Toward a Definition of Transnational Girlhood. Issue 2 (1st July 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Vanner, Catherine
• Is Part Of: Girlhood studies. Volume 12:Issue 2(2019)
• Page Start: 115
• Page End: 132
• Publication Date: 2019-07-01
• Subjects: border-crossing -- feminist praxis -- intersectionality -- nation-state -- place -- voice; Girls -- Periodicals; Girls -- Social aspects -- Periodicals; Girls -- Social conditions -- Periodicals; Girls -- Education -- Periodicals; Girls -- Sexual behavior -- Periodicals; Girls -- Health and hygiene -- Periodicals; Women's studies -- Periodicals; 305.23082
• DOI: 10.3167/ghs.2019.120209
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1938-8209

Abstract

Abstract : In this article, I join a conversation about the definition and value of the term transnational girlhood. After surveying the fields of transnationalism, transnational feminism, and girlhood studies, I reflect on the representation of girls who act or are discussed as transnational figures. I critique the use of the term, analyze movements that connect girls across borders, and close by identifying four features of transnational girlhood: cross-border connections based on girls' localized lived experiences; intersectional analysis that prioritizes the voices of girls from the Global South who, traditionally, have had fewer opportunities to speak than their Global North counterparts; recognition of girls' agency and the structural constraints, including global structures such as colonialism, international development, and transnational capitalism, in which they operate; and a global agenda for change.