Two revolutions in the Islamic world: one to overturn political tyranny and one to end misogyny

[pampango]

The Arab Spring and Women's Rights

In the May/June issue of Foreign Policy, writer Mona Eltahawy argues that there are two revolutions happening in the Islamic world: A revolution to overturn political tyranny, and a revolution to end misogyny. Her piece, "Why Do They Hate Us?", has incited a fascinating and urgent conversation about gender and the Arab Spring.

This is from Eltahaway's article:

What hope can there be for women in the new Egyptian parliament, dominated as it is by men stuck in the seventh century? A quarter of those parliamentary seats are now held by Salafis, who believe that mimicking the original ways of the Prophet Mohammed is an appropriate prescription for modern life. Last fall, when fielding female candidates, Egypt's Salafi Nour Party ran a flower in place of each woman's face. Women are not to be seen or heard -- even their voices are a temptation -- so there they are in the Egyptian parliament, covered from head to toe in black and never uttering a word.

And we're in the middle of a revolution in Egypt! It's a revolution in which women have died, been beaten, shot at, and sexually assaulted fighting alongside men to rid our country of that uppercase Patriarch -- Mubarak -- yet so many lowercase patriarchs still oppress us.

It's time for women in the Islamic world to own the fact that they are oppressed differently from men, Eltahaway says, and to march under the banner of women's rights specifically. (It's important to "stop pretending," she writes, and "call out the hate for what it is.&quot On the other side, critics have argued that Eltahaway's account ignores the extraordinary complexity of gender in the Islamic world -- that, in fact, it's a red herring, since political and religious reactionaries, who are of both genders, are oppressing everyone who wants freedom, both women and men.

As someone who only reads about the Islamic world, it seems to me that they can both be right -- the Islamic world, after all, is a big place. Take time out to read Mona Eltahawy's article, as well as this thoughtful Foreign Policy roundtable discussion, which features Ahmed's rebuttal alongside others' responses.

http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/brainiac/2012/04/the_arab_womens.html