State sponsored feminism in Mohammed bin Salman’s Saudi Arabia
Files
Pardee Honors Undergraduate Thesis
Date
2024-05-01
DOI
Authors
Bilan-Cooper, Ashari
Version
OA Version
Citation
Abstract
This thesis is structured as follows. First, I will begin by exploring the literature on state-led feminism and its relationship to reform in authoritarian settings. Then, I will contextualize these findings in the case of Saudi Arabia before and after MBS came to power. This comparison will provide a comprehensive foundation of women’s rights in Saudi Arabia. The following sections will explore the impact of state-led educational and economic reforms on women in greater detail. Supported by literature on political liberalization, I will then introduce the limitations of political reform in Saudi Arabia and how censorship in the digital age is impeding political empowerment for women. The final section will combine critical findings from the four sections discussed, education, economic opportunity, political empowerment, and technology, to reveal that MBS’s reform ambitions disguise state-enforced repressive tactics that minimize women’s full integration and mobilization in society.