The Arab Spring may have started a revolution, but it will fail unless women in the Middle East and North Africa overthrow “dictatorship in the home,” according to Egyptian journalist and author Mona Eltahawy.

That’s the argument Eltahawy makes in her provocative new book, “Headscarves and Hymens,” which examines misogyny, sexuality and the role of women in the Arab world.

Even after the Arab Spring uprisings overthrew dictators and authoritarian governments, “absolutely nothing has improved for women in the Middle East and North Africa,” Eltahawy told CTV’s Canada AM Monday.

“Unless we recognize gender equality is absolutely necessary, that political revolution will fail,” she said.

Eltahawy, an outspoken feminist, gained prominence during the Egyptian Revolution of 2011 when she started appearing on major U.S., Canadian and international television networks as a commentator. She is prolific on Twitter and has written about her own struggles with her faith, culture and feminism, including her decision to stop wearing a headscarf.

For her book, Eltahawy travelled across Arab nations and spoke to both women and men about gender issues. Although the political revolution has emboldened women and young girls to demand freedom, they are still systematically oppressed by a patriarchal culture, Eltahawy said.

She hopes that “Headscarves and Hymens” will allow women in Egypt, Tunisia, Lebanon and elsewhere to take “the revolution home and say no to dictatorship in the home.”

“Overthrow the Mubarak in the bedroom and the Mubarak in our minds,” she said, referring to ousted Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak.

In her book and other writings, Eltahawy cites horrifying examples of misogyny and violence against women, from child brides in Yemen to victims of genital mutilation in Egypt and other parts of Africa. Her controversial 2012 essay about Arab men’s attitudes toward women, titled “Why do they hate us?” was denounced by many critics who said she was fuelling Islamophobia in the West and wrongly presuming to speak for all Muslim women.

And some have criticized “Headscarves and Hymens” for being more of a long rant than a well-researched argument. 

“I’m quite a polarizing figure,” Eltahawy told Canada AM. 

She said she fully expects “pushback” on her book, but also has a core group of supporters who understand and agree with her views.

Eltahawy also said that she hopes her words will eventually resonate will women around the world. 

“I believe we are going through a global feminist movement.”