Feminists Confront the Neoliberal Turn: The Third United Nations World Conference on Women, Nairobi, 1985.

This article examines Canada's role in the 1985 United Nations (UN) World Conference to Review and Appraise the Achievements of the UN Decade for Women, held in Nairobi, Kenya, against the backdrop of rising neoliberalism and global political tensions. It highlights the dual nature of the conferences, contrasting formal government-led meetings with vibrant grassroots Forums that fostered transnational feminist networks and amplified diverse voices, including those of Indigenous, immigrant, and women of color from Canada. The article details Canada's official delegation's cautious and often contentious positions on key issues such as the New International Economic Order, apartheid South Africa, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which frequently diverged from grassroots activists' more radical stances. Despite increased representation and legal gains for women during the 1980s, the article argues that neoliberal economic policies worsened women's socio-economic conditions, prompting Canadian feminists to develop more critical political analyses and distance themselves from the state. Overall, it situates the Nairobi conference as a pivotal moment reflecting both the possibilities and limitations of international feminist solidarity amid complex geopolitical struggles.