Description
| Product ID: | 9780253036223 |
| Product Form: | Paperback / softback |
| Country of Manufacture: | US |
| Title: | Work, Social Status, and Gender in Post-Slavery Mauritania |
| Authors: | Author: Katherine A. Wiley |
| Page Count: | 228 |
| Subjects: | African history, African history, Slavery and abolition of slavery, Gender studies: ‘trans’, transgender people and gender variance, Slavery & abolition of slavery, Gender studies: transsexuals & hermaphroditism, Mauritania |
| Description: | Select Guide Rating Although slavery was legally abolished in 1981 in Mauritania, its legacy lives on in the political, economic, and social discrimination against ex-slaves and their descendants. Katherine Ann Wiley examines the shifting roles of Muslim arain (ex-slaves and their descendants) women, who provide financial support for their families. Wiley uses economic activity as a lens to examine what makes suitable work for women, their trade practices, and how they understand and assert their social positions, social worth, and personal value in their everyday lives. She finds that while genealogy and social hierarchy contributed to status in the past, women today believe that attributes such as wealth, respect, and distance from slavery help to establish social capital. Wiley shows how the legacy of slavery continues to constrain some women even while many of them draw on neoliberal values to connect through kinship, friendship, and professional associations. This powerful ethnography challenges stereotypical views of Muslim women and demonstrates how they work together to navigate social inequality and bring about social change. |
| Imprint Name: | Indiana University Press |
| Publisher Name: | Indiana University Press |
| Country of Publication: | GB |
| Publishing Date: | 2018-09-10 |
