Soraya Post

Not only is Soraya Post the first Romani woman in Swedish history to be chosen as a candidate for a political party, but she is also the European Parliament’s first member to be elected on the basis of a feminist platform. Post is a longtime human rights advocate for both women and Romani people in Sweden and across Europe. A member of the growing Sweden Feminist Initiative Party, she won a seat in the European Parliament in the elections that took place in May 2014. Post rallied voters with the slogan, “Out with racists and in with feminists,” in an effort to challenge the rise of far-right extremists across Europe and promote awareness of the feminist perspective in Sweden. Since, she has sought to build an inclusive gender policy under the belief that domestic violence is Europe’s greatest security problem. Post is a specialist and expert in everything from the European Commission to the County Administrative Board of Stockholm and serves as the president of the International Romani Women’s Network (IRWN).