Antiracist Politics. University of Chicago Legal Forum, 1989(1), 139–167.
Dauvergne, C. (2008). Making People Illegal: What Globalization Means for Migration and Law. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Edwards, A. (2011). Back to Basics: The Right to Liberty. UNHCR.
Fiddian-Qasmiyeh, E., et al. (2014). Oxford Handbook of Refugee and Forced Migration Studies.
Gammeltoft-Hansen, T. (2011). Access to Asylum. Cambridge University Press.
Goodwin-Gill, G. S., & McAdam, J. (2021). The Refugee in International Law (4th ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Hathaway, J. C. (2021). The Rights of Refugees under International Law (2nd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
MacKinnon, C. A. (1989). Toward a Feminist Theory of the State. Harvard University Press.
McAdam, J. (2012). Climate Change, Forced Migration, and International Law. Oxford University Press.
Milanovic, M. (2011). Extraterritorial Application of Human Rights Treaties: Law, Principles, and Policy. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Moreno-Lax, V. (2017). Accessing Asylum in Europe. Oxford University Press.
Nussbaum, M. C. (2000). Women and Human Development. Cambridge University Press.
Sassen, S. (2014). Expulsions: Brutality and Complexity in the Global Economy. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Sen, A. (1999). Development as Freedom. Oxford University Press.
Sultana, F. (2022). The Unbearable Heaviness of Climate Coloniality. Political Geography.
UNHCR. (2025). Global Trends 2024. Geneva.
Yamin, A. E. (2016). Power, Suffering, and the Struggle for Dignity: Human Rights Frameworks for Health and Justice. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press.
Zetter, R. (2007). More Labels, Fewer Refugees. Journal of Refugee Studies.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Verónica Salas Moreno
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
All writings published in this journal are the personal views of the authors and do not represent the views of this journal or the authors’ affiliated institutions. Authors retain copyrights without any restriction under the license of Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0).
[ESP] Todos los escritos publicados en esta revista representan las opiniones personales de los autores y no reflejan las opiniones de esta revista ni de las instituciones a las que los autores están afiliados. Los autores conservan los derechos de autor sin ninguna restricción bajo la licencia Creative Commons Atribución 4.0 Internacional (CC BY 4.0).
[CAT] Tots els escrits publicats en aquesta revista representen les opinions personals dels autors i no reflecteixen les opinions d’aquesta revista ni de les institucions amb les quals els autors estan afiliats. Els autors conserven els drets d’autor sense cap restricció sota la llicència Creative Commons Atribució 4.0 Internacional (CC BY 4.0)
