Le genre de la consommation en 1900. Autour de la Ligue sociale d'acheteurs

Abstract

Since the end of the 19th century, it has been quite common to say that consumption opens new room for feminine political activism. But does that mean that consumers' organisations are always feminine? This article focuses on the gender of the Ligue sociale d'acheteurs, a French consumers' organisation which promoted fair trade at the beginning of the 20th century It looks at men and women who were active in this association, analysing the reasons of their activism in the association. Then the author looks at two different types of reforming campaigns, on garment trades (against the «sweatshops »), on the one hand, and on the reduction of working hours for men, on the other hand. The author wants to show that gender does not organise the work at the LSA in a simple way (feminine versus masculine). Gender is important but equally important are circulations between men and women, between «feminine » and «masculine » ideas and reforming practices, and between reforming countries.