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Full-Text Articles in Arts and Humanities
The Arab Spring And Women’S (Cyber)Activism: “Fourth Wave Democracy In The Making?” Case Study Of Egypt, Tunisia, And Morocco, Maha Tazi
Journal of International Women's Studies
According to Huntington’s (1991) theory of “reverse democracy”, countries undergoing (or having undergone) a transition to democracy during a wave are always subject to democratic backsliding in the subsequent wave. During the third wave democratization, the fall of the Soviet Union and other despotic regimes in Latin America led to the gradual “autocratization” of many of these countries in the late 1990s and early 2000s. More recently, in 2011, the collapse of several authoritarian regimes in the Middle East and North African (MENA) region underscored important aspects of democratization, a process in which both women and new media technologies …
Naima Zitane’S Revolutionary Play, Dialy: Using The Vagina Trope To “Talk Back” To The Islamist Party’S Calls For ‘Halal’ Art In Morocco, Maha Tazi
Journal of International Women's Studies
In 2012, at the outset of the “Moroccan Spring” and the election of the Islamist Justice and Development Party (PJD) to power, Naima Zitane, a Moroccan feminist playwright and founder of the Aquarium Theatre, directed and released her controversial play Dialy (“Mine” in English) inspired by Ensler’s text The Vagina Monologues and drawing on the real-life testimonies of 150 Moroccan women. In a context where the recently elected Islamist party was calling for ‘clean’ and ‘halal’ art, the play tackled the topic of female sexuality and one of the biggest taboos of the Moroccan society- the vagina. Combining a textual …
Media Empowers Brave Girls To Be Global Activists, Gayle Kimball
Media Empowers Brave Girls To Be Global Activists, Gayle Kimball
Journal of International Women's Studies
A surprising way to silence young women globally, in addition to overly protective families, is by scholars of youth studies and development professionals. Ageism against youth is rarely discussed, so this article reveals this academic bias that ignores or discounts youth voices—especially young women. However, in the safe space of their bedrooms, the Internet and the cell phone enable young women to express their voices, even to organize uprisings. They can get around family restrictions and desires to protect them by speaking publicly from a private space. Some media provide empowering images for young women activists and informative networks of …
Women's Rights Movements In The 'Arab Spring': Major Victories Or Failures For Human Rights?, Hayat Alvi
Women's Rights Movements In The 'Arab Spring': Major Victories Or Failures For Human Rights?, Hayat Alvi
Journal of International Women's Studies
With the 2011 “Arab Spring”, the issue of women’s empowerment has emerged as a parallel movement in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). What are the implications of the women’s empowerment movements in the MENA for improved political representation and rights? Do these developments contribute to long-term socio-political, legal, judicial, and economic reforms that would improve overall human rights, and especially women’s rights in the MENA? This paper is a comparative survey of women’s empowerment and rights, especially in terms of general human rights principles, as well as in terms of political representation in post-revolution Tunisia and Egypt. The …
"We Thought We Were Playing": Children’S Participation In The Syrian Revolution, Layla Saleh
"We Thought We Were Playing": Children’S Participation In The Syrian Revolution, Layla Saleh
Journal of International Women's Studies
This article explores the participation of children in the Syrian uprising against Bashar al-Assad. The involvement of children in democratic social movements and regime transitions has not been addressed in the literature, although some works describe the role children can play in making public policy or in the humanitarian domain. I argue that just as the role of women and of university-aged youth was gradually incorporated in the body of research on the social movements and regime transitions, so should the role of children be studied. I then characterize the role of children in the Syrian uprising as a three-stage …
Women Lost, Women Found: Searching For An Arab-Islamic Feminist Identity In Nawal El Saadawi’S Twelve Women In A Cell In Light Of Current Egyptian "Spring" Events, Ebtehal Al-Khateeb
Women Lost, Women Found: Searching For An Arab-Islamic Feminist Identity In Nawal El Saadawi’S Twelve Women In A Cell In Light Of Current Egyptian "Spring" Events, Ebtehal Al-Khateeb
Journal of International Women's Studies
