I recently came across a short movie on the life of transsexual Muslims in Indonesia. In the last few years, MMW has covered a few different stories in terms of LGBT activism in Indonesia: issues concerning transgender and transsexual communities, the challenges faced by lesbians and the attempts to bring LGTBQ issues to the public […]

For an extra treat this week, we have a second new writer to introduce!  You might recognise Sya from her past MMW guest posts on Ramadan in Singapore and on the Save Maryam campaign, and we are happy to welcome her as a more regular contributor to MMW. Last week I was in London, moonlighting […]

Braids on a Bald Head is a short movie, released in 2010, by Nigerian director Ishaya Bako.  The film shows the day in the life of a poor, married hairdresser, Hauwa Bello, “who through a brief homosexual encounter is able to muster up courage and stand up to her inattentive husband and ask for better.” […]

MMW is excited to welcome wood turtle as our newest contributor! You may know her already from previous guest posts or from her personal blog, and we look forward to having her as a regular part of the MMW team. Earlier this month, the Canadian province of Quebec elected its first female Premier. Headed by Pauline […]

Poverty and harsh conditions have led Syrian refugees to take drastic measures in order to save (the honor of) their daughters, marrying them off, even at a very young age. While many husbands are from Jordan, home to many Syrian refugees, there is now a trend too in online trafficking in Syrian brides, who are taken from refugee […]

At the beginning of September, I attended the annual Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) convention in Washington, D.C.  The event brings many well-known speakers, a bazaar, art exhibits, the always popular “speed marriage interviews a.k.a. the matrimonials,” and various entertainment acts from across the ISNA, Muslim Students Association (MSA), and Muslim Youth of North […]

The other day, I stumbled across a piece on the increasing number of Muslim students at Catholic colleges in the United States.  The New York Times article is the result of interviews with students and administrators at several American Catholic institutions.  Also accompanying the article was the usual array of pictures depicting Muslim women in […]

Palestine’s religious authorities have announced reforms of divorce laws, which would make it easier for women to end the marriage. A court in the Maldives has sentenced a 16-year-old girl with 100 lashes and eight months house arrest, which will take effect once she turns 18 (?), for having sex with a 29-year-old male. His […]

It is no secret that sexual harassment is a very dangerous phenomenon in Egypt streets. What is striking is that it is getting worse, not better. I have been suffering from street sexual harassment for years, and wrote 2 years ago that I no longer had any tolerance for it. I described how I would […]

Growing up in Mexico City in the 90’s meant for me that I grew up in a completely different context from my parents. Since my parent’s generation did not have the luxury of foreign products, due to the economic restrictions on international goods, my parents grew up with yellow pencils made in Mexico and traditional […]