The critical amalgam between Feminist Marxism and Social Reproduction Theory

reflections on the condition of women with disabilities in Brazil

Abstract

The article critically analyzes the condition of women with disabilities in Brazil based on the contributions of Feminist Marxism articulated with Social Reproduction Theory (SRT). The object of the research is to understand how capitalism, patriarchy, and ableism intertwine in the production of structural inequalities that specifically affect the reality of the gender–disability binomial. It is grounded in the understanding that the historical consolidation of capitalism in Brazil occurred under profoundly unequal conditions for women, marked both by the devaluation of their capacities and by their marginalization in the central spheres of production, which, when combined with disability, results in these bodies being even more violently oppressed. In this sense, the objective of the study is to demonstrate that these inequalities, when intersected with disability, result in aggravated forms of exclusion. Adding to the analyses developed by SRT, it is argued that although capitalism concentrates its control on the productive sphere, it structurally depends on reproductive labor, carried out predominantly by women, whose time and effort are conditioned by the demands of production, even if not fully controlled by it. Methodologically, the article adopts a theoretical-critical approach to the reality under examination, supported by a rigorous bibliographic review and engaging in dialogue with the fields it addresses. It is concluded that, in order to understand the structural position of women with disabilities, it is necessary to comprehend Brazilian reality from the perspective of patriarchal historical legacies, highlighting how capitalism further oppresses their lived experiences in relation to their rights and the urgent need to find modes of collective emancipation based on gendered Marxist contributions, since, if a possible path exists, it begins with critique.