A vision of visibility : the politics of women's rights and international aid in Lebanon

Abstract

This ethnography examines the complex and dynamic interplay between international norms, local activism, and state reforms within Lebanon's women's rights landscape. It shows how women's NGOs act as independent forces that shape legal reform while operating within and being influenced by international funding structures and discourses. The research underscores the importance of integrating local perspectives into international aid practices to foster genuine social transformation. The dissertation also critically examines how international aid and gender discourses often obscure underlying power relations, perpetuate depoliticization, and reinforce existing socio-political inequalities. Ultimately, it advocates a feminist, context-sensitive approach that recognizes grassroots agency and the need for inclusive, vernacularized legal frameworks, such as a secular family law, that reflect local realities and global ideals of gender justice.