Synopsis "This pathbreaking book provides an overview of the genesis, growth, gains and dilemmas of women's movements world-wide. Unlike most literature which focuses on the industrialised western world, this volume devotes far greater attention to the postcolonial states of Asia, Africa and Latin America. The book challenges the assumptions that feminism can transcend national differences and, conversely, that women's movements are shaped and circumscribed by national levels of development. All the authors reject the notion, proposed by its detractors and champions alike, that feminism is western-inspired and of middle-class origin. Instead they seek to locate women's movements within the context from which they emerge. This volume is essential reading for anyone interested in the global scope and implications of feminism."