Change begins in the bedroom— controversial, but true. Since the Arab Spring in 2011, there has been an increase in discourse over a sexual revolution and a call for women’s rights. Whether it’s women being arrested for “inciting debauchery”, the prevalence of female genital mutilation (FGM), a lack of sexual education and health, or Egypt’s rife sexual harassment rates, it is becoming more and more evident that Egypt needs a sexual revolution. The term, ‘sexual revolution’, is commonly used to refer to the movement of sexual liberation in the West during the 1960s. During this period, there was a shift in attitudes towards traditional sexual morality; this included attitudes towards premarital, extramarital, and homosexual relations, pornography, sex education, birth control, and other related topics. However, as we all know, Egypt is not a Western country, nor should it have to be, to be able to achieve a sexual revolution. Instead, we must look at a sexual revolution in Egypt through a lens appropriate to its historical, religious, and cultural context. The pillars of this sexual revolution, must lie fundamentally in the establishment of proper sexual education and expression, in order…
