Overturning Sweden's Feminist Identity : The Rejection of the Feminist Label in Sweden's Foreign Policy

Abstract: This article examines the Swedish government's decoupling of feminism and gender equality. Drawing on scholarship on feminist backsliding and gender ideology, this article suggests that the Swedish government's decision to abandon the feminist agenda in its foreign policy reflects broader trends of anti-genderism as both an international and transnational phenomenon. I argue that the Swedish government separates feminism from gender equality in order to allow for a more conservative shaping of women's roles without rejecting gender equality, while respecting the social and cultural context. The study uses norm spoiling and critical frame analysis on the political manifestos of the governing parties to examine how the issue of feminism and gender equality are respectively framed and serve to drive a wedge between the two ideas. The article concludes by discussing similarities between the key frames identified in the analysis and those identified in the literature on transnational gender ideology discourse, finding that a common strategy to impede women's rights is evident.