Egyptian Feminism's Changing Relationship with Western Feminism

This research in progress examines how Egyptian feminism interacts with Western feminism. I hypothesized that a majority of Egyptian feminists would view Western feminism as a hindrance to "indigenous" feminism and therefore resist it. For example, some might feel that Western feminism places Egyptian women in a "victims" category, and therefore, reject it as a model of feminism in Egypt. Methods include identifying Egyptian women's organizations and literature for analysis. A historical literature review compares Egyptian feminist and Western feminist literature. Then data on current Egyptian women's movements is drawn from Egyptian women's organizations' websites. Analysis of Egyptian feminist websites and organizations identifies common and contrasting themes related to the ideological objectives of Western and Egyptian feminists and means of promoting their feminist movements. Preliminary results indicate that post-colonial resistance continues to reject Western influence. Yet, simultaneously Egyptian organizations cooperate with Western organizations, gaining access to funding and support. The significance of this research lies in its effort to expand understanding of non-Western feminisms, by examining a broad spectrum of Egyptian women's organizations, their goals, their accomplishments, and their interactions with Western feminism.