feminism

An Arab woman casts her vote at a polling station in the city of Lyd on October 22, 2013. (Yossi Zeliger/Flash90)

Arab women made history in Israel’s local elections. Here’s how they did it

A record-breaking 26 Palestinian women were elected to office in Israel’s local elections. Despite the unprecedented numbers, there is still a long way to go. Arab women made history in the last round of local elections in Israel held in late October. A total of 26 Arab women were elected across the country, including the first Druze and first Bedouin woman,…

By Samah Salaime November 26, 2018

When a Palestinian, Muslim woman went on Israeli Big Brother

Shams, a hijab-wearing, Palestinian woman went on the Israeli reality TV show to teach Jewish Israelis about her humanity. She was naive to think she’d succeed, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t support her. It’s hard with these Palestinians everywhere, even on Big Brother. I admit and confess, I know next to nothing about the…

By Samah Salaime May 30, 2018

What is certain is that social norms in the Arab community are constantly changing, mainly thanks to the tens of thousands of Arab women who do not give up on themselves. (Nati Shohat / Flash90)

The quiet feminist revolution in Arab society in Israel

Despite the hardships, Arab women are making gains in the Israeli legal establishment, local politics, academia, and even in the Islamic Movement. I watched as Hollywood stars collectively came out of the feminist closet during the Academy Awards this week. They spoke with pride about the recent #MeToo campaign, and demanded more respect and more…

By Samah Salaime March 8, 2018

Latest

Justice minister Ayelet Shaked Gives a statement to the media Justice minister Ayelet Shaked gives a statement to the media at the Knesset on February 26, 2018. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Setting the struggle against gender-based violence back 30 years

A proposed bill to increase the sentences for Arab men who kill women ‘on the basis of family honor’ is not a step forward for feminism, but a step back. The Justice Ministry recently presented a bill to the Knesset’s Constitution, Law, and Justice committee that would define murder on the basis of “family honor”…

By Samah Salaime March 2, 2018

Minister of Interior Affairs Aryeh Deri visits at Interior Ministry office (Misrad Hapnim) in Petah Tikva, July 26, 2016. Photo by Yaakov Cohen/Flash90

‘There’s no such thing as a feminist name-change’

When I reverted my surname back to my maiden name, apparently the Interior Ministry decided I was getting divorced. How do you prove that you’re not getting divorced? My own personal brush with Kafka. I went to the Interior Ministry office in Beit Shemesh to get a passport issued for my adolescent son last week.…

By Samah Salaime January 2, 2018

Local Call editor Orly Noy accepts the Dror Prize from former Supreme Court Justice Dalia Dorner, Tel Aviv, December 1, 2017. (Oren Ziv/Activestills.org)

‘Local Call’ wins award for social change

Local Call wins NIS 25,000 for its persistent coverage of the joint feminist struggle between Arab and Jewish women against gender violence. By +972 Magazine Hebrew-language site Local Call won the Dror Prize for social change, along with a NIS 25,000 cash prize, on Friday, for spotlighting the joint struggle between Jewish and Arab women…

By +972 Magazine December 1, 2017

Arrests of activists during a protest in Sheikh Jarrah, December 18, 2009 (photo: Oren Ziv/ Activestills.org)

A room of our own: Building a new anti-racist space in Jerusalem

As Jerusalem grows more hostile toward anything remotely left wing, Israeli and Palestinian activists are looking to create a new space for activists to meet, plan, and struggle to change the face of the city. By Sahar Vardi I was 14 years old when I walked into a small room packed with books in a…

By +972 Magazine November 7, 2017

What is certain is that social norms in the Arab community are constantly changing, mainly thanks to the tens of thousands of Arab women who do not give up on themselves. (Nati Shohat / Flash90)

Wonder Women: The Arab feminist revolution on Facebook

Thousands of Arab women on Facebook are sharing, with heart-wrenching honesty, stories of female heroism that don’t always make headlines. Is a new Arab feminism emerging? And what about the new Arab man? A week ago one of my Facebook friends added me to a group for Arab women. Oh no, I thought. Not another…

By Samah Salaime October 25, 2017

A Saudi woman driving (Screenshot from Change.org)

A big step forward, and another step back in Saudi Arabia

The public role of women in Saudi life has expanded rapidly over the past decade, accented last month by lifting a ban on women driving. But as the Kingdom moves forward on some rights, it is regressing with regards to others — particularly, cracking down on political dissidents. By Thomas W. Lippman So, with its decision to…

By +972 Magazine October 2, 2017

Dr. Ruchama Marton in her home in Tel Aviv. (Shiraz Grinbaum/Activestills.org)

War crimes and open wounds: The physician who took on Israeli segregation

On the occasion of her 80th birthday, Ruchama Marton, the founder of Physicians for Human Rights-Israel, talks about the atrocities she witnessed as a soldier, the enduring power of feminism, and why only outside help has a chance of ending Israel’s military rule over the Palestinians. By Alon Mizrahi Ruchama Marton belongs to what you might…

By +972 Magazine September 12, 2017

Palestinian women protest against the occupation on International Women’s Day at the Qalandiya military checkpoint separating Jerusalem and Ramallah, March 7, 2015. (Anne Paq/Activestills.org)

The question isn’t whether feminism has room for Zionism

The question is whether Zionism can make room for a truly inclusive equality. In a recent New York Times op-ed “Does Feminism have Room for Zionists?” Emily Shire, who identifies as a feminist and a Zionist, argues that her belief in “Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state” should not be at odds with her feminism. According…

By Mairav Zonszein March 21, 2017

Palestinian director Maysaloun Hamoud. (Yariv Fein)

The Palestinian director bringing her generation to the big screen

Even as women continue to be underrepresented in the film industry, Palestinian director Maysaloun Hamoud’s new movie is winning international acclaim — and puts Palestinian women front and center. +972 Magazine sat down with Hamoud to talk feminism, liberation and Palestinian society. One of the strongest sensations I experienced during my first viewing of “In Between”…

By Haggai Matar January 5, 2017

The ultra-Orthodox women challenging their society to include more women in positions of power. From left: Tali Farkash, Michal Tshernovitzki, Esti Bitton-Shoshan, and Esti Reider. (Noam Feiner)

Meet the women shaking up Israel’s ultra-Orthodox community

Israel’s ultra-Orthodox community has been experiencing tremendous changes, all led by women, over the past few years. At a recent conference, a group of Haredi women spoke about the personal price they pay, and the chance we could one day see them in the Knesset. By Eli Bitan In mid-November, women from the organization “Nivharot” (“chosen” or “elected” in Hebrew)…

By +972 Magazine December 11, 2016