‘A profoundly urgent intervention’ Naomi Klein

From one of the most influential thinkers of our time, a clarifying, necessary archive of how fear around gender fuels reactionary politics worldwide. Judith Butler, the pioneering philosopher of gender and sexuality, confronts the attacks on gender that have become central to today's right-wing movements. Global networks have formed "anti-gender movements" dedicated to spreading a fantasy that gender is a dangerous threat to families, local cultures, and culture - and even to "man" himself.

The union of this movement under the guidance of public figures seeks to dismantle reproductive justice, destroy protections against violence, and strip trans and queer people of their rights. But what is so disruptive about gender? In this vital, brave book, Butler carefully examines how 'gender' has become a fantasy for emerging authoritarian governments, fascist forms, and feminists who exclude trans people, and the specific ways in which this fantasy operates.

Operating in simultaneous synthesis with misleading accounts of critical race theory and xenophobic panics about immigration, the anti-gender movement demonizes struggles for equality and leaves millions of people vulnerable to subjugation. An essential intervention in one of the most difficult issues of our time, 'Who Feared Gender?' is an encouraging call for large-scale rallying with all those who fight for equality and combat injustice.

Imagining new possibilities for freedom and solidarity, Butler offers us a fundamentally hopeful work that is both timely and timeless.

Pages: 320, Dimensions: 12.8x12.8cm