Thank you for sharing your thoughts about our latest article. I agree that this fight is not a zero-sum game and must be judged based on its merits. However, I see little to no similarities between the two hemispheres. As an Afghan in exile who is in constant communication with women and girls on the ground, I can only say that the fight for women in Afghanistan is not just one of equality but of acknowledgment of their existence. Afghan women face a total ban on education, access to healthcare, ability to provide healthcare, access to entertainment, freedom of movement without a male family member, freedom to travel without a male family member, ban on listening to music, ban on producing music, ban on taking pictures or videos, ban on purchasing a book among thousands that have been censored, ban on showing their face on national television, ban on appearing on social media without covering their faces, ban on riding a taxi without a male family member, ban on a taxi driver providing service to a woman without a male family member, ban on shops and businesses to talk or engage with women and countless other restrictions. I have not yet seen a girl or woman in the US face any of these issues, so no, the situation is not comparable.
I recently spoke to a young entrepreneur from Kabul. She is running a very successful business through Instagram and has gained attraction. However, there is little hope for her expansion. She is unable to register the business herself; she cannot secure business visas to travel abroad and engage with her suppliers, and she is also unable to communicate with suppliers domestically. She told me that when half the population completely ignores your existence and fears even talking to you, that leaves a longstanding impression on a woman.
I believe that women’s struggles everywhere matter, and their voices must be heard. However, those in situations like women in Afghanistan need immediate attention, advocacy, and action if we truly believe in eradicating women’s suffering in this world. The author of the article, Reid Newton, has been instrumental in sharing the stories of those who are often not heard. I respect her perspective on the matter and agree with it. Her dedication to uplifting these voices from the Middle East and Afghanistan is vital for my country.
Respectfully as a Canadian woman, you couldn't be more wrong. American women know how much they are losing and still stand to lose in the current climate by watching their sisters in countries such as Afghanistan, where women had freedoms a half decade ago which were similarly eroded to their current state. You cannot get more sympathy for the women in the middle east by minimizing the plight of women elsewhere on the planet. We need to lift each other up, not tear each other down. This isn't a zero-sum game where more rights for us means less rights for them. Your essay is ill-conceived and makes me question other essays I've been reading in Middle East Uncovered, which until now have given me a new perspective on the region. Stop minimizing women's rights movements and start supporting them everywhere.
Hi D, thank you for this thoughtful comment. While I fundamentally disagree that women’s rights are being meaningfully eroded in the United States, I appreciate your perspective, and agree it’s not a zero-sum game. I just think it is hyperbolic to don a costume that implies we are on the brink of becoming a society anything like Afghanistan under the Taliban, and I have had the privilege of speaking to many Afghan women and colleagues who share my perspective and wish we would help uplift their voices. I simply don’t think it’s reasonable to compare the Trump administration to the Handmaids Tale or the Taliban regime, and I believe there are more grounded ways to advocate for or against policies one does or doesn’t like.
Erin is correct, one of my main goals in sharing this perspective is to highlight the cognitive dissonance I often see in American feminism and encourage us all to have more of a global lens when approaching these issues. Women in the West are often hesitant to critique regimes like the Taliban for fear of being labeled Islamophobic, but are eager to label themselves a victim here at home. It would be my hope that in advocating for what we want to be true here, we can do so in a way that is understanding of our privilege, and appreciates that we are uniquely empowered as women in the West. That these protests are able to happen is proof of that!
We publish a wide range of perspectives here at Middle East Uncovered, and anticipate that not everyone will agree with every article we run. We hope you will stick around and continue to engage with us!
Your thoughts and opinions come through loud and clear. Your intention to uplift Afghan voices is muted. Your direction on how that can be achieved is non-existent.
The article does not minimize the struggles of women in the West. Rather, it critiques the tone and focus of much of contemporary U.S. American feminism, which often emphasizes theatrical, symbolic protests over substantive global solidarity. The point is not that women in the U.S. face no challenges, but that equating those challenges to full-blown gender apartheid—as in Afghanistan—is a false equivalence that weakens the feminist cause by blurring the line between real repression and political disagreement.
This kind of hyperbole can be counterproductive, making it harder to rally public attention and outrage around the places where women are genuinely suffering in unimaginable ways.
The call here is not to create a hierarchy of oppression or to dismiss anyone’s struggle, but rather to recalibrate the focus. When symbolic resistance starts to overshadow real-world atrocities, the movement risks becoming performative rather than transformative.
