Headscarves and Hymens: Why the Middle East Needs a Sexual Revolution by Egyptian writer Mona Eltahawy

As reflected in the title of this provocative essay, journalist Mona Eltahawy tackles two of the most significant taboos in the Arab world: the hymen and the hijab. These two elements articulate the control, violence and misogyny to which many women in North Africa and the Middle East are subjected. Her book, published in 2016, takes a bird’s eye view of the religious, social, and legal conditions that subjugate women in the Middle East, reducing them to second-class citizens.

The central premise of the essay is that misogyny in the Arab world is reproduced in three spheres: the state, the street, and the home. This patriarchal triad is poisoned, in Eltahawy’s words, by “a toxic mix of culture and religion” and can only be defeated if the political revolution of Arab Spring – in which women fought alongside men – is followed by both a social and a sexual revolution. Mona Eltahawy’s style is acid, ironic, and sometimes sarcastic, but ultimately respectful as she reproduces the testimonies of victims of misogyny in the Arab world.

Headscarves and Hymens: Why the Middle East Needs a Sexual Revolution is a call for revolution and rebellion, as well as a poignant questioning of the Arab patriarchal system, from its foundations all the way down to its victims.

Amazon: Headscarves and Hymens: Why the Middle East Needs a Sexual Revolution