Article
English
ID: <
10.4000/ema.11592>
·
DOI: <
10.4000/ema.11592>
Abstract
Following the 2011 uprising that ousted Hosni Mubarak in Egypt, the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) enjoyed unprecedented political participation, seizing both a majority in parliament and the presidency of the country in 2012. This article explores how the Brotherhood’s opportunity for greater political involvement affected its female members, the Muslim Sisters. In particular, it reflects on the extent to which the group was willing to include women in its political affairs, the role that women played in the political spaces seized by the movement, and the gender discourse promoted by the Muslim Sisters. The data presented draws on the author’s analysis of MB’s primary video material and literature published online between 2011 and 2013, and interviews with Muslim Sisterhood members. Findings suggest that the uprisings benefited the Sisters in terms of political participation, but that women who held gender worldviews similar to those of the Salafi-leaning MB male leadership ended up having greater public visibility in the 2012-2013 MB government. This contributed to the promotion of a conservative and motherhood-centred gender discourse in the political spaces that women and the movement seized after the uprisings.