Rubina Saigol (died 27 August 2021) was a Pakistani

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

scholar, educationalist and women's rights activist. She authored and edited several books and papers in English and Urdu. Her scholarly work explored the themes of gender, education, nationalism, the state, ethnicity, religious radicalism, terrorism, feminism and human rights. She was a senior member of Women Action Forum and co founder of Ajoka Theatre Group.

Education

Saigol held a PhD in education from

University of Rochester The University of Rochester (U of R, UR, or U of Rochester) is a private research university in Rochester, New York. The university grants undergraduate and graduate degrees, including doctoral and professional degrees. The University of Roc ...

and her MA in Development Psychology from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

. Her early education was from

Kinnaird College for Women University The Kinnaird College for Women (KCW) is a university located in Lahore, Pakistan. It is a women's liberal arts university. Kinnaird was established in 1913 by the Zenana Bible and Medical Mission. In 1919, Presbyterian Mission Church and the Ch ...

Books and publications

Saigol authored various books on the themes of gender, nationalism, identity. Her book ‘The Pakistan Project: A Feminist Perspective on Nation & Identity’, examines ‘the unstable genealogy of this idea of Pakistan from Sir Syed Ahmed Khan and M.A. Jinnah to Zia ul-Haq, through a gendered lens thus exposing its many, often contradictory, premises and assumptions.’ Her scholarly work has appeared in various national and international research journals. Dr. Saigol's publications span diverse themes, ranging from feminism, to gender within educational discourse, to nationalism and counter terrorism. Her work has also been quoted extensively in both scholarly and journalistic publications. Her publications on gender and feminism in Pakistan is recommended as mandatory reading for multiple undergraduate and graduate courses by the Higher Education Commission (HEC) in Pakistan.

Feminist struggle

Dr. Saigol was one of the pioneering members of the

Women's Action Forum Women's Action Forum (WAF) is a women's rights organization in Pakistan. History Women's Action Forum (WAF) was established in Karachi in September, 1981Herald
an
The News on Sunday
among others. Her journalistic pieces in these publications are almost exclusively focused on themes related to Pakistani women. She was also a member of the advisory board of Simrogh, a Pakistan-based non profit focused on women's rights.

Personal life

Saigol died from COVID-19 in 2021 at the age of 66.https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/the-woman-who-exposed-the-rot-in-pakistans-education-system/articleshow/85920931.cms

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saigol, Rubina Year of birth missing 2021 deaths University of Rochester alumni Columbia University alumni Kinnaird College for Women University alumni Pakistani feminist writers Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in Pakistan