Syrian Women in Lebanon and Turkey

Abstract

This thesis explores the impact of war and displacement on the civic participation and feminist activism of Syrian women. Relying on feminist methodologies that prioritize women's experiences and perspectives and theories of intersectionality and multiple critique (Cooke 2001), combined with Derrida's notion of hostipitality (2000), it demonstrates the intersectional diversity of civically engaged Syrian women in Lebanon and Turkey during the period (2011-2018). Additionally, it reveals how these women challenge various political and social limitations placed on their civic activism by both host societies and their own communities. In doing so, this thesis critically addresses the homogenizing and victimizing narratives that have dominated post-2011 research on Syrian refugee women, and opens up possibilities to reframe perceptions of them in the post war context, showcasing their strength and resilience rather than portraying them as mere victims in conflict situations.<br /> The thesis employs ethnographic methods to conduct 80 in-depth, semi-structured interviews with Syrian women, men, and experts in Lebanon and Turkey in 2018. Using a comparative case study approach, it examines the differing official policy responses of the Lebanese and Turkish governments to the Syrian refugee crisis and assesses their impact on the civic engagement of Syrian women. The analysis reveals an overall increase in civic participation among interviewed Syrian women after the war, along with a more nuanced understanding of civil society organizations (CSOs) and their roles. Additionally, the intersectional lens identifies several key social categories that shape the civic participation of Syrian women in Lebanon and Turkey. These categories include gender, marital status, ethnic or national identity, socioeconomic status, education, religion, residency status, and urban or rural background. Importantly, these categories were not predetermined; they emerged through an inductive analysis of the collected data.<br /> Despite their diverse identities and varying circumstances of displacement in different host environments, this thesis clarifies how these contexts interact with Syrian women's identities in distinct ways, resulting in different forms of civic activism. For example, in Lebanon, higher levels of host 'hostipitality' led to a more restricted and elitist form of activism, primarily driven by displaced Syrian women from educated, urban, upper socioeconomic backgrounds who had the resources to navigate the limitations they faced. In contrast, Turkey, which provided a less hostile environment for Syrians and Islamic organisations, fostered a more grassroots form of Syrian activism, prominently featuring young women from lesser-privileged backgrounds as well as Islamist Syrian women.<br /> The narratives of the interviewed Syrian women presented in the thesis also illustrate how their civic activism since 2011 has empowered them, positively impacting their private lives and providing them with opportunities to challenge the discrimination they face from their hosts. Furthermore, findings presented in this thesis on the growth and diversity of Syrian women's feminist activism and awareness since 2011 provide a valuable context for understanding current local debates regarding Syrian women's roles following Syria's recent liberation from over 50 years of Asad rule and Baathist policies which placed limitations on feminist activism in Syria. Another key contribution of this thesis is its theoretical framework and combined use of hostipitality, intersectionality, and multiple critique. The analysis demonstrates that combining these concepts is particularly beneficial when studying Arab women in conflict and hosting contexts, as collectively they provide a more comprehensive understanding of identity. Together, these concepts not only emphasise the significance of identity in shaping host policies and influencing the experiences of refugees in hosting contexts. They also allow us to move from a more passive understanding of Arab women's intersectional identities to a more dynamic one that captures acts of resistance.