Fall 2008 - The Johns Hopkins University Press

New Choices, New FamiliesHow Lesbians Decide about MotherhoodNancy J. MezeyHow do lesbians decide tobecome mothers or remainchildfree? Why do new familiesform at particular historicalmoments? These questionsare at the heart of Nancy J.Mezey’s New Choices, NewFamilies.Researchers, politicians, andsociety at large continue todebate the changing Americanfamily, especially nontraditionalfamilies that emerge fromdivorce, remarriage, grandparents-as-parents,and adoption.This ongoing discussion also engages the controversysurrounding the parental rights of same-sex couples andtheir families.New Choices, New Families enters into this conversation.Mezey asks why lesbians are forming families at this particularhistorical moment and wonders how race, class, sexualidentity, and family history factor into the decision-makingprocess. Drawing heavily from personal interviews, Mezey’sgroundbreaking analysis gives voice to groups long underrepresentedin similar studies—black, Latina, working class,and childfree lesbians. Some chapters examine how childhoodexperiences contribute to the desire to become amother, while others consider the influence of women’spartners and careers.New Choices, New Families provides thoughtful insights intoquestions about sexual identity, social and cultural expectations,and what and who constitute a family.“A multiracial feminist analysis of how lesbians make choices aboutmotherhood. This book should be required reading for anyone seriouslyinterested in twenty-first century families.”—Maxine Baca Zinn, Michigan State UniversityNancy J. MezEY is an assistant professor of sociology at MonmouthUniversity.August 208 pages 5½ x 8½Democracy and the Riseof Women’s Movementsin Sub-Saharan AfricaKathleen M. FallonDespite a late and fitful start,democracy in Africa, LatinAmerica, and Eastern Europehas recently shown promisinggrowth. Kathleen M.Fallon discusses the role ofwomen and women’s advocacygroups in furthering thedemocratic transformation offormerly autocratic states.Using Ghana as a case study,Fallon examines the specificprocesses women are using tobring about political change.She assesses information gatheredfrom interviews and surveys and assays the existing literatureto provide a focused look at how women have becomeinvolved in the democratization of sub-Saharan nations.Fallon attributes these political advances to a combinationof forces, including the decline of the authoritarian stateand its attendant state-run women’s organizations, newlyformed constitutions, and newfound access to good-governancefunding. She draws the study into the larger debateover gendered networks and democratic reform by exploringhow gender roles affect and are affected by the state inAfrica, Latin America, and Eastern Europe.Democracy and the Rise of Women’s Movements in Sub-SaharanAfrica reveals how women’s social movements are challengingthe barriers created by colonization and dictatorshipsin Africa and beyond.“A well written, important contribution to the growing literature onwomen, gender, and democracy, as well as to African studies.”—Valentine M. Moghadam, author of Globalizing WomenKathleen M. FallON is an assistant professor of sociology atMcGill University.978-0-8018-8999-8 0-8018-8999-5 $55.00(s) / £29.00 hc978-0-8018-9000-0 0-8018-9000-4 $25.00(s) / £14.00 pbGender StudiesSeptember 176 pages 6 x 9 1 map978-0-8018-9008-6 0-8018-9008-X $50.00(s) / £27.00 hcComparative Politics / Gender StudiesTHE JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY PRESS 1-800-537-5487 51