Gender and Politics in the EU

The European Union (EU) frequently presents itself as a champion of gender equality and women's rights. While this narrative is contested and has been subject to critique, the EU has instituted an equality framework that is more gender-aware than the individual member states. In this chapter, we consider a cross-section of gender equality measures and ask how these have to come to be included on the EU's agenda, which actors have contributed to the inclusion of equality in the EU's legal framework, and which ones responsible for helping to keep equality on the agenda of the EU institutions, even as anti-gender initiatives rise in individual member states.