The cafés in Almaty weren’t unlike those present in US cities, but they have been typically fancier and more formal. Young Kazakh women had been always very trendy and dressed up, and other people would extra typically go to espresso shops for social conferences than to work on their laptops like they usually do in the US. I used social science methodologies in my research, together with content evaluation and discourse analysis . For such methodologies, it was necessary that I immerse myself in Almaty’s tradition to complement my evaluation with real-life observations of how people in Kazakhstan painting and perform their gender. Kazakhstan might seem like a random country by which to conduct such analysis, and in a way, it was.
Participants protest towards discrimination and gender-based violence throughout a rally held by members of feminist organizations and social activists in Almaty, Kazakhstan September 28, 2019. What does a girl do if she is being attacked or harassed by strangers outside her residence?
Females are represented as placing great worth on their outward appearance and sweetness, including thinness, fashion, makeup, and jewelry. Women are also portrayed as being passive homemakers, somewhat than decisive and authoritative businesswomen. Interestingly, the incidence of traditionally male traits being offered in female characters was not the identical as the incidence of historically feminine traits being presented in male characters . Male characters had been often related to magnificence, however very hardly ever associated with another historically female traits, corresponding to passivity, pastel colors, fashion, or make-up.
Her instinct is to seek refuge and safety in her own home, the place she feels protected. But what if a woman is being abused by her husband or partner in the house? Unfortunately, in Kazakhstan, domestic violence means that house is not a secure place for many women. Activists from neighbouring Kyrgyzstan additionally travelled to Almaty in support of Kazakhstani activists.
Domestic violence is persistent in Kazakhstan, significantly undermining the core principle of combating all violence against women. Perilous gaps in laws, insufficient law enforcement and judicial responses to home violence, and the poor quality of companies that do exist usually leave women with little or no protection.
They additionally demanded that the Kazakh authorities chorus from releasing men sentenced for rape on parole , undertake a regulation on sexual harassment, and criminalise domestic violence. As was repeated at the Almaty rally, the UN examine highlights that four hundred women are killed in Kazakhstan every year in home violence.
However, female characters have been far more often portrayed as possessing male traits, especially these of action and journey, work and enterprise, energy and authority, and lack of emotion. This means that it is more acceptable in Almaty’s gender roles for women to be like men than for men to be like women. Thus, it appears that evidently historically male traits are extra highly valued general in Almaty’s society than historically female traits.
They included Aygul Karabalina, who organised the Bishkek feminist march in 2019, and Oxana Polyakova, considered one of organisers of the December 2019 Femminale artwork exhibition, which was attacked by nationalists. While the march in Almaty continued with out arrests, the feminist march in Bishkek was marred by arrests and violence by a group of masked men from the “Kyrk Choro” organisation.
Everywhere I went, folks spoke English, have been learning English, or needed to learn English as a result of they saw it as a key to a better life. Thus, my analysis experience not solely helped me grow academically and professionally as a researcher but also helped me become a better world citizen by teaching me about myself and my privilege in a global context. This research was successful in serving to me develop a deeper understanding of Kazakh gender roles as they are portrayed within the city mediascape, which is the first kazakhstan women step to growing higher insight into Kazakhstan’s political tradition and system. Though I would want to conduct further research to examine how Kazakh individuals actually perceive and carry out their gender and how that influences their political views, my current analysis provides the foundation for such explorations. My research revealed that Kazakh gender roles in city Almaty prescribe comparatively strict guidelines for how women and men should present their gender.
Kazakhstan, an impartial country , is a former Soviet Socialist Republic where Russian remains to be the first language. I grew to become intrigued by Kazakhstan’s pre-Soviet nomadic and Soviet history and the way and why Russia continues to affect its culture and politics. These phrases are hopeful; as was the passage of a legislation in 2009 to assist domestic violence victims. But action to cut back domestic violence and to provide adequate companies to survivors continues to be urgently needed.
These variations suggest that Kazakh gender roles affiliate urban, center-to-higher-class men more carefully with work and careers, and urban, middle-to-higher-class women with homemaking. It can be necessary to notice that content material and statistical evaluation of media solely inform us about gender roles however don’t determine how humans really feel about and express their gender id. That is to say that the data gathered on Kazakh gender roles via my research could either problem or support how Kazakh people actually understand and perform their gender roles but does not definitively establish gender roles in Almaty. Over the subsequent two months, I spent a lot of my time in espresso outlets round Almaty. Spending time in cafés is a great way to learn about city Kazakhs, as coffee outlets play a big role in Almaty’s tradition.
As a political science and international affairs main finding out Russian, I hoped to check abroad in Russia. Because of State Department journey advisories, I additionally looked into touring to other international locations where Russian is spoken.
There are also some fascinating differences within the settings the place feminine and male characters were placed. Although neither men nor women were very more likely to be presented in a office setting, men have been nonetheless twice as likely as women to be seen in a workplace setting. In addition, women have been four instances extra probably than men to be introduced in a home setting.