In the mid-2020s, we have witnessed the rise of anti-feminist movements and LGBTQ scapegoating, the popularization of the concept of “gender ideology,” the exploitation of the masculinity crisis and religious beliefs, and attacks against the trans community around the world. These phenomena are not  incidental. Globally, anti-democratic movements are weaponizing gender and sexuality as a political strategy to build support for authoritarianism and even political violence. 

The resources in this repository aim to complement our (En)Gendering Authoritarianism report by providing in-depth analysis of different aspects of how political and cultural leaders weaponize gender and sexuality. Whether you want to explore how gender issues are used to construct a threat or to divide societies and opposition movements, or explore how anti-gender activists, religious, and secular actors came together to create a big tent, you’ll find resources here that explain how this happens.

Note: This resource library was adapted from a curated list of materials by Miriam Juan-Torres González and Ella Armstrong. We will continue to update with new resources. Most summaries were written by Ella Armstrong.