A presença feminina em postos de comando na Polícia Militar de Minas Gerais sob a perspectiva das relações sociais de gênero

Abstract

In this research, the objective was to discuss the role of women in the command posts of the Military Police of Minas Gerais, from a perspective of social gender relations. Therefore, a qualitative research was carried out, using the case study method, with women who occupy positions in different segments of the PMMG officership. As the study pointed out, the work performed by officers in PMMG command posts is marked by a complexity of issues involved that permeate disputes over power, identities, gender and representations in this space, whether in their daily lives, or in the relationships they establish, at work and in their personal lives, or in the difficulties they face in the exercise of their functions. The thesis reveals that the female presence in the command posts of the Military Police of Minas Gerais, at the decision-making and strategic levels, did not exactly mean that significant changes have occurred in gender relations within this institution. It also points out that despite the advances observed in the female trajectory in the corporation over four decades, such as the promotion of women to the last position of the career, obstacles remain informally for the occupation of some spaces, especially when it comes to ascending to the last position. or operational activities. Thus, it is possible to signal, from their perspective, the existence of ghettos in the Institution, in which, even in positions of command, women are restricted to activities compatible with the essentialist conceptions of feminine activities, under the pretext of greater compatibility with the physical and psychological characteristics of women. In addition, women exercising command functions, from their perspective, are victims of prejudices and gender stereotypes engendered in the corporation and that generate circles of contention that hinder the effective exercise of power. On the other hand, possibilities of resistance in the face of gender inequality still present in PMMG emerge through their reports.