Economic restructuring gender and grassroots development in Mexico

Since 1980s, Mexico has undergone extensive economic restructuring symbolic of broader' globalization' trends. Substantial changes to Mexican economic, political and social structures have been informed by neo-liberal principles of development. Structural adjustment policies (SAPs) and the more recent phase of economic restructuring, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), are two neo-liberal economic strategies implemented in Mexico to achieve trade liberalization and deregulation. The impacts of economic restructuring on Mexicans vary depending on gender, class and geographical location (whether urban or rural). Guided by the gender and development (GAD) theoretical framework, I explore answers to the question ' what are the gendered impacts of Mexican economic restructuring and how have disadvantaged Mexican women responded to these impacts?' By using secondary research methodologies to explore feminist development literature pertaining to the gendered impacts of economic restructuring in conjunction with literature specific to Mexico, this project analyzes structural changes on a macro level while drawing out contextual examples of gender specific survival strategies. This study suggests that urban and rural disadvantaged women in Mexico have responded to negative impacts of economic restructuring in similar ways by mobilizing into grassroots organizations (GROs). Membership in a grassroots organization serves the dual purpose of meeting immediate perceived needs while containing the potential for empowering women to challenge gender ideologies confining their activities in broader contexts. Overall, this project concludes that gender must be a central element in all development efforts. The concerns of women's grassroots organizations and women's struggles against gender subordination must be fully recognized and represented in policy formation and implementation processes in order to foster greater equality in development.--Page i.