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SPEAKER_03: Hello, from Wonder Media Network, I'm Melton Burak. I'm the host and producer of the podcast, SESTA. We aim to harness the power of arts and culture to foster conversation and build peace in Cyprus. I'll be your guest host for this month of Womanika. This month, we're highlighting peace builders. In times of conflict, these women have stepped in, bringing their creativity and insight to help facilitate peace across the globe. Today, we're talking about one of the most important feminists in the Arab world. But for years, her name has been left out of the history books. Let's talk about Daria Shafik. Daria Shafik was born in 1908 into a household of strong women. She grew up in a middle-class Muslim home that looked out over the Nile. Daria went to an elementary school run by French missionaries. But when she graduated, she realized that girls weren't allowed to pursue any further education. That was no problem for Daria. It turned out she didn't need a teacher. She studied and took the exams herself. She earned some of the top scores in Egypt, much to the embarrassment of those teachers who refused her a seat in their classes. Daria's academic skills caught the attention of Hoda El-Sharavi, an upper-class woman who'd created the Egyptian Feminist Union. Hoda helped Daria get a government scholarship to study philosophy at the Sorbonne in Paris. When Daria was 26 years old and home in Egypt for the summer, she decided to do something no Muslim woman had done before. She entered the Miss Egypt Beauty Competition. The public was scandalized, but Daria was determined. She'd been working hard on building up her intellectual side, which she saw as masculine. And this was a chance to express her feminine side. Out of 50 contestants and as many as 12 hours of walking and performing, Daria earned the spot as first runner-up. After the pageant, she returned to her intellectual pursuits. In 1940, she earned her PhD. She assumed she was a shoo-in to become a professor. It was her greatest dream. But Egypt's National University refused her a position. Daria's feminine modernity and her middle-class status proved to be too much for the dean. Daria managed to find her way into public life regardless. In 1948, she founded Daughter of the Nile, a feminist journal and organization. Their goal, educating and organizing all women, no matter their social status. By the 1950s, Egypt was embroiled in protests and unrest. Egypt was fighting for independence from British rule, and Daria's goals became more political. She decided protesting in the streets might help move the needle. On February 19th, 1951, Daria gathered a crowd of 1,500 women at the American University of Cairo. She called it a feminist congress, but it was more than just a gathering. It was an army. They marched from the American University in Cairo along the main street. As one, they stormed into the Egyptian Parliament building. For more than four hours, Daria and her comrades demonstrated loudly and shut down the legislature. She shouted to the room of shocked man. We are here by the force of our rights. Our meeting today is not a congress, but a parliament, a true one that a women. This army of women didn't relent until the politicians agreed to one of their demands, the right to women to vote and hold office. In reality, that right wouldn't be granted for another six years. Life for Egyptian women went back to the way it had been for years. So Daria and her union continued organizing women and providing educational and financial services, and they didn't stop their political action. In 1952, Daria led a paramilitary arm of the daughter of the Nile to the Barclays bank. Armed and uniformed, the group surrounded the building and shut it down. It was a symbol of colonialist rule. Despite the uniforms, the protest was peaceful. The crowd they attracted was not. When the Egyptian monarchy fell, Daria hoped it would ignite a renaissance for women. But even as Egypt won its independence, women's rights remained limited. In 1954, Daria began her most radical stand for women's rights. She went on a hunger strike. Daria was taking a stand. The committee to write Egypt's new constitution included exactly zero women. She did not want to be governed by a document created without representation. After 10 days, Daria was hospitalized. She'd earned attention from activists around the world, and the acting Egyptian president was feeling the pressure. He agreed that women should be given full political rights. But soon, Gamal Nasser took power in Egypt. And once again, Daria's hopes for a feminist rebirth in Egypt were dashed. Nasser saw Daria as a threat. He put her under house arrest, called her a traitor, and turned her allies against her. Daria was a woman who had so much fight in her. And it might seem a bit odd that we're talking about someone like her during a month dedicated to peace builders. But I think women like Daria challenge our ideas on what it means to make peace in a good way. Peace isn't settling or accepting injustices. Peace is about equality and fairness. And often, you can only ever achieve that if you're willing to actually fight for it. Daria was willing to fight for it, but the constant struggle took its toll. After years of social isolation, she died by suicide in 1975. All month, we're talking about peace builders. For more information, find us on Facebook and Instagram at Womanika Podcast. Special thanks to co-creators, Jenny and Liz Kaplan, for having me as a guest host. Talk to you tomorrow.