Feminism should be grounded in global awareness, proportionality, and moral clarity. That’s what makes it credible and powerful—not just in our own countries, but everywhere women are fighting to be heard.
Respectfully as an American woman, I think you may have missed the point of the article, which was to encourage American women to use their power and privilege -- which are inarguably outsized compared to the rest of the world -- to lift up other women, rather than focusing solely on themselves and the rights they might lose (or not), but which they still very much possess in the present moment.
Respectfully, this article then needs a complete rewrite and a proper edit, because if that's the point of the article, it was cleverly hidden in the disparagement and mockery of current American feminist issues, rather than a call to arms for basic human and female dignity across the world. Is there any proof that the current American feminist call to arms for women in America is somehow taking away from the ongoing American feminist call to arms for women's rights globally? Again, not a zero sum game. Calling for a retention of Women's Rights within the American sphere is not taking away from calling for basic human and women's rights in the broader global sphere, and this article is disingenuous at best and basic anti-feminist rhetoric at worst.
Criticizing the failure of hyper-privileged women to recognize and use their power to advocate for the rights of comparatively powerless women living under oppressive regimes elsewhere isn't mockery.
I also think it's important to point out that even under previous administrations that loudly supported women's rights, women in the West rarely, if ever, spoke up for the rights of women living under extremely oppressive regimes, like many in the Middle East do. So, I would argue there's nothing wrong with this article -- it calls out a very real phenomenon that has spanned numerous administrations and predates the current administration by decades.
I'm quite a lot older than you, and I cannot remember a time when feminist women in the West *didn't* speak up for the rights of women living under extremely oppressive regimes. The only way I and many others learned about the Taliban's horrendous practices were Western women speaking up about them decades ago. I'm not sure where you get the idea that women in the west don't speak out for other women. It is possible to speak out for multiple issues locally and globally. Many of us have been fighting for women's rights globally for decades. That doesn't negate the fight for women's - and by extension, human - rights in the West. Again, I'm Canadian, and the lack of rights women have in America is quite shocking to me, to put it mildly. I also have raised 2 daughters and have lived my life working in male-dominated fields. I'm not speaking out of naivite.
Editing to add: hyper-privileged rarely speak out on anyone's rights. Women or men. Why you would (a) equate Western women feminists with the hyper-privileged and (b) think the hyper-privileged would bother with any struggle, is difficult to understand. Calling all American feminists and/or women hyper-privileged is an ignorance of another sort.
I absolutely agree that there are some feminist organizations that do speak out for women in countries where they are far more oppressed than we are here in the West. But I would also argue that those voices aren't nearly enough. I would also argue that women in the West are often too quick to dismiss the immense privileges we enjoy here compared so many other other places on earth -- in fact, even compared to our own counties only a generation ago. I am far freer than my mother was at my age, and I'm thankful for that every day.
I'm not sure what you mean by how few rights we American have? Can you be more specific? I don't feel oppressed at all. In fact, I would argue that men have played an outsized role in helping me achieve my career goals over the years (men who asked for, and expected, absolutely nothing in return for that support, might I add).
Adding this: As a woman who has often* struggled to afford rent throughout much* of my adult life -- my struggles are nothing compared to what the women in places like Afghanistan endure, and I'm well aware of that. Regardless of any resources I lack here in the U.S., my situation would be horrendous in Afghanistan and many other countries by comparison, based solely on my gender, and so that is what I mean by hyper-privileged. By that measure, we are all hyper-privileged on the global stage.
Here is a list of some of the American feminist organizations that have ACTIVELY aided women in Afghanistan:
Feminist Majority Foundation:
Their "Campaign to Stop Gender Apartheid" raised awareness about the Taliban's treatment of women and girls.
Women for Afghan Women:
This organization operates in both Afghanistan and the US, providing direct support to women and girls through shelters, emergency resources, and advocacy.
