Fighting on Two Fronts: Conversations with Palestinian Women

The salient characteristic of the women's movement in Palestine and in exile has been its identification, since the early part of this century, with the national movement against Zionism. It is this that distinguishes it from the women's movement in Egypt or in Western countries: among Palestinians there has never been a broadly-based grassroots movement for women's rights; the major efforts have been devoted to political, national ends, and the emancipation of women has come as an accidental consequence of their determination to carry out some political action, such as a demonstration, which entailed a flouting of conventional mores.

Soraya Antonius was formerly Editor of the Middle East Forum and has served on special committees of the General Union of Palestinian Women.