Dr. Nawal El Saadawi, an Arab feminist, playwright, novelist, and thinker, has been one of the most controversial literary figures in Arab contemporary literature. In this paper, I examine El Saadawi’s 1984 play Twelve Women in A Cell in light of the ongoing political dissidence that gave birth to the recent Arab Spring and its intricate relation to feminist dissidence. The play published twenty-eight years ago, deals with a bizarre situation that surprisingly and sadly, is still relevant to women’s struggle within Arab-Islamic hegemony. The cell that hosts twelve Egyptian women, in El Saadawi’s play, becomes the Arabic Islamic patriarchal …
Gender Standards V. Democratic Standards: Revisiting The Paradox, Amel Mili
Gender Standards V. Democratic Standards: Revisiting The Paradox, Amel Mili
Journal of International Women's Studies
In our past work, we had analyzed the correlation between gender standards and democratic standards in post-colonial North Africa, and found it to be essentially non-existent, despite the fact that these two standards are highly correlated worldwide, and despite the analytical evidence to the effect that they go hand in hand. We revisit our previous analysis, in light of recent developments in North Africa and the Middle East.
Arab Spring And Women In Kuwait, Muhamad S. Olimat
Arab Spring And Women In Kuwait, Muhamad S. Olimat
Journal of International Women's Studies
The Arab Spring, a revolutionary wave of protests and rebellions, and a process of regime change and democratization is sweeping the Arab world, but marginally touching women’s issues in Kuwait. While Arab women in Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Morocco, Yemen, Jordan, and Syria are active participants and co-beneficiaries of the process of change, Kuwaiti women have lost their electoral gains made in 2009 in the latest elections held in February of 2012. The objective of this paper is to examine the impact of Arab Spring on women in Kuwait, and their continued struggle for political participation in the country. It will …
A New Feminism? Gender Dynamics In Morocco’S February 20th Movement, Zakia Salime
A New Feminism? Gender Dynamics In Morocco’S February 20th Movement, Zakia Salime
Journal of International Women's Studies
The February 20th movement shows new modes of engagement with feminism, despite a striking absence of feminist organizations from the protest movement. Nevertheless, and in sharp contrast with most accounts that posit the irrelevance of feminism for Moroccan youth’s identifications and political subjectivities, I argue that feminism has not only penetrated the social imaginary of a new generation of activists, but has also informed their practices. What kind of tension does this appropriation of feminism by the youth of February 20th bring about with traditional feminist circles? Does this high visibility of women in February 20th indicate the rise of …
Barriers Hindering Jordanian Women’S Advancement To Higher Political And Leadership Positions, Rowaida Al Maaitah, Arwa Oweis, Hmoud Olimat, Ikhlas Altarawneh, Hadeel Al Maaitah
Barriers Hindering Jordanian Women’S Advancement To Higher Political And Leadership Positions, Rowaida Al Maaitah, Arwa Oweis, Hmoud Olimat, Ikhlas Altarawneh, Hadeel Al Maaitah
Journal of International Women's Studies
Purpose: The purposes of this study were to identify barriers hindering Jordanian women’s advancement to higher political and leadership positions and to identify main actions/strategies to facilitate Jordanian women’s advancement to higher political and leadership positions. Methodology: A cross sectional survey was used where both quantitative and qualitative data were collected utilizing a self-administered questionnaire. A convenience sample of 500 Jordanian women was selected from women working in political and leadership positions in various settings including government, Non Government Organizations (NGOs), business, educational and academic institutions. The Study involved a self administered questionnaire with closed and open ended questions …
Women At A Crossroads: Sudanese Women And Political Transformation, Leah F. Sherwood
Women At A Crossroads: Sudanese Women And Political Transformation, Leah F. Sherwood
Journal of International Women's Studies
The ‘Arab Spring’ is a nuanced phenomenon of significance to African democracy and women’s rights in Sudan – north and south. Political transformation processes underway in postrevolution Arab states simultaneously give voice to human rights advocates and rise to Islamist political groups. The reverberating trend presents a risk of deepening Islamist governance in Sudan and reinforcing patriarchal patterns of kinship in South Sudan. It also offers opportunity, north and south, for Sudanese women to form a common agenda, engage politically, promote a vibrant civil society, challenge human rights violations and develop a voice through participation. Given the Islamist upsurge in …
Acknowledgement And Dedication, Muhamad S. Olimat
Acknowledgement And Dedication, Muhamad S. Olimat
Journal of International Women's Studies
No abstract provided.