U.S.-Afghan Women's Council:
This partnership focuses on long-term support
Vital Voices:
This organization invests in women leaders globally, including those in Afghanistan
Afghan Women's Fund:
This organization focuses on empowering women and girls
Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS):
GIWPS examines the roles of women in peace and economic development in Afghanistan
Women for Women International:
This organization has supported over 127,000 women in Afghanistan since 2002
Dear respected readers,
Thank you for sharing your thoughts about our latest article. I agree that this fight is not a zero-sum game and must be judged based on its merits. However, I see little to no similarities between the two hemispheres. As an Afghan in exile who is in constant communication with women and girls on the ground, I can only say that the fight for women in Afghanistan is not just one of equality but of acknowledgment of their existence. Afghan women face a total ban on education, access to healthcare, ability to provide healthcare, access to entertainment, freedom of movement without a male family member, freedom to travel without a male family member, ban on listening to music, ban on producing music, ban on taking pictures or videos, ban on purchasing a book among thousands that have been censored, ban on showing their face on national television, ban on appearing on social media without covering their faces, ban on riding a taxi without a male family member, ban on a taxi driver providing service to a woman without a male family member, ban on shops and businesses to talk or engage with women and countless other restrictions. I have not yet seen a girl or woman in the US face any of these issues, so no, the situation is not comparable.
I recently spoke to a young entrepreneur from Kabul. She is running a very successful business through Instagram and has gained attraction. However, there is little hope for her expansion. She is unable to register the business herself; she cannot secure business visas to travel abroad and engage with her suppliers, and she is also unable to communicate with suppliers domestically. She told me that when half the population completely ignores your existence and fears even talking to you, that leaves a longstanding impression on a woman.
I believe that women’s struggles everywhere matter, and their voices must be heard. However, those in situations like women in Afghanistan need immediate attention, advocacy, and action if we truly believe in eradicating women’s suffering in this world. The author of the article, Reid Newton, has been instrumental in sharing the stories of those who are often not heard. I respect her perspective on the matter and agree with it. Her dedication to uplifting these voices from the Middle East and Afghanistan is vital for my country.
Thank you
Mansoor Ramizy
Writer and reporter | MEU
Respectfully as a Canadian woman, you couldn't be more wrong. American women know how much they are losing and still stand to lose in the current climate by watching their sisters in countries such as Afghanistan, where women had freedoms a half decade ago which were similarly eroded to their current state. You cannot get more sympathy for the women in the middle east by minimizing the plight of women elsewhere on the planet. We need to lift each other up, not tear each other down. This isn't a zero-sum game where more rights for us means less rights for them. Your essay is ill-conceived and makes me question other essays I've been reading in Middle East Uncovered, which until now have given me a new perspective on the region. Stop minimizing women's rights movements and start supporting them everywhere.
Hi D, thank you for this thoughtful comment. While I fundamentally disagree that women’s rights are being meaningfully eroded in the United States, I appreciate your perspective, and agree it’s not a zero-sum game. I just think it is hyperbolic to don a costume that implies we are on the brink of becoming a society anything like Afghanistan under the Taliban, and I have had the privilege of speaking to many Afghan women and colleagues who share my perspective and wish we would help uplift their voices. I simply don’t think it’s reasonable to compare the Trump administration to the Handmaids Tale or the Taliban regime, and I believe there are more grounded ways to advocate for or against policies one does or doesn’t like.
Erin is correct, one of my main goals in sharing this perspective is to highlight the cognitive dissonance I often see in American feminism and encourage us all to have more of a global lens when approaching these issues. Women in the West are often hesitant to critique regimes like the Taliban for fear of being labeled Islamophobic, but are eager to label themselves a victim here at home. It would be my hope that in advocating for what we want to be true here, we can do so in a way that is understanding of our privilege, and appreciates that we are uniquely empowered as women in the West. That these protests are able to happen is proof of that!
We publish a wide range of perspectives here at Middle East Uncovered, and anticipate that not everyone will agree with every article we run. We hope you will stick around and continue to engage with us!
Your thoughts and opinions come through loud and clear. Your intention to uplift Afghan voices is muted. Your direction on how that can be achieved is non-existent.
Hi D.
The article does not minimize the struggles of women in the West. Rather, it critiques the tone and focus of much of contemporary U.S. American feminism, which often emphasizes theatrical, symbolic protests over substantive global solidarity. The point is not that women in the U.S. face no challenges, but that equating those challenges to full-blown gender apartheid—as in Afghanistan—is a false equivalence that weakens the feminist cause by blurring the line between real repression and political disagreement.
This kind of hyperbole can be counterproductive, making it harder to rally public attention and outrage around the places where women are genuinely suffering in unimaginable ways.
The call here is not to create a hierarchy of oppression or to dismiss anyone’s struggle, but rather to recalibrate the focus. When symbolic resistance starts to overshadow real-world atrocities, the movement risks becoming performative rather than transformative.
