AZERBAIJAN - Feminism, Islam, and The Soviet Legacy

Women in the Central Asia and Caucasus regions have experienced some of the biggest social and political changes to their social status, with policy often at odds with traditional patriarchal practices. In this deep dive, I, Lotta, explore the history of feminism and women’s rights in Central Asia and the Caucasus, through Soviet policies to current independent nationhood. I interview Nargiz Rasulova, a Azer i feminist and activist and talk to her about her thesis - on sex - dependent abortions in Azerbaijan. I also talk to my sister, Ronya Ramrath, PhD candidate at Oxford University in feminist philosophy. The book I refer to regularly and helped shape my understanding of this issue is “The Nomadity of Being” in Central Asia: Narratives of Kyrgyzstani Women’s Rights Activists by Syinat Sultanalieva.I hope you enjoy the episode!