A Note from the Editors
You would be forgiven for finding much of the debate around Brexit somewhat impenetrable. And you certainly wouldn’t be alone. The truth is that Brexit is about many things. It’s about economics, trade and globalization. It’s about national identity, immigration and the nature of borders and the movement of people. It’s about sovereignty and representation. We could go on, but we won’t. Because beyond all of the discussion of what Brexit is about, is a critical and largely neglected subject.
Even before the UK voted to leave the EU, Brexit has been a highly visible demonstration of how gender plays out in public life. It has revealed the ease with which women’s voices are excluded and unaccounted for, and displayed the significant challenges faced by a woman leader, now arguably at the edge of a precipitous glass cliff.
In this special series, the Debevoise Women’s Review applies a gender lens to Brexit, exploring the dearth of women’s voices both leading up to the referendum and in the subsequent negotiations with the EU; the vulnerability of valued human rights that provide crucial protections for women and other historically marginalized communities; and more. For too long, women have been on the sidelines of this debate. But the conversation is hardly over, and the road to Brexit looks increasingly long. Let’s make sure that women and their interests are front and center as we forge a path in our brave new Brexit world.
Contents
Brexit Calling, With Few Women to Be Heard >
The EU Referendum was positioned by proponents as a moment of political activation and ownership for the UK. Yet somehow, women’s voices have been omitted from the conversation and matters that disproportionately affect women have gone unaddressed. All of which prompts us to wonder, where are the women?
The Brexit Tempest and the Forecast for Human Rights >
Throughout its 68 years of existence, the European Union has advanced human rights protection like no other intergovernmental organization in the world. Once Brexit goes into effect, will the continued protection of those very rights be at risk in the UK?
Gina Miller talks to the Debevoise Women’s Review about her memoir Rise, her role in the Brexit debate and landmark Article 50 challenge, the importance of accountability and transparency in government and business, and more.