The nuclear ban and the patriarchy: a feminist analysis of opposition to prohibiting nuclear weapons

ABSTRACT

Opposed by some of the world’s most powerful states, the coalition of actors that promoted the 2017 Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons encountered rigid international power structures. These structures are in part maintained through the deployment of patriarchal tactics and rhetoric to suppress the perspectives and agency of those who might challenge those in a dominant position. In this way, banning nuclear weapons can be read as an act of challenging patriarchy and building space for alternative approaches to politics, including feminist and human-security-based approaches.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Ray Acheson

Ray Acheson is the Director of Reaching Critical Will, the disarmament programme of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF). Ray’s work focuses on stigmatising war and violence, banning weapons, and challenging the patriarchy. She also represents WILPF on the International Steering Group of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), which won the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize.