This presentation offers a long-duree perspective (1865—present) on how citizenship has changed over the twentieth century in Romania, with regard to specific gender dimensions of property rights. By examining the changes in the law and practices linked to property (e.g., inheritance, management, buying, selling) I will demonstrate how women’s access to economic autonomy expanded and shrank at various times. My claim is that, based on the types of discrimination highlighted in this paper, one can only claim that a solid foundation for gender equality in terms of citizenship rights has only begun to emerge since 2000.
Maria Bucur is the John W. Hill Chair in East European history and professor of gender studies at Indiana University, Bloomington. Her publications include Eugenics and Modernization in Interwar Romania (2002), Gender and War in Twentieth-Century Eastern Europe (2006), Heroes and Victims. Remembering War in Twentieth-Century Romania (2009), and Gendering Modernism. A Historical Reappraisal of the Canon (forthcoming, 2017).