TAPESTRY

T apestry traces the evolution of women’s struggles throughout Pakistan’s socio-political history. It brings to the younger generation the heritage of the brave women and their courageous movements as they fought against repression and social discrimination to achieve the rights and space we enjoy today. The book establishes the continuity of past struggles with those of today by building an understanding of their strategies as they evolved. The dominant strategic trends are referred to as ‘Strands’. Seven have been identifed and analyzed to improve our understanding of the ways women have modified their use of collective agency to match the political environment. Tapestry presents Pakistan’s political history as the main context against which women’s collective actions and the resultant reforms are presented. Close-ups of individual women are included to deepen the reader’s understanding of womens’ lives and the resistance they faced. These vignettes complement the description of the larger trends with the realities faced by individuals on the ground. Although not a thorough documentation of all the women and their movements, this book serves to introduce how women of different eras in Pakistan’s history dealt with their own collective issues while building a base for the women of today.