A journalist writing an article about Muslim feminism recently asked me what I thought about secular Egyptian Aliaa Magda Elmahdy and her performance art, which involved menstruating and defecating on an ISIS flag, and the broader tactics of FEMEN, whose mostly non-Muslim members have bared their breasts to protest the…
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It’s easy to brush off popular culture as a separate and contained sphere of life, but look no further than the latest issue of TIME Magazine to be reminded of just how completely false any such notion really is. On the cover of the annual “100 Most Influential” article is none other than Beyonce. In her underwear. Who wrote her endorsement? Sheryl Sandberg.
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Many of you may have read this incendiary piece by Arab-American writer Randa Jarrar that appeared on Salon this week, condemning white women who belly dance. It’s part of a series of essays by feminists of color curated by Twitterati darling Roxane Gay—and if you’re not following her, remedy that, because her reputation for 140-character wit is well earned.
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Omenya Ayad’s arguments in her article, “Women Leading Men’s Prayer: Defying Inequality or Proving Insecurity,” are seriously flawed.
Read MoreThe depiction of women in the media has been the topic of countless articles; deliberators have filled many pages of text since the first person flipped on their television set and saw June Cleaver vacuuming in pearls. Some take the stance that there has been a drastic change since then, that we have come a long way with powerful characters such as Xena and MacKenzie Allen, the first woman president of the United States from the television show, Commander in Chief. Others conclude that with prime-time hits like The Bachelor, we’ve only moved backwards. Susan J. Douglas, author of Enlightened Sexism – The Seductive Message that Feminism’s Work is Done, posits a third opinion that is wrapped in the concept of enlightened sexism.
Read MoreOn February 13, 2009, a group of 250 gathered in Kuala Lumpur for five intense days to challenge the unjust application of family law throughout the Muslim world. The movement that resulted – Musawah – represents an important initiative in the search for equality and justice in the Muslim family.
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