Skip to main content
Work with the NEU
Few, other than feminists, take up the cause of the poorest
Radical feminist BAZILE paints a picture of life in Senegal, where class, patriarchy and religion act to keep women in a state of subordination
[Diopson / Creative Commons]

BY NOW we ought to have elected our new president — but this has not happened. President Macky Sall has delayed the elections which had been due to take place in February, sparking outcry. During this crisis, we have seen shameful images of uniformed members of our defence and security forces attacking women. 

Absa Hane, a journalist, was arrested while working; her male colleagues untroubled. Another woman, supposedly a protester, was manhandled into the back of a black pick-up truck, filmed by mobile phones. In these uncertain times more than ever, the condition of women is a feminist concern. 

Nothing can ever be taken for granted, not democracy… certainly not women’s rights. It only takes political crises for rights to be undermined, trampled on or withdrawn. 

The 95th Anniversary Appeal
Support the Morning Star
You have reached the free limit.
Subscribe to continue reading.
Similar stories
Miguel Bruna
International Women’s Day 2026 / 7 March 2026
7 March 2026

Women’s fight against violence and legal erosion is central to building a democratic and just Iraq, says Dr SALMA SAADAWI

Women's rights campaigners in Westminster, London after taking part in a march from the Royal Courts of Justice calling for decriminalisation of abortion, June 17, 2023
International Women's Day 2026 / 7 March 2026
7 March 2026

Professor MARY DAVIS argues that feminism has been hollowed out by liberal co-option – and only a revival of socialist, class-based politics can restore International Working Women’s Day’s original, radical purpose

Jeffrey Epstein
International Women’s Day 2026 / 7 March 2026
7 March 2026

The legacy of socialist feminists such as Alexandra Kollontai challenges us today to confront an uncomfortable truth: framing prostitution as empowerment lets the abusers of the Epstein class off the hook, warns HELEN O’CONNOR