Comments on: Looking at Egypt’s first female mayor

By: Katya

Katya — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 15:41:46 +0000

We deserve and have a right to any position we want that a man has. Patriarchy tries to make men and women such different creatures, because the more we are the same, the more the main difference between men and women stands out; that women bring life into the world. Women should not have to stay home to help build their husbands ego because he feels inferior.

[This comment has been edited to fit within moderation guidelines.]

By: MMW Weekly Roundup 12/19/08 | Marriage Blog

MMW Weekly Roundup 12/19/08 | Marriage Blog — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 03:04:18 +0000

[...] about whether online activism is effective, reviewed Leila Aboulela’s book Minaret, discussed Egypt’s first female mayor, talked about a Facebook campaign aiming to improve perception of spinsters, and overdosed on our [...]

By: Global Voices Online » Looking at Egypt’s First Female Mayor

Global Voices Online » Looking at Egypt’s First Female Mayor — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 19:12:20 +0000

[...] Yusra of Muslimah Media Watch wrote: [...]

By: Marwa Rakha

Marwa Rakha — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 13:53:25 +0000

Thank you Yusra

http://globalvoicesonline.org/?p=54166

By: Sobia

Sobia — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 02:45:57 +0000

@anon:

A woman being able to decide herself what she wants to wear without fear of public condemnation, either institutional or cultural, is a good thing. If a Muslim woman chooses to wear a mini-skirt then yes, that *choice* is a good thing.

By: anon

anon — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 22:18:21 +0000

so wearing mini skirt is a good thing..?

By: Programmer Buydatti

Programmer Buydatti — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 22:07:32 +0000

“Muslim women face a greater struggle from within their religious community, but the political apparatus itself doesn’t make it easier for Christian women.”

Add to that the discrimination that Copts face in Egypt, and the situation gets more complex.

While Muslim women face religious and cultural barriers to political involvement, Christian women face cultural obstacles (defined by the majority religion’s culture) and religious discrimination.

That’s not to say that one community’s oppression is worse than the other, but Copts (men and women alike) must navigate through the added complexity of being minorities, and all the negative perceptions that entails.

Food for thought.

By: Yusra

Yusra — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 19:33:21 +0000

forsoothsayer, Muslim women face a greater struggle from within their religious community, but the political apparatus itself doesn’t make it easier for Christian women. So while the 1956 constitution gave all women the right to vote and hold office, both Christians and Muslims have had an extremely difficult time breaking into politics and therefore share that struggle. I should have clarified what I meant.

Ethar, what else would you call blatant ignorance besides jahil? Miniskirts are still found in Egypt, but in Iran and Libya it was pretty much swapped.

By: Ethar

Ethar — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 18:50:37 +0000

But you can’t really use what the niqabi woman’s husband said to generalize about Egyptian men, can you? We’ve just had Amal Afifi, the first female Muslim marriage registrar, marry her first couple (veiled too, I might add). And she’s from Zaqaziq, not cosmopolitan Cairo.

I can’t say I like your use of the term jahiliya. I understand the context you’ve placed it in, but still, it’s a pretty strong term to use. And the miniskirt wasn’t exactly swapped for the galabeya– that’s a little extreme and saying that further prorogates the stereotypes about Egyptian Muslim women (we’re all walking around in potato sacks lol).

By: Fatemeh

Fatemeh — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 17:14:39 +0000

@ forsoothsayer: Thanks for the correction. I hope I updated everything.