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Women helped spark the Arab Spring protests in several countries and actively participated in all of them. The demonstrations were based on the issues of freedom from tyranny and patriotism, not religious ones. Bahrain's uprising has had some religious influence because many protesters are Shi'ites angry about the Sunni monarchy's power and discrimination against Shi'ites. However, the protests promoted democracy and the end of discrimination rather than a religious agenda. Many women's rights activists hoped the revolutions would lead to more democracy and thereby more women's rights. However, they did not explicitly push for women's rights during any of the demonstrations.

Starting the protests

Women in Tahrir Square protest the rule of Hosni Mubarak

Individual women had played key roles in starting the protests. In Tunisia, policewoman Fedia Hamdi's confiscation of Mohamed Bouazizi's street vending wares led him to set himself on fire in protest. This incident provoked protests in his hometown of Sidi Bouzid and eventually spread throughout the country to become the Tunisian Revolution. His family members and outside observers have hypothesized that Hamdi's gender compounded his embarrassment and frustration and drove him to the point of immolating himself. As the protests spread, blogger Lina Ben Mhenni reported from the rural areas where the protests started, including covering the security forces' attack on protesters in Kasserine. Her work provided vital information to other Tunisian activists and brought the events there to the world's attention.

In Egypt, activist Asmaa Mahfouz posted a video urging Egyptians to protest the regime of Hosni Mubarak in Tahrir Square on January 25, National Police Day. Her video went viral and the January 25 protests drew a large crowd, setting off the 2011 Egyptian Revolution. Yemeni activist Tawakkol Karman organized protests and student rallies against the rule of Ali Abdullah Saleh, which culminated in the 2011 Yemeni revolution and the abdication of President Saleh. Yemenis referred to her as the "Mother of the Revolution" and she was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize in 2011. Libyan human rights lawyer Salwa Bughaigis helped organize the "Day of Rage" protests on February 17, 2011. Those protests drove the Libyan army out of Benghazi, which marked a turning point in the Libyan Revolution.

During the protests

Thousands of women of all ages, classes, and religions participated in the protests in every country. When the police became unable to provide neighborhood security, women organized their own street patrols and guarded each others' tents. Women in Libya smuggled medicine and weapons and gathered intelligence for the rebels as the protests turned into civil war.

In Egypt, a country notorious for high levels of sexual harassment, male protesters treated the female protesters respectfully. On the other hand, male protesters in Bahrain have formed human chains to block women from taking part, and in Yemen's Change Square a rope divided the men and women. The women were subject to the same or worse treatment as the male protesters, including being "harassed, tortured, shot by snipers, and teargassed." Women who were imprisoned were threatened with sexual violence or subject to virginity tests, and in Libya there were reports of mass rape committed by government mercenaries.