Strategies for achieving a gender-equal society

The party programme makes inequality in power and influence the core of oppression, and emphasizes that formal freedoms are seldom accompanied by corresponding opportunities to use them. Measuring equal power based on people's real conditions to influence their everyday life, and deepening understanding of structural injustices and structural violence, follows from that analysis. The plan says nothing about the measures as such, so support is derived.

• power and influence as measuredecisive»Klassförtrycket yttrar sig främst i ojämlikhet vad gäller makt och inflytande i samhället.« (party programme ↗)“Class oppression manifests itself primarily in inequality regarding power and influence in society.”
• real before formal power»För det stora flertalet åtföljs sällan de formella friheterna av motsvarande möjligheter att använda dem.« (party programme ↗)“For the vast majority, formal freedoms are seldom accompanied by corresponding opportunities to use them.”
• redistribution of power between genders»En utvidgning av kvinnors makt, inflytande, utrymme och inkomster kommer att innebära en inskränkning för män.« (party programme ↗)“An expansion of women's power, influence, space and income will mean a restriction for men.”
• structural perspective in all policy»Politiken får inte vara könsblind, lika lite som den kan vara klassblind.« (party programme ↗)“Policy cannot be gender-blind, any more than it can be class-blind.”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The party programme is built on analysis of gender power structures and requires that equality policy be directed against all forms of domination and subordination in a comprehensive perspective. The counter-proposal's requirement for deepened understanding of structural injustices and for a measurement method that captures real conditions rather than quantity alone responds to this. That the party explicitly is feminist reinforces the conclusion.

• comprehensive view of power structuresdecisive»Jämlikhetspolitik måste riktas mot alla former av över- och underordning, och dessa måste ses i ett helhetsperspektiv där olika förtryckande strukturer samverkar och förstärker varandra.« (party programme ↗)“Equality policy must be directed against all forms of domination and subordination, and these must be seen in a comprehensive perspective where different oppressive structures interact and reinforce each other.”
• gender power structure»En tydlig maktstruktur är det som kallas könsmaktsordningen, den systematiska över- och underordning mellan könen som skapar ojämlika livsvillkor för kvinnor och män.« (party programme ↗)“A clear power structure is what is called gender power structure, the systematic domination and subordination between genders that creates unequal living conditions for women and men.”
• feminist party»Med denna grundsyn är socialdemokratin ett feministiskt parti.« (party programme ↗)“With this fundamental view, Social Democracy is a feminist party.”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The plan wants to dismantle all discriminatory and unsustainable power structures and sees how power orders such as ethnicity, class and age interact with the gender order, which is exactly the deepened understanding of structural injustices the counter-proposal seeks. The goal of evenly distributed power is expressed in the plan as ownership and responsibility being evenly distributed between women and men, that is, more than formal numbers. The plan values systematic statistics, so the demand for less quantitative measurement has only weak support.

• dismantle power structuresdecisive»Vi vill bryta ner alla diskriminerande och ohållbara« (party programme ↗)“We want to dismantle all discriminatory and unsustainable”
• intersectional power analysis»Vi ser att maktordningar som etnicitet, sexuell« (party programme ↗)“We see that power orders such as ethnicity, sexual”
• evenly distributed power and ownership»Vi vill se ett samhälle där ägandet är jämnt fördelat mellan män och kvinnor, precis som ansvaret för barn och hem.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We want to see a society where ownership is evenly distributed between men and women, just as responsibility for children and the home.”
• systematic statistics on inequality»ta fram systematisk statistik för att belysa diskriminering och rasism i samhället.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“compile systematic statistics to highlight discrimination and racism in society.”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The party programme describes the Centre Party as a feminist party that challenges and breaks existing power relations, and the election manifesto establishes that structures that hold people back must be taken seriously and counteracted. Revising the measurement method for power and influence so that it captures real conditions, and deepening understanding of structural injustices, follows from this. However, the plan does not address the gender equality policy sub-goals directly.

• feminist partydecisive»Centerpartiet är ett feministiskt parti, som utmanar och bryter rådande maktförhållanden och kollektiva orättvisor.« (party programme ↗)“The Centre Party is a feminist party that challenges and breaks existing power relations and collective injustices.”
• counteract limiting structures»Sådana strukturer och normer måste tas på allvar och motarbetas.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Such structures and norms must be taken seriously and counteracted.”
• equal influence»Kön ska inte avgöra lön, inte heller status, inflytande i samhällets och« (party programme ↗)“Gender shall not determine pay, nor status, influence in society and”
• see the structures»Vi ser samtidigt de strukturer som håller människor tillbaka.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We also see the structures that hold people back.”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The plan requires that women and men have the same preconditions to educate themselves, work, pursue a career and shape society, and that gender equality is achieved where ordinary decisions are made and norms are created. It is precisely a precondition-based rather than purely quantitative benchmark that the counter-proposal seeks. The plan also establishes that Sweden is not a gender-equal country and that patriarchal power structures must be broken.

