Essay --

Even in the short term, the women’s movement is the detonator which will explode neopatriarchal society from within. If allowed to grow and come into its own, it will become the permanent shield against patriarchal regression, the cornerstone of future modernity. Hisham Sharabi, Neopatriarchy Introduction During the week long demonstrations at Tahrir Square, Egyptian women defied the socially accepted behaviors and opposed stereotypes. Oppressed by an autocratic regime that they deemed no longer effective women revolted along with the youth movement and labor unions during the Arab Spring of January 2011. Driven out of the public conversation women were subject to coordinated scare tactics by the government and on the streets of Cairo. No longer remaining silent, Egyptian women fought for full integration into public life but they battle tradition, culture and religious attitudes about gender roles. Almost every woman has experienced some form of oppression. Even in western culture women challenge perceived gender roles too. During the 1963 March on Washington, African-American woman questioned leadership about their role in the March. Acknowledging the main focus of the March was about jobs and education. African-American women unwillingly accepted the subordinate role to further the discussion on race relations. Repeatedly, women are expected to wait for equality and the discussion of women’s rights. Deep seated societal attitudes about segregated gender roles keep women from participating politically and becoming full citizens. In this essay, I will first examine the impact of traditional gender roles on Egyptian women who participated during and after the Egyptian Revolution of 2011, as well as, the role of African America... ...ssues of sexism would have to be addressed with the male leadership before going forward in the movement. After Tahrir Square Segregation, voting rights, refusal to give up her bus seat galvanized the bus boycotts in Montgomery, Alabama ending bus segregation. Even Ella Baker Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee conducted the first lunch counter sit-in in 1960 by North Carolina AT&T students. As more people heard about the protests their participation was met with same opposition-your voice is not needed here. Social behavior dictated an patriarchal attitude that relegated women to of In the United States but Egyptian women were mingling with men voices but Conclusion Revolutions are rare dramatic events that rapidly and violently transform political, social, and economic institutions from below.