Our Htamein, Our Flag, Our Victory: The Role of Young Women in Myanmar’s Spring Revolution

Abstract

Since the early days of the 2021 Spring Revolution, young women have been at the center of many of the protests against Myanmar's military coup. Women in Myanmar are traditionally viewed as mothers, carers, and wives whose roles mostly belong to the domestic sphere. However, the political landscape shift since the 1 February 2021 coup has galvanized young women to the forefront of the pro-democracy movement, finding new and creative ways to demand an end to both the military dictatorship and the patriarchy. This article examines the role of young women within Myanmar's Spring Revolution and how this upends traditional views of women as passive and domestic carers. It draws on postcolonial and intersectional theories that question assumptions of women's uniform (disadvantaged) position and asks how gender intersects with age, race, and class to mediate social status. This article also reflects on some of the broader shifts in gendered and generational roles and identities that have taken place in Myanmar over the last ten years, which provide possibilities for solidarity and positive change in a future federal democratic union.