Handel med kvinnokroppen; Aktivism, feminism och makt. En kvalitativ studie om feministiska perspektiv och maktstrukturer inom aktivism för människohandel och prostitution.

Abstract

This essay uses discourse analysis to examine which feminist perspectives are expressed within Swedish activism regarding human trafficking for sexual purposes and prostitution. Using Carol Bacchi´ s What’s the problem represented to be (WPR) approach, the study analyses two activist organisations, Talita and Red Umbrella Sweden, to examine their problem representations and what underlying assumptions it is based on. The aim is to investigate how liberal and radical feminist perspectives are articulated within activism for prostitution and human trafficking, two strongly entrenched global phenomenon. The theoretical framework will additionally address concepts of power, analysing how power structures are constructed and reproduced through discourse. Power is a fundamental concern in both feminist discourse and within the debate about prostitution and human trafficking, since it both combines and sperate these perspectives. The analysis draws on Michel Foucault’s theory of power, discourse, and sexuality, as well as Pierre Bourdieu’s concept of habitus. This essay contributes to a deeper understanding of how feminist perspective challenge and reproduce power structures. The results show a strong polarization between the feminist perspectives within Swedish activism, (re)producing power structurers that shape which voices are included or excluded in the discourse.