The Woman in the Blue Bra
The image of the Egyptian woman, faceless, her abaya torn exposing her torso to uniformed military combatants, the blue bra blazing amongst the chaotic violence has sent the national and global female populations reeling. She was one individual of thousands representing during a pro-democratic street protest on Saturday December 17, 2011 in Cairo. Alienated from the crowd, her victimization is a raw catalyst for mass protestations. The blue bra, an undeniable terrible representation of feminine vulnerability, the color alone symbolizing the woman’s personal vibrancy, a stamp of individuality that was dragged and mauled across the concrete, worse still, all violence measured in the lens of international and local audiences.
The violence of Egypt’s military minions must stop. More provocatively, all physical abuse against non-violent political demonstrators must stop, globally! This mindset, aside from an obvious call for freedom, was the root of a surge of Egyptian women who took to the streets on Tuesday December 20th to protest the unsubstantiated abuse of the woman in the blue bra, a call for all women to be treated with respect and freedom amongst Egyptian society.[1]
The crowds on Tuesday were vast and diverse. Women from every spectrum of Egyptian society marched through the streets, in many cases this march was the first incidence in which a totality of the female population took to the streets with such passion. The reception of their anger and impassioned cries for freedom has been met with “great regret” from the military, but that is not an apology, and that is not enough.[2]
Egyptian 1919 Revolution was Non-Violent
Tuesday’s protest is not the first in Egyptian society and should not be considered as a solitary occurrence. The Egyptian Revolution of 1919 was a similar national non-violent revolution for both men and women against British colonial occupation and subsequent oppression. Led by Saad Zaghlul and other members of the Wafd Party, the country-wide protest led to gradual independence from Britain in 1922 and the implementation of a new constitution in 1923.[3] This revolution is important because it is considered to be one of the earliest successful implementations of non-violent civil protest internationally, which was immediately followed by similar actions in the Indian independence movement led by Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi.[4] However, amongst the 1919 protests was a woman named Hoda Sha'arawi who led 300 women demonstrators.
Four years later, Hoda Sha'arawi called for the foundation of the first Egyptian Women’s Union in order for women to organize and improve their quality of life within society. This year has unfolded in numerous collapses of totalitarian regimes in North Africa, and many Westerners have viewed with anticipation. The mass demonstration of women in Cairo on Tuesday echoes of domestic and political issues prevalent in all facets of international societies, no longer should any citizen feel comfortable in the witness stand, they must testify as well, because the women of Cairo are marching to an international rhythm.
Repercussions of Protests
Although many pessimists would deny it, there is a massive societal shift for the equal treatment of women that has been snowballing for centuries internationally; liberation is not total or complete. Many viewers of the ‘Blue Bra video’ await the effects that the protests will have in other Arab and Muslim dominated countries, while they should anticipate how the march will have an influence on women globally. Regardless of whether these women receive an official apology for military brutality, the female march on Tuesday demonstrates that ‘the people’ of Egypt are openly challenging the manifestations of the old order; that is more powerful than a dog-headed forced apology.
Global Female Village
If anything, it must be acknowledged that the female march in Cairo was a unitary powerful protest of women contributing to an international dialogue of equality, essentially, that these women are citizens of the Global Female Village. The Global Female Village exists beyond national borders and national policies. It is a feminine consciousness that is increasingly aggravating patriarchal and totalitarian constructs through social media outlets, pop culture, and the internet at large.
Many North American females encounter the Global Female Village through celebrity sensations like Rihanna and Beyonce, both strong opponents of feminine mistreatment and inequality. Rihanna even has a navy, “Girls/ Come on/ We ain’t done yet/ Got a lot to handle/ We’ll take over the world/ Yeah/ We’re an Army/ Better yet, a navy/ Better yet, crazy/ Guns in the air,” in which female fans affiliate to in all elements of their own lives.[5] The Rihanna Navy is manifested in the signature gun tattoos on the ribs, deliberate because when the women raise their arms to reveal the guns, their hands are empty, the only weapon their voices and ideologies. Beyonce’s 2011 hit, “Run the World,” is an unapologetic aggressive anthem for female empowerment; both instances are direct and assertive of female empowerment, both non-violent outlets of expression.
The surge of vocal assertions for freedom and equality by women is ever-present and expanding. There are large pockets of protests throughout the globe, the most difficult component of the Global Female Village is bridging these voices, providing access to expression and communication, and the total acceptance of women in peaceful societies to acknowledge and speak out against the mistreatment of women in other countries. Each woman is a citizen, a respected voice, no matter their nationality, ethnicity, age or religion. The march in Cairo is not exclusive to Egyptian history, but is an integral catalyst in a process of liberation, the story of women and their rise to power through an unceasing non-violent presence. Something will have to give at some point because the foundations have already begun to crack, and there is no slowing this international phenomenon.
[1] Dave Lefcourt, “Thousand’s of Women in Cairo March in Protest against Egyptian Military’s Brutality of Women, OpenEdNews, December 21, 2011, http://www.opednews.com/articles/Thousand-s-of-Women-in-Cai-by-Dave-Lefcourt-111221-81.html?show=votes
[2] Joseph Mayton, “Egypt military ‘regrets’ violence against women, does not apologize,” bikyamasyr: independent news, December 21, 2011, http://bikyamasr.com/51283/egypt-military-regrets-violence-against-women-does-not-apologize/
[3] Tamer Ibrahim, “Egyptian Revolution of 1919,” Egyptian News, March 22, 2009, http://news.egypt.com/en/200903225663/spot-light/spot-light/egyptian-revolution-of-1919.html
[4] Tamer Ibrahim, “Egyptian Revolution of 1919,” Egyptian News, March 22, 2009, http://news.egypt.com/en/200903225663/spot-light/spot-light/egyptian-revolution-of-1919.html
[5] http://rihannanavy.ning.com/
