18 / 50 · Law & political rights

Huda Sha'arawi

Egypt · 1879–1947

Sha’arawi helped build organised feminism in Egypt and founded the Egyptian Feminist Union. Her activism developed alongside the struggle against British colonial rule and debates about education, public participation and family life.

Her memoirs reveal the planning and social networks behind women’s political action. They also show how class and access shaped who could participate in early organised movements.

“We assembled according to plan at the garden city park, where we left our carriages.”

Harem Years, translated memoir; recollection of the women’s demonstration of March 1919.