Politics

Muslim grrls, part II

In hushed tones, the topic of divorce, or khula, was discussed. How would it happen? Would he allow it? Aunt Amina’s marriage contract, signed years ago, had been drafted by an old imam, who had not thought to add a clause allowing her to petition for divorce. I did not understand the impute of the discussions then. I did know that I had never heard of divorce; the women around me, every single one, were either too young to be married or awaiting marriage or married with broods of children.

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Muslim grrls, part I

Four or five years ago, the term Sharia, which for Muslims denotes Islamic law, meant scant little to Americans. As I write this in the fall of 2010, America’s perceptions of Islam and Muslims have changed markedly. A few months from now, when Oklahoma voters march to the polls, they will face “question 755” on their ballots. Born out of the “Save Our State” constitutional amendment passed by the Oklahoma legislature earlier this year, question 755 will implore voters to forbid courts from using international law or Sharia law in their decisions.

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Little hijabi women: A questionable phenomenon

Baber Ibrahim, in his Guardian piece, “This Trend of Young Muslim Girls Wearing the Hijab is Disturbing,” propagates a hodgepodge of observations and speculations about why there is apparently a visible increase in the number of little girls (under the age of ten) donning the hijab. He claims that wearing one at this age leads to the sexualization of girls, which runs opposite the goal of observing modesty and humility. I would call that claim fair only because of the hegemonic sexualized worldview of typically everything related to gender issues in Islam.

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Looking at the mother of a nation

When discussing prominent Pakistani women, references are usually made to former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, human rights activists Asma Jahangir and Hina Jilani, or even entertainers like Zeba Bakhtiar and Nazia Hassan. Pakistani women like Mukhtaran Mai or Asia Bibi have also rightly garnered media attention for different reasons. Fatima Jinnah, sister and confidante of the founder of modern day Pakistan Mohammed Ali Jinnah, is not as often referenced by western media.

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Convert to Islam, and insanity ensues

Lauren Booth is a human rights activist, a British journalist working for Iran’s state channel PressTV, and half-sister of Tony Blair’s wife Cherie Booth. She is also Muslim, and caused a gasping uproar in the British press when she converted to Islam less than a month ago, after having a spiritual experience while at the tomb of Fatimah Masumeh in the Shi’ite holy city of Qom.

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Where are the moderate Americans?

Michael: Hi Zeba. The mid-term elections are over and, as predicted, the Park 51 controversy is also finished. But now it’s time to turn to new controversies. The latest has to do with a new version of “the clash of civilizations.” This time, however, the battlefield is a university swimming pool. Apparently, George Washington University’s decision to grant Muslim women a “women-only” hour at the Lerner Health and Wellness Center reflects some civilizational divide between “America” and “Islam.”

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Me and the feminists

I was 23 years old and I was interviewing an Egyptian feminist who had just taken over as editor-in-chief of a women’s magazine of the cooking-and-fashion variety, which she had vowed to turn into the go-to magazine for women’s rights. I was excited to meet her because she was one of the real-life feminists that my recently returned-to-Egypt self loved to meet to help me turn theory into action. Ever since I’d discovered feminist journals on the bookshelves at my university in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, at the age of 19, I’d devoured all I could of the theory.

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Out of the closet and into public life

Debates in the Muslim world regarding the LBGT community are rare, if not non-existent. However, Indonesia’s community has been raising its profile lately. With a legal system that does not criminalize homosexuality, the LBGT community may seem to face fewer challenges than communities in other countries.

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No need to go undercover to get to know Muslims

I appreciate Cassidy Herrington stepping out of her comfort zone, or as she said it, “climbing out of [the placating, soothing] “lap” of safety, to wear a hijab for a month. She gets credit for making a sincere effort to understand Islam and Muslims by going literally “under cover” for a month donning the hijab. I sincerely applaud this undertaking.

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Flesh and the face veil: NiqaBitch

The story of NiqaBitch’s tongue in cheek protest has taken over France and other attentive circles. “NiqaBitch” refers to a duo who posted a controversial video showing two women walking about Paris in face veils paired with black mini-shorts and high heels. The short clip was intended as a demonstration against France’s recent legislation banning the niqab (burqa) in public places.

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