An Australian boxer talks to Maria Khwaja Bazi about being a Muslim woman and someone from an ethnic background. Bianca “Bam Bam” Elmir is dressed in a sky blue shirt, squished on a Skype screen on an early morning in Melbourne. Although she is half a world away, her energy…
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One thousand people. Enough to pack a good sized sports arena. That is how many people died when the Rana Plaza garment factory in Bangladesh collapsed, and while some point the damning finger at the deplorable working conditions in developing countries, if you dig deeper, you realize the real culprit…
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When a group of talented female musicians came together in Pakistan to play in the Nescafe Basement Series, Season 4, their performance was unlike anything an audience in Pakistan–or globally–had ever seen. Covering John Newman’s ‘Love Me Again’, this talented ensemble included a violinist, pianist, and guitarists perfectly complemented by musicians on…
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It’s been a little less than three weeks since Pokémon Go took over the world. Within days of its U.S. release the app garnered 7.5 million downloads making $1.6 million in daily revenue. Although reviews have been mixed, the game has been praised for its ability to help those with…
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Currently, 3.5 billion people are living in cities, while the rest are residing in the countryside. However, by the year 2050, over 75% of the world’s population will be residing in cities1. This growth does not come without challenges. Lack of resources, natural disasters, and political and economical circumstances are…
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As a personal trainer and group fitness instructor, I’ve seen the gamut of what women will wear to work out, ranging from their old corporate cotton T-shirts and oversized performance shirts and pants, to form-fitting athletic wear (think Lululemon, Athleta and Bandier to name a few). Recently, I was given…
Read MoreI’ve often heard Muslims describe the holy month of Ramadan as an ‘iman [i.e. faith] boost’ – as though it were some kind of spiritual energy drink. A whole month, in other words, to recharge one’s spiritual batteries. In busy modern lives, Ramadan is an opportunity to focus on getting…
Read MoreAs a Muslim woman of South Asian descent, now living in the U.S., I have to admit that I have a certain curiosity about how Muslim women live in other parts of the world. I long to know others like me – yet unlike me: do they go through the…
Read More“Rumble, young man, rumble.” Muhammad Ali, three-time world heavyweight boxing champion, lost his final fight to Parkinson’s on June 3, at the age of 74. Ali died at a Phoenix-area hospital, where he had undergone treatment over a span of five days for respiratory complications. According to family spokesperson, Bob…
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altMuslimah’s Firdaus Arastu recently sat down with Zarqa Nawaz to discuss her memoir, Laughing All the Way to the Mosque. An excerpt from the book follows the interview. How would you summarize the book to an American audience? I would say this is a funny, happy, uplifting story about growing…
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