Gender and the Constitution: Equality and Agency in Comparative Constitutional Design »

Helen Irving holds degrees in political science, anthropology, history, and law. She is currently Associate Professor in the Faculty of Law at the University of Sydney. Helen Irving has taught political science and constitutional law in several Australian universities since her first appointment in 1977 and was recently Visiting Professor at Harvard Law School from 2005 to
2006. She is the author of To Constitute a Nation: A Cultural History of Australia's Constitution and Five Things to Know about the Australian Constitution. She is also the editor of A Woman's Constitution?, The Centenary Companion to Australian Federation and Unity and Diversity: A National Conversation, among others. She has published widely in journals and in edited collections and is a frequent opinion writer and media commentator. She has been the historical consultant for a number of television and radio documentaries, as well as historical and constitutional advisor to many public and governmental bodies and Justices of the High Court of Australia.

This book considers the challenges of constitution-making when gender equity and agency are goals.

Acknowledgments vii

Introduction 1

1 Framework 23

2 Constitutional Language 38

3 Federalism 65

4 Citizenship 90

5 Representation 109

6 The Constitutional Court 134

7 Equality Rights 162

8 Reproductive Rights 191

9 International and Customary Law 219

10 Conclusions: Amendment and Compliance 251

Index 260