The Arab "Feminist" Spring

Bibliographic Data

ID4413461
AuthorsSahar Khami (0000-0001-9073-4937, corresponding author)
Year2011
Volume37
Issue3
Pages692-695
Publication date2011-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueFeminist Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0046-3663 • E-ISSN: 2153-3873
PublisherProject MUSE (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1353/fem.2011.0039
OpenAlexW4205454866
LanguageEN
Citations received21

news and views 2 The Arab "Feminist" Spring? Sahar Khamis Many observers have interpreted the selection of Tawakkul Karman for the 20H Nobel Peace Prize as a nod to both the "Arab Spring" in general and to the particular role that Arab women played in it. Karman, now known as the "mother of the revolution" in Yemen, has been a symbol for thousands of women who stormed the streets in many Arab nations, risking their lives and exposing themselves to harm in their quest for dignity, freedom, liberty, and democracy. Observers of this massive wave of political revolt cannot help but notice the visible and remarkable role that women are playing in it. And it is a range of women: young and old, Muslim and Christian, religiously conservative and liberal, veiled and unveiled, rich and poor. This range of women signifies a new moment of unity, solidarity, and cohesion, mirroring the egalitarian, grassroots movement that they have come out to support. However, this golden moment of unity in struggle, which led to actual political change in some Arab countries, such as Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya, and which is still playing out in other Arab countries such as Syria, Yemen, and Bahrain, has also been followed by division of opinion on what comes next and which direction political change and democratic reform should take. The issue of women's rights and the role women could play in rebuilding their nations and reshaping their future is a key Feminist Studies37, no. 3 (Fall 2011). © 2011 by Feminist Studies, Inc. 692 Sahar Khamis 693 part of this debate. There is much disagreement in countries such as Egypt on the potential implications of the Arab Spring on the future of Arab feminist movements and its expected gains for Arab women at large. On the one hand, there are the optimists who count on Arab women's resilience and determination for change and consider them to be the best protection against any possible backlash against women's rights. This camp is generally constituted of the younger generation of women activ ists, who perceive women's rights as only one component of the broader issue of human rights. "Just like there is no giving up on the call for freedom, democracy, and human rights in the Arab world, there is also no giving up when it comes to calling for women's rights, political representation, and equal participation in all walks of life," remarks Nawara Negm, a well known Egyptian political activist and blogger who played a leading role in the Egyptian revolution, both online and offline.' "However, women's rights have to be contextualized within the broader frame of human rights. In other words, Arab women will enjoy their full rights as citizens only when every Arab citizen, regardless of gender, is guaranteed these rights," she adds. Another young Egyptian political activist, Dalia Ziada, who declares her interest in becoming the "future president of Egypt" when she turns forty (the legal age required to run for that office), agrees with this position.2 These young women reflect the pulse of a new genera tion of women activists who see no limits to women's achievement in the rapidly changing Arab world. On the other hand, there are those who are less optimistic. This camp is generally comprised of the older generation and those who prefer to single out women's rights as a separate issue that should be high lighted and struggled for, aside from the general call for political reform and democratization in the region. When the famous Egyptian femi nist Nawal A1 Saadawi went to Tahrir Square in an effort to raise aware ness about the necessity of having a parallel fight for women's rights in Egypt, that move was not welcomed by many in the square, who consid ered it either inappropriate or at least badly timed. One of the women representing this position, Samia Sade (a journalist with Rose Al Youssef magazine), recalls incidents such as the failed International Women's Day march in Tahrir Square in March 2011: "This march, which was supposed 694 Sahar Khamis to attract a million women to rally for women's rights, only managed

Democracy · Dignity · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Solidarity · Gender Politics and Representation · Gender Studies · Historical and Contemporary Political Dynamics · Law · Middle East and Rwanda Conflicts

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