The Role Of Women In The Arab World: Toward A New Wave Of Democratization, Or An Ebbing Wave Toward Authoritarianism?, Nadine Sika
The Role Of Women In The Arab World: Toward A New Wave Of Democratization, Or An Ebbing Wave Toward Authoritarianism?, Nadine Sika
Journal of International Women's Studies
The Special Issue is devoted to examining the role of Arab women in the ongoing uprisings and revolutions sweeping the Arab world over the past two years. It covers case studies of women in Tunisia, Yemen, Jordan, Bahrain, Egypt, Syria, the Sudan, and other countries in the region. Two major questions are going to be addressed: how influential were Arab women in the “Arab Spring” of uprisings, and to what degree are Arab women’s rights to equality and freedom going to be attained and respected after the creation of new regimes, such as in Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen, and Syria, which …
How And Why Do Dictatorships Survive? Lessons For The Middle East, Erica Frantz
How And Why Do Dictatorships Survive? Lessons For The Middle East, Erica Frantz
Bridgewater Review
Political events in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) have dominated news headlines for the past two years. Since the revolution in Tunisia in December 2010, one dictatorship after the next has appeared on the verge of collapse, as citizens gather en masse to voice their demands for democratic governance. In countries such as Libya and Egypt, though relatively successful democratic elections were held following the collapse of long-standing dictatorships, it is uncertain whether the new political system being installed will be democratic or autocratic. When looking to the future of the region beyond the Arab Spring, one thing …
Introduction: Democracy, Islam And Development In The Arab World, Shaheen Mozaffar
Introduction: Democracy, Islam And Development In The Arab World, Shaheen Mozaffar
Bridgewater Review
No abstract provided.
Will The Arab Spring Succeed In Bringing Bread, Freedom, And Dignity?, Sandra Popiden
Will The Arab Spring Succeed In Bringing Bread, Freedom, And Dignity?, Sandra Popiden
Bridgewater Review
Economic discontent fueled the political dissatisfaction that erupted in the Arab Spring uprisings in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, and Yemen in 2011. Demonstrators blamed repressive authoritarian governments for slow economic growth, increasing poverty and social inequality, high youth unemployment and rampant corruption. Alongside demands for increased political freedom, greater participation in politics, and an end to repression were calls for economic freedom and improved well-being. The uprisings, which spawned democracy in Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya, continue to reverberate across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) by opening up previously closed public spaces to wider popular participation in national debates over …
Social Media And Political Changes In Al-Alam Al-Arabi, Jabbar Al-Obaidi
Social Media And Political Changes In Al-Alam Al-Arabi, Jabbar Al-Obaidi
Bridgewater Review
The Arab countries are typically described as lacking democratic traditions, freedom of the press, human rights and civil liberties. The utilization of social media for political purposes became crucial to the widespread expression of pent-up social discontent that precipitated the Arab Spring. Uploaded videos, photos, and Twitter feeds served to outrage people in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Yemen, Bahrain, and Syria. This volatile combination of a young population, authoritarian rule, corruption and poverty is prompting youth to spearhead political demonstrations and the demand for regime change.