• equal preconditions for women and mendecisive»samma förutsättningar att utbilda sig, arbeta, göra karriär och forma samhället« (party programme ↗)“the same preconditions to educate themselves, work, pursue a career and shape society”
• gender equality in ordinary decisions»Jämställdhet uppnås där ordinarie beslut fattas, resurser fördelas och normer skapas.« (party programme ↗)“Gender equality is achieved where ordinary decisions are made, resources are distributed and norms are created.”
• persisting gender inequality»Sverige är inte ett jämställt land.« (party programme ↗)“Sweden is not a gender-equal country.”
• continued gender equality work»Jämställdheten måste fortsätta gå framåt.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Gender equality must continue to move forward.”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The plan defines equality as people regardless of gender having power to shape their own lives, that is in terms of real influence rather than only numbers. The counter-proposal's demand that the measurement method for the sub-goal about power and influence be revised away from purely quantitative factors thus aligns closely with the plan's own equality definition. The plan also requires that the equality perspective permeates all policy areas and that proposals and decisions be analysed from such a perspective. The measurement method itself is not addressed, however, so the position is derived.

• power to shape one's own lifedecisive»Jämställdhet är att människor, oavsett kön, har makt« (party programme ↗)“Equality is that people, regardless of gender, have power”
• equality mainstreaming»Jämställdhetsperspektivet ska genomsyra alla politikområden« (party programme ↗)“The equality perspective shall permeate all policy areas”
• equality analysis of decisions»förslag och beslut ska analyseras ur ett jämställdhetsperspektiv« (party programme ↗)“proposals and decisions shall be analysed from an equality perspective”
• equality as a democracy condition»En fungerande demokrati förutsätter jämställdhet mellan kvinnor och män« (party programme ↗)“A functioning democracy presupposes equality between women and men”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The party programme establishes that both the goal and the means in gender equality policy are greater life chances, not requirements for exact or static outcomes, and that the way goes through self-determination and empowerment. Revising a measurement method that places too much weight on quantitative factors in favor of real conditions to influence one's daily life follows from that. However, the demand for deepened understanding of structural violence is further from the plan.

• life chances before outcome quotasdecisive»och medlet är större livschanser, inte krav på exakta eller« (party programme ↗)“and the means are greater life chances, not requirements for exact or”
• gender equality through empowerment»Vägen till ökad jämställdhet handlar om att stärka självbe« (party programme ↗)“The way to increased gender equality is about strengthening self”
• empowerment through self-sufficiency»Ökad självförsörjning ger ökad egenmakt.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Increased self-sufficiency gives increased empowerment.”
• economic gender equality»Vi ska öka den ekonomiska jämställdheten« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We shall increase economic gender equality”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The plan explicitly rejects that equality is measured as the same outcome at group level and wants instead to direct measures against what concretely limits the individual. Revising a measure that places too much weight on quantitative factors in favour of real conditions to influence one's everyday life is the same line. The plan's formal view of equality however speaks against the counter-proposal's talk of structural violence.

• no to outcome measures at group leveldecisive»Riktig jämställdhet nås inte genom att vidta politiska åtgärder för att på gruppnivå skapa samma utfall mellan män och kvinnor, utan genom att ta krafttag mot samhällsfenomen som begränsar den enskilde.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“True equality is not achieved by taking political action to create the same outcome at group level between men and women, but by taking action against social phenomena that limit the individual.”
• formal equality»förespråkar en formell jämställdhet där varken kvinnor eller män skall särbehandlas på« (party programme ↗)“advocates formal equality where neither women nor men should be treated specially”
• the individual's own choices»Varje individ ska stå fri att göra sina egna val och forma sina egna liv, utan att det offentliga ska styra dessa val.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Every individual should be free to make their own choices and shape their own life, without the public sector steering these choices.”
• freedom of choice and equality before the law»Sverigedemokraterna vill arbeta mot diskriminering och särbehandling, värna valfrihet, säkra likhet inför lagen och utforma en politik som underlättar tillvaron för män såväl som kvinnor i de livssituationer som de själva valt.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden Democrats want to work against discrimination and unfair treatment, value freedom of choice, ensure equality before the law and design policy that makes life easier for both men and women in the life situations they themselves have chosen.”