Feminist activists in Tunisia are working to frame women’s rights as “a social and political issue,” and call on Femen protestors to leave them alone. Index on Censorship highlights the work of thee Muslim women artists: painter Saba Barnard, filmmaker and stage performance artist Sabina England, and playwright Mediah Ahmed. Women activists in Aceh, Indonesia say […]

It was after my marriage that I decided to wear a hijab in public. Like most others who are evolving on their hijab journey, I had my fears – my biggest one being that it was going to make me look horrendous. After all my hair was my best feature. To help me on my […]

Recently, the Huffington Post re-published an Associated Press article on Sufi resurgence in Somalia. Following the withdrawal of the armed militant group Al-Shabab from the country’s capital of Mogadishu, Somalis are once again allowed to engage in Sufi practices without fear of death and violent repression. The article paints a landscape of men and women […]

A few months ago, I came across an article about how more Burmese domestic workers in Singapore were running away from exploitative conditions. The caption of the photo told me a lot about how the mainstream media in Singapore (heavily controlled by the government) viewed these domestic workers as as causing a ‘commotion.’ This reminded […]

“Backwards” is the word often associated with pre-modern ages, and “oppression” is the word that comes to our minds first when we describe the state of women during those ages. Thank God we live in the modern age where human rights activism has brought women rights that they’ve never had before. Right? Sorry to shake […]

I apologise for a short list of links this week!  Please post anything I’m missing in the comments. Leading up to Iran’s presidential elections, NPR interviews four different Iranian women about their perspectives.  In related news, Iranian women are said to be using the upcoming vote as a way to advocate for themselves, although the presidential candidates themselves have different […]

Having survived a father who used religion to justify his violence, I’ve spent a lot of time grappling with faith. The process of grappling has taught me the value of difficult, uncomfortable questions and conversations, through which I’ve learned about myself, my ummah, and Islam. But Muslims in the West rarely have the luxury of […]

Last Saturday, the city where I live in Western Canada held its annual Pride Parade. This year and against all odds, the first member of my mosque participated in the parade. Sister Sarah (a pseudonym) decided to participate in the parade after years of struggling with reconciling her faith with her sexuality. She decided “to try […]

My toddler cousins, like all children their age, were born into a world of rattles, Legos, diapers, and TV. Now more than ever, kids programming is a dominant and formative force in young children’s lives. The average preschooler spend 32 hours a week latched onto the TV screen, and by high school graduation has clocked […]

Anneke is traveling this week and so am I, which means nobody was able to pull together the Friday Links for today.  But if any of you have come across some good (or horrible, or otherwise noteworthy) stories this week, please post them in the comments!