All Eyes on Sudan: How Women Fueled #SudanUprising

The famous photograph capturing Nobel Peace Prize Winner, Alaa Salah or Sudan’s “Woman in White” standing on a car above a sea of Sudanese women undoubtedly broke the internet. Wearing a white dress and golden earrings, hand raised high like a revolutionary leader, Alaa Salah is one of thousands of Sudanese women who led the charge in overthrowing former President Omar al-Bashir’s authoritarian regime in the 2019 Sudanese Revolution. After decades of oppression and marginalization, Sudanese women took to the streets a courageous fight for equal rights, justice, and peace. Constituting 70% of total protesters, Sudanese women shattered stereotypes, reclaimed their agency, and refused to remain silent in the face of state-sanctioned gender discrimination and human rights violations. In the words of Alaa Salah—“the bullet doesn’t kill. What kills is the silence of the people.” Sudan’s movement for liberation reflects the powerful legacy of women’s resistance and leadership in both local and global communities. 

Women in Sudan bore the brunt of the regime’s brutality and oppression. Masking gender discrimination under the blanket of “Islamic” militant ideology, the al-Bashir regime reinforced conservative state discourse and behaviors while perpetuating cultural and family restrictions in society. Women in Sudan have historically lacked familial and reproductive rights, economic privileges, and social and political inclusion. Under the provisions of the public order law, women faced floggings, arrests, imprisonment, and torture for not abiding by the regime’s conservative standards of “modesty” in dress and behavior. These public order laws disproportionately victimized women from poor communities, especially those working in service sector industries. Typically having fled violence or persecution, poor women lacked the necessary financial resources to afford bail when arrested, in comparison to their affluent counterparts. 

Women in Khartoum drew on ancient Sudanese traditions to fuel the movement. In ancient Nubian kingdoms, women were queens and referred to as “Kandaghat”, or “strong women.” In Darfur, women wrote poems in support of virtues such as bravery and perseverance in times of war, and played significant social roles within their local communities. These same virtues were not lost on women in Khartoum who employed these historical roles to inspire and mobilize women from all across the region, including those who had faced similar oppression at the hands of the al-Bashir regime. 

During the Revolution, women were especially vulnerable to violence perpetrated by the ruling National Congress Party’s security forces. As women poured to the streets defiantly condemning the al-Bashir regime, security forces targeted innocent civilians and committed attacks of physical, psychological, and emotional abuse. The military government brutally victimized female protesters through instances of rape and sexual violence—a control tactic the Sudanese government has exploited for decades. Since the beginning of mass demonstrations, over 100 women human rights defenders had been subjected to arbitrary detention, and at least 35 of whom still remain behind bars. After nearly four months of demonstrations, President Omar al-Bashir was overthrown from power and replaced with a transitional paramilitary force. However, the replaced paramilitary group, known as the Rapid Response Forces,  did not protect women from the repression of the al-Bashir regime. Rather, RSF paramilitaries further targeted civilians, horrifically killing 127 and raping 70.

Despite the fatal risks many Sudanese women undertook to fuel the revolution, they remained steadfast and dedicated to the fight for justice and democracy. In the words of Hala Al-Karib, women’s rights activist— “many women would rather die in these streets than go home to more repression, this included daughters of high figures in the ruling regime.” By virtue of strategic organizing, mobilization, and digital dissent, all eyes were on Sudan. 

Subjugation, harassment, and violence have no place in democracy. In order for democracies to be safe, women must have power—power in rights, leadership, and decision-making authority. As the Sudanese Revolution clearly demonstrates, women of color are disproportionately imperiled by global crises. Leadership in international affairs and peacekeeping efforts must reflect this reality, and center the narratives of women who have directly suffered under authoritarian regimes. Until Sudanese women are granted a voice in the international arena, they will remain leaders in their local communities and trailblazers for progressive change and liberation.