Reconsidering Women and Gender in Mining

This article examines the neglected role of women in mining, long believed to be the most ‘masculine’ of industries. The authors probe how the gendered nature of mining work evolved over time and in different parts of the world. Since the nineteenth century, colonialism, capitalism and cultural traditions have shaped gender roles for women and men in the world's mining communities. The article examines how even as men and women joined in militant protests against capital and the state, they struggled over appropriate roles in work, family and community.