HBO is set to air “Love Crimes of Kabul” at 9pm tonight as part of their documentary films summer series. This intimate documentary goes inside Badam Bagh, a women’s prison in Kabul, Afghanistan, to tell the stories of three women who are being accused of committing “love crimes” or more commonly termed, “moral crimes”. Among the prison’s 125 female prisoners, those who are there for “moral crimes,” are accused of things that, in most societies, would be termed rebellious at... Read more
This week’s links was graciously put together for us by Anneke van der Berg. Australian police allowed to ask for removal of burqa. Muslim Stephanie not allowed on bus in France, because of her ‘burqa.’ NZ prime minister: veil no excuse for discrimination. Another Pakistani woman killed, officials stay quiet. Female Afghani journalist Farida Nekzad featured on Al-Arabiya. Al Jazeera features a series of pictures on women in Gaza. Thirty-three Kuwaiti women divorce their husbands because they sneaked off to Lebanon,... Read more
I recently had the opportunity to see Zehra Fazal preform her musically-inclined comedy show titled “Headscarf and the Angry Bitch” at the Hollywood Fringe Festival. Her one-woman show centers on a fictional character named Zed Headscarf who tours around mosques, giving lectures in order to educate congregants about Islam through her folk songs. Her “lecture series” opened with a discussion of the most basic of topics, with Fazal defining for the audience key words such as halal and haram and... Read more
I was following with interest media commentaries on the recent experts meeting on women’s media empowerment convened by the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia in Beirut (ESCWA). It was clear that independent communication campaigns to promote women’s causes and concerns are gaining a lot of ground in the Arab World. New digital media are making it quite possible for women’s groups to communicate their ideas and views to global publics. But one issue raised at the meeting... Read more
Kecya Felix, a Brazilian stylist/designer, wore a fake Chanel niqab and abaya and an iPad around her neck which played “Could Coco Chanel Create This Look?” at Sao Paulo Fashion Week. Kecya Felix wearing the abaya. As this article puts it, Felix intended to “make a statement” through the performance, wearing ”a fake Chanel Muslim garment” and, apparently, losing the ability to speak, (although her hearing remained unaffected): I approached Felix to ask what she was all about. She shook her head... Read more
Here’s today’s front page of The New York Post, victim-blaming Dominique Strauss-Kahn’s accuser. You can email your concerned, disgusted reactions to [email protected]. Thanks to the Women’s Media Center for the tip. Read more
“My voice is a gift from God.” Khaira Arby in an interview with Steve Hochman for Spinner. Reading through a list of upcoming acts at my local music venue, I came across a woman whose name I hadn’t heard of before—Khaira Arby. Intrigued, I clicked on her act to learn more about her. Singing in four languages, Arby hails from Mali and performed in March at the SXSW music festival. Her latest album, Timbuktu Tarab (translated as “Timbuktu my land”),... Read more
After 90 episodes, ‘Men Wanted’, the Syrian Arabic soap opera, has concluded its season for this year on Saudi-owned television channel MBC 4. For those who do not know ‘Men Wanted,’ the Venezuelan-style soap opera is adapted to an Arab environment, with its actions taking place in Dubai. ‘Men Wanted’ tells the story of Hala, an Egyptian lady married to Khaled, a successful businessman, with a son and a daughter. Hala owns a beauty salon, in which a number of... Read more
Salwa al-Mutairi, a Kuwaiti politican, gave a cold-blooded proposal for Muslim men to take female slaves, especially non-Muslim female prisoners of war, for sexual use (or rather rape). It has rather unpredictably come under fire. Slavery is one of the most abhorrent forms of abuse of power in this modern age. But the basic principles of al-Mutairi’s views have validation in Islamic texts. Like it or not, the Qur’an does not make any mention about ending slavery per se. It... Read more
The world of hijabs and soccer (or football, if you prefer) has been making the news a lot lately. As you might remember, FIFA recently banned the Iranian women’s team from playing, because of their headscarves. Jordan’s team has also recently been banned for the same reason. And in the Montreal area, 15-year-old Sarah Benkirane was recently prevented from refereeing soccer games while wearing hijab. Muslimah Media Watch is joining up with a new campaign called Right 2 Wear, in... Read more
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