Icons of gender justice

History is full of extraordinary women, but their stories are seldomly told. In Asia as elsewhere the icons of political and social struggles that are talked about in school or media are overwhelmingly male. Nonetheless, there are also many women who accomplished outstanding achievements and made great sacrifices for their beliefs, often against high odds. In many cases these women inspired others and made a long-lasting impact on their societies.

Therefore, the team of the FES Gender Justice Hub Asia (GEHA), together with the regional communications team, and the gender coordinators of the FES offices in the region, set out to identify and tell the stories of some of these Asian icons of gender justice. With this anthology of graphic short stories, we want to share their inspiring messages beyond the borders of the countries we work in and show how manifold the roots of feminism and gender equality are in the Asia and Pacific region.

The women whose stories are told are diverse in many aspects: age, class, race, education, and upbringing. Some used their privileged position in society to drive change towards social justice, while others had to fight hard to create space for themselves in the first place. But they all have one thing in common: determination to change the lives of women and girls for the better, and with this they paved the way for women’s rights in Asia.