Dropping the Bomb

September 27, 2007 By Muslimah Media Watch

The Executive Officer, on his/her blog Executive Outcomes, has drawn a link between Muslim women and suicide bombings! Hey, I’ll bet no one’s ever though of that before! Oh, wait. Forbes did. Muslim women don’t have enough negative stereotypes associated with us…thank you for adding one more! “Hey, everyone. Guess what? Not only are Muslim women submissive, passive, and oppressed…but they’re also dangerous, too! Don’t pay attention to the fact that these stereotypes contradict each other–just pay attention to this... Read more

September 25, 2007 By Muslimah Media Watch

So I’ve come down with a virus, and it’s the first week of school. Posting is going to be a little erratic the rest of this week because I’m supposed to be busy getting myself organized. We’d appreciate any news tips you have for us: there’s been a lot of news about Muslim women lately, but we’re focused on how Muslim women being portrayed in the media. If you have any TV shows, movies, songs, webcasts, blogs, etc., that you’d... Read more

What a Week for News!

September 25, 2007 By Muslimah Media Watch

Here are some links for this week: I’m sure you’ve all heard about the dentist who is practicing douchebaggery instead of dentistry. Iran holds an exhibit on hejab in sports. Muslim women in India are seeking secular justice. Sheikha Mozah Bint Nasser Al-Missned wins the Chatham House Prize for Improving International Relations. The Association for the Protection and Defense of Women’s Rights in Saudi Arabia wants Saudi women to have the right to drive. Read more

Kick: Busting Myths that Muslims Can’t be Queer

September 24, 2007 By Muslimah Media Watch

MMW thanks Melinda for the tip! Australia’s TV show Kick presents Australia’s first Middle Eastern lesbian: Layla. This article touches on Kick, its history, and its newest character, Layla, and examines issues of how her sexuality is discussed on the television show. I’ve been watching this on YouTube (there are links to the different episodes in chronological order at the bottom of the post), and as far as Layla’s sexuality is concerned, I think it’s done really well. While the... Read more

We’re Movin’ On Up!

September 21, 2007 By Muslimah Media Watch

We’re all very excited here at MMW! Racialicious.com will be featuring posts from our contributors every other week! Racialicious is a great website that looks at race and pop culture, and we know we’ll feel right at home there. Don’t worry; this won’t affect our own posting. We’ll still be posting every day, Monday through Friday. Have a great weekend, everyone! See you Monday! Read more

The Madonna/Whore Complex, Islamic-Style!

September 21, 2007 By Muslimah Media Watch

Talking about access in my post awhile ago, I touched on sexuality. Since this is one of my favorite topics, it got me thinking about sexuality in the Muslim world, and the binaries that Orientalism creates for Muslim women’s sexuality. When you think of a Muslim woman in the context of sexuality, which images come up? If you watch movies, Muslim women are usually seen in one of two lights, sort of like a Madonna/whore complex. Except it’s with bellydancers... Read more

A Sight for Sore Eyes

September 20, 2007 By Muslimah Media Watch

Here are some great links for today: Journalism offers an exciting path for one young Iraqi girl. Senegalese women are handed brand-new cars and trained in martial arts in an effort to bolster women’s participation in the economy. Where do I sign up for a free car and karate lessons? Muslim fashion designers start thinking outside the burqa. Some women in Yemen still have difficulty accessing higher education. A convert reminds those born as Muslims what we should already know:... Read more

Access: Denied

September 19, 2007 By Muslimah Media Watch

This article talks about a new movie, Coffee & Allah. It tells the story of a Muslim refugee “who feels isolated in her new country until someone reaches out to her through a spontaneous game of badminton.” Directed by Dr. Shuchi Kothari and nominated for the best short film at the Venice Film Festival, the film casts Zahara Abbawajji, an Ethiopian from Auckland, New Zealand, as the lead female role. Dr. Kothari and the director cast Ms. Abbawajji after advertising... Read more

The Artless

September 18, 2007 By Muslimah Media Watch

What do you think about this? This is a picture from Nader Sadek’s “‘The Faceless’: six mixed-media drawings involving a [burqa]-clad woman interacting with various aspects of black and death metal culture—skulls, tentacles, devils, decaying castles. A soundtrack, limited when I was there to a tinny set of headphones, runs further with the metaphor: metal luminaries … trade riffs and blast beats with Middle Eastern music stalwarts Omar Faruk Tekbilek and Raquy Danziger.” Here’s the entire article from The Village... Read more

How to Bully a Muslim Woman

September 17, 2007 By Muslimah Media Watch

Recently, while perusing the internet I came across a video made by DawahWorks, a production group who appear to make videos about Muslims and Islam in an attempt to conduct dawah. The host of the videos, SaadImam, speaks to various people. I actually came across the video while looking for another video made by them which had created controversy. Such a controversy that it was removed from YouTube. As that video was not available, I viewed the current video. In... Read more