Law, Gender Justice, and the Dynamics of Democratic Backsliding

This paper examines democratic backsliding through the lens of gender justice, focusing on recent political developments in Israel. Since early 2023, the ruling coalition has advanced a judicial overhaul designed to reduce judicial independence and consolidate executive control. These changes should be understood in tandem with a wave of suggested legislation targeting gender equality, women’s rights, and protections against discrimination in public life, education, and civil services. A qualitative analysis of governmental legislative initiatives reveals a troubling pattern: efforts to erode judicial independence are closely followed by laws that institutionalize gender segregation and undermine gender justice. This sequence reflects a deliberate strategy—first dismantling the legal safeguards, then attacking the rights they once protected. In response, women have played a leading role in Israel’s pro-democracy protest movement, using highly visible, gendered forms of resistance to signal that gender justice is a core democratic concern. The paper concludes that democratic backsliding in Israel is gendered in both its structure and its consequences, and any assessment of its impact must account for its disproportionate harm to women and marginalized communities.