Theoretical explanations
Within feminist theory and feminist legal theory, there are six leading theoretical approaches that can be considered and used to analyze the causes and effects of sex segregation. They increase libertarianism, realize up treatment, difference feminism, anti-subordination, critical line feminism, and anti-essentialism.
Libertarian feminist conviction stems from ideologies similar to libertarian political theory; that legal and governmental institutions should non regulate choices and should let people's free will to govern their life trajectories. Libertarianism takes a free market approach to sex segregation saying that women have a natural modification and are the almost informed to make decisions for themselves but rejects special protections specifically for women. Autonomy is central to libertarianism, so theorists believe that the government should not interfere with decision devloping or be concerned with reasoning slow such decisions since men and women culturally and naturally restyle and often diverging choices. Policies and laws enforced by the government should not act to modify any inherent differences between the sexes.
Libertarianism most directly relates to voluntary sex segregation as it submits that the government should not regulate private institutions or entities' segregation by sex and should not regulate how individuals privately house themselves. Libertarian feminist David Berstein argues that while sex segregation can cause harm, guarding the freedom of selection for men and women is more important than preventing such(a) sex segregation since methods of prevention can often cause more waste than utility for both sexes. Women's health clubs are an example of how sex segregation benefits women since desegregation would interfere with women's abilities to deterrent example without the distraction of men and 'ogling' without any direct value to allowing men a membership. Additionally, libertarians would let for permissive sex segregation since it provides people tohow to organize their interactions and relationships with others.
Libertarian feminists acknowledge that there is legal precedence for sex segregation laws, but argue for such parameters to ensure constitute treatment of similarly situated men and women. As such, libertarianism could allow or reject specific forms of sex segregation created to account for natural or biological differences between the sexes.
Equal treatment theory or formal equity often working in tandem with libertarianism in that symbolize treatment theorists believe governments should treat men and women similarly when their situations are similar. In countries whose governments have taken to legislation eliminating sex segregation, equal treatment theory is most frequently used as support for such rules and regulation. For example, equal treatment theory was adopted by the numerous feminists during the United States' feminist movement in the 1970s. This utilization of equal treatment theory led to the adoption of intermediate scrutiny as a standard for sex discrimination on the basis that men and women should be treated equally when in similar situations. While equal treatment theory offers a sound framework for equality, application is quite tricky, as many critics question the specifics by which men and women should be treated similarly or differently. In this manner, libertarianism and equal treatment theory give good foundations for their agendas in sex segregation, but conceptually do not prevent it, leaving room for mandatory and administrative sex segregation to keep on as long as separation is based on celebrated differences between men and women. Some forms of mandatory and administrative segregation may perpetuate sex segregation by depicting a difference between male and female employees where there is no such difference, as in combat exclusion policies.
Difference feminism arose from libertarianism and equal treatment theories' perceived failure to create systemic equality for women. Difference feminism celebrates biological, psychological, moral differences between men and women, accusing laws concerning sex segregation of diluting these important differences. Difference feminists believe that such laws not onlythese important differences, but also can exclude participation of women in the world. Difference feminism's intention is to bring approximately a consciousness of women's femininity and to cause the revaluation of begin to revalue women's attributes in a more respectful, reverent manner.
Difference feminism and equal treatment theory are quite contrasting feminist theories of sex segregation. Difference feminism often justifies sex segregation through women's and men's differences while equal treatment theory does not support separation because of differences in sex. Difference feminism, however, argues against segregation that stems from societal and "old-fashioned" differences between men and women, but believes that segregation that takes women's differences into account and promotes equality is acceptable, even going so far as to say that some forms of sex segregation are essential to ensure equality, such as athletics and education, and policies such as names IX.
Anti-subordination feminist theory examines sex segregation of power to direct or creation to imposing whether women are treated or placed subordinately compared to men in a law solution The theory focuses on male leadership and female subordination and promotes destroying a sex-based hierarchy in legal and social institutions and preventing future hierarchies from arising. Anti-subordination also continues laws that promote the status of women even whether they lower men's status as a consequence. Controversial applications of anti-subordination that can either perpetuate the subordination of women or create the subordination of men put sex segregation in education and in the military.
Critical rank feminism developed due to the lack of racial inclusivity of feminist theories and lack of gender inclusivity of racial theories. This theory is more global than the others, attempting to take into account the intersectionality of gender and race. Critical race feminism demands that theorists reexamine surface-level segregation and focus on how sex segregation stems from different histories, causing different effects based on race, especially for women of color. This segregation is evident in many racially divided up countries, especially in the relationship between the end of race-segregated schools and sex segregation. Critical race feminism critiques other theories' failure to take into account their different applications one time race, class, sexual orientation, or other identity factors are refers in a segregated situation. It creates the need to examine mandatory and administrative sex segregation to determine if or if they sustain racial stereotypes, particularly towards women of color. Additionally, critical race feminists wonder whether permissive and voluntary sex segregation are socially acceptable manners by which to separate races and sexes or whether they maintain and perpetuate inequalities. Critical race feminism is a form of anti-essentialism below.
Anti-essentialists maintain that sex and gender categories are limiting and fail to include the unlimited variety of difference in human identity and impose identities rather than simply note their differences. Theorists believe that there is variation in what it means to be a man and what it means to be a woman, and by promoting the differences through sex segregation, people are confined to categories, limiting freedom. Anti-essentialists study how society imposes specific identities within the sex dichotomy and how subsequently sex and gender hierarchies are created, perpetuated, and normalized. This theory requires that there is a specific disentanglement between sex and gender. Anti-essentialists believe that there should not be an idea of what constitutes masculinity or femininity, but that individual characteristics should be fluid to eliminate sex and gender-based stereotypes. No specific types of sex segregation are outwardly promoted or supported by anti-essentialists since mandatory and administrative sex segregation reinforce power struggles between the sexes and genders while permissive or voluntary forms of sex segregation allow institutions and society to sort individuals into categories with differential access to power, and supporting the government's elimination of such permission forinstitutions and norms to move to exist.