Asifa Quraishi on Women and Shari’a

Last updated on: January 21, 2012 at 1:31 pm By Krista

Dr. Asifa Quraishi, a specialist in Islamic law at the University of Wisconsin, was recently profiled as part of a series called Inside Islam: Dialogues and Debates, created by the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Wisconsin Public Radio and described as “a new media initiative that seeks to challenge misconceptions and stereotypical perceptions about Islam and Muslims worldwide.” Last month, the initiative hosted a radio show on Women and Sharia, to look at some of the news stories about women and... Read more

Sexual harassment of Libyan women is holding us back

Last updated on: December 8, 2011 at 11:33 pm By Muslimah Media Watch

A recent Reuters article vaguely described sexual harassment in Libya by blaming it on “antiquated male attitudes that decades of gender equality reforms have failed to dislodge.” While it is true that Libyan law sets the foundation for female equality, it was never properly enacted. To say that there have been “decades of gender equality reforms” is a gross exaggeration that implies the government actually tries to do something about the harassment. The government doesn’t: the article even quotes a... Read more

Friday Links — January 2, 2009

Last updated on: January 21, 2012 at 1:31 pm By fatemeh

Well, readers, it’s 2009 (and 1430). May Allah give us all peace and prosperity in this new year! An association of Muslim businesswomen in Nigeria call for the Islamic Hijrah calendar to be used side by side with the Gregorian calendar in varying governmental levels. Many Muslim groups, including Muslim women’s groups, back making the first day of Muharram a national holiday. A British department store opens its doors in Tehran. The Washington Post looks at female genital cutting in... Read more

“In Gaza, It’s 9/11 every hour, every minute, everywhere.”

Last updated on: December 8, 2011 at 11:33 pm By Muslimah Media Watch

Like a lot of people, I’ve spent the past couple of days glued to my TV set and the papers, monitoring the horrible situation in the Gaza strip, and the Arab world’s increasing disenchantment with Egypt. So far, according to the UN, at least 373 Palestinians have been killed and 1,720 are injured. Of those killed, approximately 1/3 were women and children. In terms of civilian casualties, some analysts have called this the worst attack since the 1967 war. (“Counting... Read more

Discussing Muslim Women in Australia: An Interview With Joumanah El Matrah

Last updated on: December 8, 2011 at 11:33 pm By Muslimah Media Watch

Recently, Australia’s ABC National Radio show, The Religion Report, covered the issue of racism experienced by Muslim women. In light of a recent Australian report entitled “Race, Faith and Gender” published by the Islamic Women’s Welfare Council of Victoria that assessed the impact of racism on Muslim women, host David Rutledge interviewed Joumanah El Matra, the Executive Director of the Islamic Women’s Welfare Council of Victoria about the issue. You can listen to the interview and read the transcript here.... Read more

Kariman Hamzah: Giving us a Woman’s Interpretation of the Qur’an

Last updated on: December 8, 2011 at 11:33 pm By Muslimah Media Watch

In this past week’s Friday links, Fatemeh mentioned that Al-Azhar University had for the first time approved a tafsir (interpretation) of the Qur’an written by a woman, Kariman Hamzah. The BBC story on this event left a lot to be desired. The first thing that was seriously wrong was the headline “Egypt clerics back woman’s Koran”. The headline is so deceptive and wrong. Hamzah did not produce her own version of the Qur’an. Another thing wrong with the headline is... Read more

Life Lost: the Tragic Case of Sahar Daftary

Last updated on: January 21, 2012 at 1:31 pm By sobia

On December 20th, 23-year-old model Sahar Daftary died as a result of a fall from the 12th story of an apartment building in Greater Manchester (inna lillahi wa inna illaihi raji’un). May Allah have mercy on her soul. The death of this former Face of Asia has spurred many speculations in British media as to the cause of her death – was it suicide, or an accident? Media reports inform us that Daftary was believed to have committed suicide as... Read more

Reviving our Islamic Spirits

Last updated on: January 21, 2012 at 1:32 pm By Krista

I spent this past weekend at the Reviving the Islamic Spirit convention in Toronto. In its seventh year, the conference brings together thousands of people from all over North America (I think someone said that about 15 thousand people came to this year’s conference), and some of the best-known Islamic scholars. This year’s lineup included Shaykh Hamza Yusuf, Imam Zaid Shakir, Professor Tariq Ramadan, and many others. This was my second time at the conference, and it was a powerful... Read more

The media’s surface-level fixation on Libya’s female bodyguards

Last updated on: December 8, 2011 at 11:33 pm By Muslimah Media Watch

The first thing anyone, male or female, Arab or not ever says to me when they find out I’m Libyan is, “Wow, I’ve never met a Libyan before.” The follow-up question almost always involves a snide comment about Libya’s female bodyguards. These lovely ladies, trained in combat, accompany Colonel Qaddafi, Libya’s head of state, everywhere he goes and are credited to helping him endure 39 years of power, making him the longest serving Arab leader. These women, many of them... Read more

Does a masculine air rule over poetry awards in Iran?

Last updated on: December 8, 2011 at 11:33 pm By Muslimah Media Watch

This was originally published on ISNA and Payvand. It has been edited for clarity. The first award for female Iranian poets will be awarded in the week of December 21-27 (first week of the Iranian month of Dey). According to the news agency ISNA, in the news conference held on November 23rd, seven works have been selected out of 17 for the final competition: According to Alborz Time (Be vaghte Alborz), by Mehrnoosh Ghorbanali, Ahange Digar Publications Autumn will reach... Read more