There seems to be nothing more exciting for tabloids than publishing pictures of white women in hijab. Well, unless it’s publishing pictures of white women converts in their racy, hedonistic, pre-Islamic days. Last month Amy Sall and Heather Matthews told their conversion stories to the tabloid press. And instead of using the stories to dispel […]

Nurul Izzah Anwar comes from a political family. She is the current Vice-President of the Malaysian political party PKR (People’s Justice Party), and is also the daughter of Anwar Ibrahim, a former Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister who was jailed in 1999 and banned from politics until 2008 for charges of corruption and sodomy (but arguably because he was […]

Journalist Abigail Haworth shares her experience about the day she attended a religious event in Indonesia, where 248 girls underwent genital mutilation in return for a cash handout and a promise of spiritual purity. Genital mutilation is on the rise in Indonesia, where the practice is deemed by many to be an Islamic requirement for women. This weekend […]

I can’t remember when I first learned that “Paradise is under the feet of mothers.” But I do remember the first time my parents quoted the story when the Prophet was asked who has greater right, the mother or the father, and replied ”Your mother, your mother, your mother, then your father.” This three-fold reiteration […]

“A reporter must ignore critics and write the truth, Mustafa said. ‘Even if it is a tiny little drop in the ocean, you know you have made a contribution,’ she said. ‘So then you can have a clear conscience.’” – From an article on Zubeida Mustafa by the International Women’s Media Foundation The past couple […]

Last week, the Toronto Star reported on the first helpline in Canada specifically for Muslim women. The project stems from the Women’s Resource Centre, which is part of the Mercy Mission organisation. At the moment, this program is only available in Ontario, specifically in the Toronto area. Noor Javed, the author of the article, interviewed […]

After the parents of 6-year-old Bibi Roza in Pakistan’s Swat valley protested against the decision of local elders to marry her off in order to end a feud, a local court found the decision by the elders to be illegal, and since then five arrests have been made. As long as victims of domestic violence […]

This is my marriage contract, certifying that my husband and I went through a “marriage ceremony peformed under Islamic rites”, and that he had agreed to certain “special conditions” otherwise known as ta’aliq. We didn’t pay much attention to the conditions provided to us by the kadi (judge) from the syariah court, dismissing it as […]

Last July, Mexico had elections. Six years ago, the Mexican conservative government was accused  of electoral fraud to maintain power, while this year the party that ruled Mexico for over 70 years through undemocratic elections has returned to power. Very much like the “democratic” regimes in the Middle East, Mexico has never really known democracy. […]

France is and will always be my special soapbox, so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised when crap like this comes out. On November 1st, the magazine ran a cover with a niqabi (OF COURSE) on the front, with the headline “Cet Islam sans gêne” (This Brazen Islam), with a sub-headline of examples of where […]