FEMINISMS
Feminism is a project, not a label. It is a social, and political movement dedicated to eliminating discrimination and inequalities based on gender. While often perceived as a homogeneous phenomenon, feminism actually comprises a variety of currents and perspectives, each with its own priorities. Since the late 19th century, at least four main waves of feminism have emerged.
First Wave (19th century - early 20th century): Activists focused primarily on legal issues such as the right to vote and legal equality. Suffragettes played a key role in this phase, fighting for women's right to vote.
Second Wave (1960s - 1980s): Feminists expanded their focus to include a wide range of issues. They addressed topics like abortion, workplace equality, and the fight against domestic and sexual violence.
Third Wave (1990s - early 2000s): This phase saw feminists further expanding the issues they addressed, emphasizing intersectionality, the interconnectedness of gender, race, class, and other forms of identity and oppression.
Fourth Wave (2010s - today): Activists characterized this wave by using social media to promote feminism and focusing on sexual harassment, body shaming, and the inclusion of diverse gender identities. Movements like #MeToo exemplify this wave. For this reason, scholars and activists often use "feminisms" in the plural to reflect the diversity of experiences and struggles.Feminisms vary significantly depending on cultural, economic, and political contexts, each responding to different local realities across the world.
WE-PROPOSE aims to create a dialogue between the various feminisms along the shores of the EU-MENA region. The project pays particular attention to the historical feminism of Morocco, secular and Islamic feminism, and the autonomous feminism of Tunisia, and their dialogue, or lack of, with feminisms in Europe.