The Power of Disappointment in Resistance

Against the dominant perception of disappointment as an inward-oriented emotion, I explore the political power of disappointment in resistance. Specifically, I examine how resisters can engage with disappointment in a politically productive manner and keep open a space of political possibility in the face of failure. I focus on the disappointment of marginalized groups within resistance, such as women, whose concerns are often neglected within the overall goals of the movement. I argue that marginalized resisters’ disappointment can serve as an important critical tool. It can mobilize new forms of resistance against the failures and oppressive attitudes within the resistance movement and thus strengthen its power and goals. I illustrate the political power of disappointment on the example of Operation Anti Sexual Harassment and Assault (OpAntiSH), a feminist activist group that formed in the wake of the 2011 Egyptian Revolution against mass sexual assaults of women protesters.