Muslim Women and the “War on Terror”

The “War on Terror,” which was initially waged to retaliate against Al-Qaeda’s 9/11, was also controversially declared a war to “liberate” Afghan women. Moreover, the promise of democracy and freedom for Iraqi people has become a nightmare of endless occupation and violence, and further inferiority for Iraqi women in their extremely turbulent environment. Subsequently, Muslim women’s lives have shifted from the shadows of invisibility and silence to the spotlights of vulnerability for some and power for others. The so called “War on Terror” has created an opportunity structure wherein Muslim feminist activists working on the grassroots level have successfully mobilized feminist support and political action transnationally.

I am writing a paper that chronicles the emergence of a new type of feminism in the Muslim world that is characterized by its postcolonial perspective and its transnational sphere. Using postcolonial feminist theory and transnational social movement literature, this paper examines the dimensions of the “double-burden” that Muslim feminist activists face as they mobilize on two fronts: internal – against patriarchy and women’s rights violations – and external – against Western imperialism and neoliberal capitalism, two of the factors fueling the “War on Terror.” Examples and testimonies are derived from writings of Muslim feminist activists in war zones as well as from documents and programs of women’s organizations like RAWA (Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan), which have been powerful entities in defining and driving women’s efforts to effect change in times of war and upheaval.