At the time of the Constitutional Revolution of 1906, Iran was a society organized on precepts that for centuries has defined the subordinate position of women as the natural order of things. The nascent civil society faced the issue of women mostly as a problem between traditionalism and modernism. But as the moderns grew in…
Tag: Women Leaders
‘I Was Iran’s Last Woman Minister’
In an interview with the BBC World Service, Mahnaz Afkhami discusses her role as Minister of Women’s Affairs in Iran, Farrokhroo Parsa, and the future of women in Iran. “I have no doubt that women are going to win…history is moving in a different direction,” says Afkhami.
Women Inspiring Women
Mahnaz Afkhami is interviewed by Forbes, where she speaks about women’s rights in Iran and across the Islamic world. The interview covers myriad topics including Iran’s One Million Signatures Campaign, the push to reform family laws, and activism in Iran. “It is impossible to impose an archaic form of government on an aware and connected…
Leadership and Learning Societies
Most of us live in societies that are hierarchically organized and command-oriented. The locus of command may be home, community, the political arena, or the economy. The structure of command nurtures and is nurtured by a culture of obedience that at once sustains and camouflages a pecking order by producing a system of authority. The…
At the Crossroads of Tradition & Modernity: Personal Reflection
I have spent most of my adult life defending and promoting women’s human rights. I came to this field through English literature, largely innocent of theories of feminism. By the time I encountered these theories formally in the 1970s as secretary general of the Women’s Organization of Iran (WOI), I had already experienced their essence…