Decolonizing gender mainstreaming in ‘Woman, Life, Freedom’ feminist activism

This chapter examines the Woman, Life, Freedom (WLF) uprising in Iran as a decolonial feminist movement resisting patriarchal oppression, colonial control, and Western-centric notions of gender justice. I explore how WLF reframes gender justice and its potential to decolonize gender mainstreaming. I argue that WLF positions gender as an indispensable force for broader social justice and fosters a transnational solidarity movement that transcends national borders. By centring grassroots activism and intersectional solidarity, it challenges top-down approaches and calls for radical, systemic change over incremental reform. It also disrupts the idea that WLF's core message is confined to a single nation. This analysis highlights how feminist movements in the Global South offer a blueprint for decolonizing gender discourses, including gender mainstreaming.