Rights for women are controversial; over time they have been alternatively advocated and condemned by scholars and activists concerned with improving the status of women around the globe. The panel speaks to this controversial context, addressing the following questions: What are women's rights and how do they operate? Do women's rights operate to support women, or can they further contribute to their oppression? How are rights for women elaborated in different cultural contexts, and are there problems involved in doing so? In what real ways and in what real areas are rights claimed for women, and what are the gains and losses associated with such claims?
