Paper short abstract:

Using the framework of urban space as a gendered territory, we examined the language used by young, low-income Bangladeshi female workers in their depiction of workplace sexual harassment. Our findings suggested that the language was limited and normative which can have serious policy implications.

Paper long abstract:

From the mid twentieth century, "space" has come to the forefront of critical discussion by the works of Michel Foucault (1986), Henri Lefebvre (2004), and Edward Soja (1996). This interest in space coincides with the increasing urbanisation worldwide. Urbanisation, often associated with modernisation, is thought to provide more freedom to women since they can go out and work which rural structures do not always allow (Banks, 2013). However, these same urban places expose women to various forms of discriminations and harassments, and thus "space" has been identified as a gendered territory by researchers (Hayden 1980; Spain 1992). Various studies conducted on the urban spaces of Bangladesh (e.g., ActionAid, 2016; 2019; Brac, 2018) have shown how women of different groups face risks of sexual harassment inside the workplace as well as on the street, often considered the "male public space" (Siddiqui, 2003), and they have little means to articulate the violence to which they are subjected to. The present study examined the language used by young female workers in Bangladesh to talk about the sexual violence they experienced. Twenty domestic workers and twenty factory workers from urban and peri-urban areas of Dhaka were interviewed. The findings suggested that their expressions to describe the sexual harassment were limited and guided by societal norms. We argued that the lack of expressions prevents them from seeking aid and justice, which has serious implications for ensuring a safe workspace for women in urban Dhaka.