ABSTRACT
These discourses, which in turn inform policy, may well be out of step with the reality of young women’s lives and the possibilities that actually exist for them to enact citizenship. As suggested by political theorists Jet Bussemaker and Rian Voet, “Policy makers are full of good intentions as they relate to preparing girls for full citizenship, but have scant regard for the concrete details with which these girls are confronted in their everyday life.”1 As with labor market success, all young women are depicted as leading the way forward for youth citizenship: they are forging their nations, becoming responsible self-made citizens, and are expected to either lead a revival in youth participation in the polity or make successes of themselves without state intervention. However, this representation both relies upon and conceals deep divisions between young women. In this chapter, I look more closely at these images of young women taking responsibility for social rights, acting as “ambassadresses” and leaders, as the new global citizens, and as those best able to blend consumer choice into citizenship duties. New models of youth citizenship depend upon young women to make real these vastly changed notions of rights, belonging, and participation. However, many young women are excluded from active citizenship at the same time. How can these profoundly
different experiences coexist, and what does it mean for the future of young womanhood as the new model for citizenship?
