Feminist Body/Politics as World Traveller: Translating “Our Bodies, Ourselves”

In this article, feminist scholar Kathy Davis examines the impact of the global translations and adaptations of "Our Bodies, Ourselves."

The dissemination of "Our Bodies, Ourselves", particularly in the so-called ‘third world,’ makes it a perfect site for exploring the possibilities and the pitfalls of the globalization of feminist knowledge. After showing how "Our Bodies, Ourselves" travelled and was adapted to meet the needs of women in specific contexts, conclusions are drawn about the viability of the ‘feminism-as-cultural-imperialism’ critique as well as about the empowering potential of transnational feminist alliances in the field of body/politics. 

A note from the founders: Kathy Davis has done a remarkable job of telling the OBOS story after interviewing most of the founders and studying our publications, and we invite you to read her article. We wish to alert readers to some disagreements of interpretation and a few factual errors. Read the founders’ suggested corrections.