From `Sophie's choice'1 to consumer choice: framing gender in cultural policy

Abstract

This article concerns the parameters used in policies for communication and culture to target and measure the realization of women's interests. Looking at these in terms of recent Canadian policy development, it argues that employment and consumption statistics are an insufficient indicator of the gendered impact of the de- and re-regulation associated with Canada's entry into trade agreements such as NAFTA and the MAI, and that they fail, in particular, to connect cultural and socioeconomic trends. The article also argues that cultural policies have historically contributed to cultural distinctions along linguistic, racial and gender lines. This cultural policy role has been masked by the model of the citizen as consumer that has prevailed since the 1980s. The article suggests that given the internationalization of cultural production and consumption, feminist policy research should focus on the gender-related democratic deficits and economic disparities associated with the `new' cultural economy.