Feminism should be grounded in global awareness, proportionality, and moral clarity. That’s what makes it credible and powerful—not just in our own countries, but everywhere women are fighting to be heard.
Respectfully as an American woman, I think you may have missed the point of the article, which was to encourage American women to use their power and privilege -- which are inarguably outsized compared to the rest of the world -- to lift up other women, rather than focusing solely on themselves and the rights they might lose (or not), but which they still very much possess in the present moment.
Respectfully, this article then needs a complete rewrite and a proper edit, because if that's the point of the article, it was cleverly hidden in the disparagement and mockery of current American feminist issues, rather than a call to arms for basic human and female dignity across the world. Is there any proof that the current American feminist call to arms for women in America is somehow taking away from the ongoing American feminist call to arms for women's rights globally? Again, not a zero sum game. Calling for a retention of Women's Rights within the American sphere is not taking away from calling for basic human and women's rights in the broader global sphere, and this article is disingenuous at best and basic anti-feminist rhetoric at worst.
Criticizing the failure of hyper-privileged women to recognize and use their power to advocate for the rights of comparatively powerless women living under oppressive regimes elsewhere isn't mockery.
I also think it's important to point out that even under previous administrations that loudly supported women's rights, women in the West rarely, if ever, spoke up for the rights of women living under extremely oppressive regimes, like many in the Middle East do. So, I would argue there's nothing wrong with this article -- it calls out a very real phenomenon that has spanned numerous administrations and predates the current administration by decades.
I'm quite a lot older than you, and I cannot remember a time when feminist women in the West *didn't* speak up for the rights of women living under extremely oppressive regimes. The only way I and many others learned about the Taliban's horrendous practices were Western women speaking up about them decades ago. I'm not sure where you get the idea that women in the west don't speak out for other women. It is possible to speak out for multiple issues locally and globally. Many of us have been fighting for women's rights globally for decades. That doesn't negate the fight for women's - and by extension, human - rights in the West. Again, I'm Canadian, and the lack of rights women have in America is quite shocking to me, to put it mildly. I also have raised 2 daughters and have lived my life working in male-dominated fields. I'm not speaking out of naivite.
Editing to add: hyper-privileged rarely speak out on anyone's rights. Women or men. Why you would (a) equate Western women feminists with the hyper-privileged and (b) think the hyper-privileged would bother with any struggle, is difficult to understand. Calling all American feminists and/or women hyper-privileged is an ignorance of another sort.
I absolutely agree that there are some feminist organizations that do speak out for women in countries where they are far more oppressed than we are here in the West. But I would also argue that those voices aren't nearly enough. I would also argue that women in the West are often too quick to dismiss the immense privileges we enjoy here compared so many other other places on earth -- in fact, even compared to our own counties only a generation ago. I am far freer than my mother was at my age, and I'm thankful for that every day.
I'm not sure what you mean by how few rights we American have? Can you be more specific? I don't feel oppressed at all. In fact, I would argue that men have played an outsized role in helping me achieve my career goals over the years (men who asked for, and expected, absolutely nothing in return for that support, might I add).
Adding this: As a woman who has often* struggled to afford rent throughout much* of my adult life -- my struggles are nothing compared to what the women in places like Afghanistan endure, and I'm well aware of that. Regardless of any resources I lack here in the U.S., my situation would be horrendous in Afghanistan and many other countries by comparison, based solely on my gender, and so that is what I mean by hyper-privileged. By that measure, we are all hyper-privileged on the global stage.
Here is a list of some of the American feminist organizations that have ACTIVELY aided women in Afghanistan:
Feminist Majority Foundation:
Their "Campaign to Stop Gender Apartheid" raised awareness about the Taliban's treatment of women and girls.
Women for Afghan Women:
This organization operates in both Afghanistan and the US, providing direct support to women and girls through shelters, emergency resources, and advocacy.
U.S.-Afghan Women's Council:
This partnership focuses on long-term support
Vital Voices:
This organization invests in women leaders globally, including those in Afghanistan
Afghan Women's Fund:
This organization focuses on empowering women and girls
Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS):
GIWPS examines the roles of women in peace and economic development in Afghanistan
Women for Women International:
This organization has supported over 127,000 women in Afghanistan since 2002
Why don't they dress up in burkas? More to the point.