Rawls on Justice in Gender: Tensions of Intervening in Gender Equality

When considering gender equality in society there are certain inclinations one makes concerning how it is to be combatted. One inclination being that in a society with a structured government that promises to be fair to all its citizens should in fact address cases of gender inequality. Yet following questions arise, if we are to expect that there be governmental intervention in cases of inequality, how are we to go about this intervention and how much intervention should be justified into citizen life, in short what is required by justice to combat this injustice. John Rawls believes he answers these questions by his theory of justice. This makes his work an attractive starting point for considering the boundaries of political intervention. Even then, upon insight from feminist philosophers it appears as if Rawls does not have it all covered. Rawls' work opens a door for the discussion of gender equality in a well-ordered society. With the door open then, we are welcome to discuss how political intervention may assist in gender equality. With political intervention however, a tension of value arises. There is (1) the inclination that women’s autonomy matters to such a degree that the government is justified to combat women’s inequality and (2) the inclination that citizen autonomy needs matter to such a degree that the government should not intervene in everyday life. The project is balancing these two wants, finding how we value regular citizen autonomy to the life they choose while making certain that in the lives they wish to live gender equality is valued. It is about understanding Rawls theory as a base starting point and then reviewing why and what areas it is helpful, hurtful, or ambiguous in the discussion of gender equality. Further, it is about understanding how Rawls theory can be understood to do better in this discussion and how previous feminist philosophers have seen these areas and expanded from them. Ultimately it is about finding what gender equality requires from justice to be realized.