Egyptian Women March For Equal Rights and Get Hit and Groped

[Liquorice]

CAIRO – A protest by hundreds of Egyptian women demanding equal rights and an end to sexual harassment turned violent Tuesday when crowds of men heckled and shoved the demonstrators, telling them to go home where they belong.

The women — some in headscarves and flowing robes, others in jeans — had marched to Cairo's central Tahrir Square to celebrate International Women's Day. But crowds of men soon outnumbered them and chased them out.

"They said that our role was to stay home and raise presidents, not to run for president," said Farida Helmy, a 24-year old journalist
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110308/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_egypt_women_s_protest

I hadn't seen this story posted yet. I hope it's not a dupe. I am furious and sad for the women of Egypt.

[Matariki]

1. I hope that encourages them to come out in larger numbers.

Their men need to be taught.

[Liquorice]

3. I find it very interesting that their demonstration and the attacks

on them have received such little coverage. It seems like people here do not particularly care about this story either.

[femrap]

4. The story about the planned

'Million Woman March' was on the top 10 news of Yahoo.

But I hadn't heard that the women were beaten. F*cking males...seriously, these dudes know oppression. They confront it as bad and then turn around and treat their sisters with disdain and violence.

The women have to stand strong. The males will not give up power willingly.

Just like Spain after Franco died. Many were simply menaces to women.

[niyad]

6. democracy now just now mentioned the march

[femrap]

10. I sure Amy would be

on the story. It just kills me that these Egyptian men are demanding freedom and democracy....and then crack women's heads for wanting the same thing.

F*ck Patriarchy.

[Liquorice]

8. I'm glad it was on the top 10 on yahoo. There is such little outrage about

what happened to those women today. I feel really bad for them. I knew when the Egyptian revolution happened that the women who took part would think they would get their freedom too. And I feared the same men they marched alongside in the revolution would turn on them later. And now it has happened. It's just so awful. I wish there was some international movement to support those women the way the Egyptians were supported during their revolution.

[SoCalDem]

2. Unfortunately for them, they have one foot in each camp

so I don't see much success for them. When 99% of them show up in jeans, they might be taken more seriously, and when they start divorcing the tyrannical men they live with, who endorse the hyping of the male children, while treating the female children as servants and chattel, they may gain even more traction.

[niyad]

5. are you familiar with the divorce laws in egypt?

[Kurovski]

7. I heard that 8 out of ten women report being groped.

WTF?

[RainDog]

9. This happened to the suffragettes in the U.S., too, after WWI

They were also sent to prison.

But cultures can and do change quickly - once people have legal power to stop abuse.

The police in Egypt need to start arresting the men who are violating these women - an acknowledgment that these women are protected by law.

Otherwise, a woman or two may have to kill some of these piggish men in self defense - and if one or two of them do kill some asshole, well, that's why laws exist to protect people in civilized nations. I hope it doesn't come to that but I also hope these women do not back down.

[CommonSensePLZ]

11. -facepalm- @ the men involved