This week’s Friday Links were compiled by Eren and Samya.  Australia Racism and sexism is creating a toxic mix for the hundreds of thousands of Muslim women living in Australia, says Dr. Mehreen Faruqi as they have become the most likely targets of those retaliating and venting their anger in the aftermath of terrorist incidents. Dr. […]

Afghanistan In Afghanistan, half of all deaths among women aged 15 to 49 are because of pregnancy and childbirth. A video by The Guardian titled, “The imams, the Taliban and the condoms” follows two imams’ project to raise awareness about birth control methods and women’s health. Australia Susan Carland, an Australian academic, who regularly receives […]

Afghanistan Afghan rights activist Aziza Rahimzada has been nominated for the International Children’s Peace Prize – an award previously won by Malala Yousafzai – and, like her Pakistani counterpart, hopes to spread her message of universal education and fundamental rights for Afghanistan’s youth. Australia A man attacked a 21-year-old Muslim woman outside the State Library […]

Australia Monique Toohey, a Muslim psychologist, met with Australian Labor MPs on Wednesday to discuss the need to change Australia’s tone on the discussion about violent extremism and Muslims. Toohey, who has experienced online bullying for her activism, is calling for the government to consult with Muslim communities in order to develop well-rounded de-radicalization programs. […]

One of the events at the All About Women program held at Sydney Opera House this year was entitled “Conversations with Muslim Women.” Featuring two Australian Muslim women, Randa Abdel-Fattah and Susan Carland, the event was advertised as a conversation with, rather than about, Muslim women. So the three women on stage have an engaging discussion, […]

How to keep a hijab on when skydiving in Dubai? A Canadian female skydiving instructor discusses how Muslim women can experience all the excitement in the emirate of Dubai.   What made a young Australian lady defend a Muslim woman against a racial rant? A viral video shows a Muslim couple as victims of a […]

A local council in Victoria, Australia asked non-Muslim women to wear hijabs to raise awareness and combat islamophobia, stirring controversy.   A group of Muslim Pakistani-American women are pushing the boundaries on how Muslim women are perceived, especially when it comes to the comedy scene. They say: “Nobody expects Muslim women to be comedians.”   […]

During the past week, inheritance according to the precepts of Shari’ah was a hot topic around the world, from Australia and Pakistan to Tunisia and Malaysia. An overview of the system is available in this article, although, as always, there is much diversity both in specific understandings of inheritance laws and in broader understandings of what “Shari’ah” is. A few days ago, Jamila Hussain wrote an opinion piece in the Sydney Morning Herald, discussing issues of equity vs. equality in inheritance laws, while attempting to explain the complex distribution system in Islam. She pointed out that it is easy to forget “that equality for women is quite a modern development.” While discussing Pakistani laws and recent amendments, Hafeezullah Ishaq provided us with an overview of women’s inheritance rights in Pakistan and the challenges they face.

I was excited when the book Does My Head Look Big in This? came out a few years ago (see Melinda’s MMW review of it here.) In that book, author Randa Abdel-Fattah tells the story of Amal, a young Australian Muslim woman who decides to wear hijab and navigates the challenges of expressing her identity […]

Recently, Australia’s ABC National Radio show, The Religion Report, covered the issue of racism experienced by Muslim women. In light of a recent Australian report entitled “Race, Faith and Gender” published by the Islamic Women’s Welfare Council of Victoria that assessed the impact of racism on Muslim women, host David Rutledge interviewed Joumanah El Matra, […]