As a feminist of Egyptian and Muslim descent, my life's work has been informed by the belief that religion and culture must never be used to justify the subjugation of women.
Mona EltahawyRead
As a woman in Saudi Arabia, you have one of two options. You either lose your mind - which at first happened to me because I fell into a deep depression - or you become a feminist.
Interpretation
Women in restrictive societies must choose between succumbing to despair or embracing change through feminism.
This quote highlights the challenges faced by women in Saudi Arabia, illustrating the emotional toll of living in a restrictive society. Eltahawy emphasizes that the path available to women is often fraught with difficulty, provoking a deep depression due to oppression, or the fight for liberation and equality through feminism. It reflects the resilience and strength needed to confront societal norms and push for personal and collective rights.
In practice
During a women's rights rally, this quote can be used to emphasize the need for activism.
As a feminist of Egyptian and Muslim descent, my life's work has been informed by the belief that religion and culture must never be used to justify the subjugation of women.
I'm no fan of Sarkozy, but I support a ban on face veils because they erase women from society and are promoted by an ultra-conservative ideology that equates piety with the disappearance of women.
It is the harassers and assaulters who make us 'look bad,' not the women who have every right to expose crimes against them.
I can write about my culture and religion because I am a product of both. Even when I'm accused of giving ammunition to the Islamophobic right, in the struggle between 'community' and 'women,' I always choose the women.
I believe at the heart of any revolution for social justice and human dignity are consent and agency, the unequivocal belief that I own my body - not the state, not the church/mosque/temple, not the street and not the family.
I will never ally with Islamophobes and racists. But in the choice between 'community' and Muslim women, I will always choose my sisters.
I had a vision - and I saw white spirits and black spirits engaged in battle, and the sun was darkened - the thunder rolled in the Heavens, and blood flowed in streams - and I heard a voice saying, 'Such is your luck, such are you called to see, and let it come rough or smooth, you must surely bear it.'
The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave.
The power of good is shown not by triumphantly conquering evil, but by continuing to resist evil while facing certain defeat.
When I started at the Air Force Academy, I found out that I couldn't be a fighter pilot simply because I had ovaries. That was enough to make me go for it.
Look what scares you in the face and try to understand it. Empathy is revolutionary.
People always seem to assume that we have a full, back-up support team - make-up, costume and a driver - but usually, in a war zone, there's only me and the cameraman.
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