“Saving” Muslim Women: Feminism, U.S. Policy and the War on Terror

The author suggests the powerful media portrayal of the oppressed Muslim woman, as signified by her veiled body and her refusal or presumed inability to speak for herself, has long been a tool by which violence is justified in the name of her salvation. Citing American policy in Afghanistan, the article discusses the past thirty years as a cogent example to examine the ways in which women’s rights are co-opted and politicized to morally justify violent intervention.