University of Texas Rio Grande Valley ScholarWorks @ UTRGV UTB/UTPA Electronic Theses and Dissertations Legacy Institution Collections 11-2013 The status of women and the Arab Spring Karen Pimentel The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.utrgv.edu/leg_etd Part of the Arabic Studies Commons, and the Islamic Studies Commons Recommended Citation Pimentel, Karen, "The status of women and the Arab Spring" (2013). UTB/UTPA Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 51. https://scholarworks.utrgv.edu/leg_etd/51 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Legacy Institution Collections at ScholarWorks @ UTRGV. It has been accepted for inclusion in UTB/UTPA Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks @ UTRGV. For more information, please contact
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[email protected]. THE STATUS OF WOMEN AND THE ARAB SPRING A THESIS PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE FACULTY OF THE COLLEGE OF LIBERAL ARTS THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT BROWNSVILLE IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE MASTER OF ARTS IN INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES WITH CONCENTRATION IN SOCIOLOGY BY KAREN PIMENTEL NOVEMBER 2013 THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT BROWNSVILLE The Status of Women and the Arab Spring By: Karen Pimentel Faculty Advisor: Luis Rodriguez-Abad, Ph.D. Professor of Sociology Behavioral Sciences Department Abstract: The social movement known as the Arab Spring brings together various groups, including educated women, demanding the overthrow of decades-old dictatorial regimes. It begins in Tunisia and then extends to neighboring Arab- speaking countries of North Africa, Egypt and Libya. Similar social, cultural, and economic conditions are conducive to the unfolding of a single social movement across national borders.