Research Seminar in Sociology of Law with Zara Saeidzadeh

This seminar will be broadcast online via Zoom. Follow this link at the time of the seminar to participate.

Violence against Trans* Women within Family and Workplace in Sweden: A Qualitative Analysis of Socio-Legal Status

Zara Saeidzadeh is undertaking a qualitative study examining violence against trans* women within families and workplaces in Sweden. To examine the extent to which trans* women experience violence in Sweden, the research is trying to understand trans* women’s citizenship by investigating how their status and needs as citizens are recognized in Swedish law and society. Through a socio-legal approach, Saeidzadeh investigates how trans* women’s status and needs are recognized in the process of developing intimate relationships or forming a family as well as a future employment career. By looking at two legislations: Fastställande av könstillhörighet i visa fall known as könstillhörighetslagen (1972: 119), and Diskrimineringslag (2008: 567), the research engages with the reports, debates and discussions around trans* women’s social status and needs in Sweden at the level of the Swedish government, academia and activism since 2010.

The research’s theoretical framework is inspired by the 3-dimensional understanding of social justice presented by Nancy Fraser (2000, 2008), the concept of trans* citizenship developed by Surya Monro (2003, 2010), as well as by adopting the method of document analysis to examine the laws and policies. Hence, the misrecognition of trans* women’s status and their needs in the legal and social policies and practices has created space for gender inequalities and the occurrence of violence against trans* women in several aspects of life including access to family formation and employment. As such, the recognition of trans* women’s status as equal citizens in policymaking is contingent on the recognition of trans* women’s needs and the protection of their social and legal rights.

Zara Saeidzadeh is a postdoctoral researcher in Gender Studies at Örebro University (Sweden) currently working on a project called "Violence against Trans* Women within Family and Workplace in Sweden: A Qualitative Analysis of Socio-Legal Status" funded by the Swedish Research Council for Working Life, Healthcare and Welfare (FORTE). In this project, Zara studies trans* women's citizenship by examining the social and legal status of trans* women in Sweden and their experiences of violence in family formation and employment. Zara's work is in feminist socio-legal studies, gender and sexuality studies and trans* studies.