Ask M: Confusion about the men in my life
In today’s AskM column, M responds to two women dealing with confusion and ambiguity about the men in their lives.
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“Mommy, why are women in the back?”
<< From the Altmuslimah archives >> “Mommy, why are the women in the back?” my daughter asked me when she was just three years old. I wasn’t prepared for this. The truth is I had been hoping that she wouldn’t ask me because I wasn’t convinced that the women should be behind the men during prayer. I also knew that it wasn’t a requirement for congregational prayer. I felt conflicted because I wanted my beautiful, brilliant little girl to come to love prayer and praying in congregation.
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‘Unmosqued’ Debate: Muslim Millennials explore the problem with American mosques
Muslim millennials joined host Caroline Modarressy-Tehrani on Huff Post Live to discuss the exclusivity of many American mosques, as captured in the upcoming film “UnMosqued” by Ahmed Eid.
More and more American Muslims find themselves at odds with the culture in their mosque communities, particularly as many of these places of worship retain strong ties to homelands that self-identified American Muslims may not relate to, say many of those interviewed in “Unmosqued.”
I am not a lollipop or a pearl
Last week, a national religious organization, which focuses on proliferating accurate information about Islam, shared a photo on its Facebook page depicting two lollipops- one bare, with a swarm of flies and one in a wrapper with a solitary fly. Predictably, the photo likened the lollipops to women- those uncovered and those covered. Following a frenzy of angry comments, the photo was promptly removed, but of course once on the Internet, something is never truly erased and so this photo continues to surface on every social media platform imaginable.
Read MoreI’m married to a survivor - What Abu Eesa’s comments did to my family this week
This week was much like most other weeks in our household. Like most families with young children, we raced to our jobs, barely made drop-off and pick-up timings and were exhausted by 8:30 when the kids were (finally!) asleep.
What made this week different was that my wife–who is a strong and determined survivor of a sexual assault–was triggered.
The shock jock Imam and the “Brown Man’s Burden”
A shock jock Imam. Who would have thought it? And yet, there he was, Al-Maghrib’s very own Ustadh Abu Eesa Niamatullah, tweeting away crass jokes about women and feminists on International Women’s Day, a day some set aside to recognize (even protest) the struggles of women in establishing political and social rights in various societies. Comments only got worse as men and women alike started to call him out on his misogynistic tone on Twitter and Facebook.
Read MoreIslam and women’s sports
<< From the Altmuslimah Archives >> Islamic women in sports appears to be a contradiction in terms – at least this is what many people in the West believe. The conviction that women in Islamic countries either cannot, will not, or may not take part in sports (or at least in competitive sports) is partly borne out of the fact that Muslim immigrants, especially women, scarcely take any active part in sports. However, we should be aware that interest and the engagement of Muslim women in sports are increasing.
Read MoreEIC Asma Uddin Talks about Mosque Spaces at Radio Islam
The “Full Court Aunty Press” and other obstacles to love
In 2012, Ayesha Mattu and Nura Maznavi released Love, InshAllah – The Secret Love Lives of American Muslim Women, hoping to spur a “more compassionate and respectful intra-faith dialogue” about relationship complexities within the Muslim community.
Read MoreReclaiming my life after sexual abuse: Part II
I was extremely fortunate that my friend’s family reacted exactly as I needed them to. Oftentimes people don’t know how to respond to news of sexual abuse (which is the result of our communities refusing to talk about it). Therefore denial and anger are often the knee-jerk reactions. However on top of the terror of coming forward, negative reactions can be permanently damaging to the victim (as I had experienced at 13), and I’m so grateful that this is not how my friend and her family reacted.
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