The 'Godmother' Of Egyptian Feminism Has Died: Remembering Nawal El Saadawi

After decades of fighting the patriarchy – enduring death threats, censorship, exile and imprisonment – Nawal El Saadawi died of natural causes in Cairo on March 21, outliving the two Egyptian presidents who tried to silence her: her jailor, Anwar Sadat and her censor, Hosni Mubarak. She was 89.

El Saadawi was the loudest voice for women's rights in the Arab world. Modern Egyptian feminists like journalist Mona Eltahawy consider her the "godmother" of the current feminist revolution galvanizing in Egypt.

"She is a reminder that feminism is indigenous to the region and not something we need to import," says Eltahawy, author of the newsletter, Feminist Giant. "Her fight against patriarchy will live on."