Murder in the Name of Honour: an Interview with Rana Husseini

June 8, 2009 – 10:44 am

When I first met Rana Husseini, I was struck by how forthright and open she was – a firm handshake, a piercing, inquisitive stare and the no-nonsense way in which she chose her words and spoke them. I quickly understood how men who are convinced of women’s inferior nature would be intimidated by someone like Husseini – and that’s besides all of the work she has done in support of women’s rights.

Rana Husseini, whom I first interviewed in 2007, is an investigative reporter and world-famous campaigner against the cruel phenomenon known as honour killing – both in Jordan and beyond. Her book, Murder in the Name of Honour, recently sold out upon its launch in Amman. Before the launch, I sat down with Rana to talk about everything from local politics to Orientalist imagery.

Natalia: So, this book was a real labour of love!

Rana: Yes. I wanted to get this one just right. I wasn’t about to let anyone sensationalize the subject matter. Thankfully, Oneworld Publications worked out really well for me and my agent, because they understood where we were coming from.

N: The cover looks great, by the way. It’s so different from the usual covers that are used on books about this region.

Read More »

By Natalia Antonova | Posted in arts and literature, honor killing, muslim women, society | Comments (5)

How to Win Friends and Influence People According to Nagla Al-Imam

November 26, 2008 – 9:23 pm

You know what you get when you fight fire with fire? An inexhaustible blaze.

But according to Nagla al-Imam, this isn’t true. She believes that fighting Israeli occupation with sexual harassment is actually the key to resisting it. She recently “invited Arab youth to sexually harass and rape Israeli women as a form of resistance”: Read More »

By Feature Writer | Posted in current affairs, egypt, israel, muslim women, palestine | Comments (4)

LEILA HUSSEIN GUNNED DOWN

June 3, 2008 – 8:09 am

Basra, Iraq – The Guardian reports that Leila Hussein, the mother of honour-killing victim Rand Hussein, was shot and killed as she was walking with two women activists to meet a contact to take her to Amman, Jordan. Leila Hussein drew her family’s ire when she refused to support her husband’s decision to murder their daughter for entertaining a crush on an American soldier. Leila Hussein’s sons had also participated in the brutal act, and did not support their mother in her escape.

Hussein’s husband had previously boasted to the media that the local police had fully supported him. And while Basra law enforcement officials have told the press that Leila Hussein’s defiance had nothing to do with her murder, that this was a routine spat of sectarian violence targeting the women activists, their own role in this story makes their statements suspect.

It wouldn’t be surprising if Leila Hussein was being made an example of. This wouldn’t be the first time, nor the last time, in today’s brutalized Iraq. The activists who were trying to help Hussein escape are receiving threats as well. Any woman who does not submit to her role as a passive piece of human garbage is a potential target in a patriarchal society scarred by years of violence.

Please note that the authors of Jezebel can help you donate money to the Basra activists, if you contact them. We hope to have more on this story. Until then, may God rest the souls of the innocent. There is nothing more that I can personally can say in the face of such tragedy.

By Natalia Antonova | Posted in honor killing, iraq, muslim women | Comments (2)

Playing the Gender Game: Female Participation in the Jordanian Employment Market

May 22, 2008 – 4:19 pm

In recent years Jordan has undergone a series of initiatives to establish the kingdom at the forefront of social, economic, and technological progress in the region.

Since highly educated women frequently present a social and economic boon to a country, Jordan has ensured a successful and steady flow of female graduates into the employment market.

The recent release of a new report by the Canadian-sponsored National Center for Human Resources Development (NCHRD), in association with the Jordan-based Al-Manar Project, does however, cast a pall over the otherwise pleasing advancements.

According to the survey, in 2005 the distribution of Jordanian employees by gender demonstrated an 86.8 percent male majority over a 13.2 percent female minority. Within two years a slight increase brought female participation in the labour market to 15.7 percent, while male participation decreased to 84.3 percent.

Yet further disparities emerge on the earnings front as 8.1 percent of male employees earned JD 500 or more per month in 2007, while the figure for women remained at 4.4 percent, despite rising from 2.8 percent two years previously.

The diminutive figure on both counts proves further perplexing due to the preponderance of Jordanian women holding undergraduate and graduate degrees.

Just as the Jordanian labour market is dominated by a male majority, so too do female employees surpass their male counterparts in terms of higher education qualifications.

During the period 2005 to 2007, the number of male workers holding undergraduate degrees rose from 13.9 percent to 16.8 percent; likewise, holders of graduate degrees increased from 2.6 percent to 3.0 percent.

Contrastingly, female employees holding undergraduate degrees increased during the same period from 38.4 percent to 43.2 percent, while postgraduate holders grew from 3.6 percent in 2005 to 4.6 percent in 2007.

Of equal interest is the distribution of employees by gender within the employment sectors, with women flourishing in the field of professionals – that is, as doctors and lawyers – with figures rising from 42.2 percent to 47.9 percent over the same two year period.

The technical professions witnessed a slight decrease in female activity, down from 29.1 percent to 24.3 percent, although the total remains higher than the male presence, which dwindled by a fraction from 8.7 percent in 2005 to 8.5 percent in 2007.

Occupations comprising legislators, senior officials, and managers remain however, fiercely elusive to the female grasp with 0.0 percent holding positions in the field, although male employees have retained a steady hold with 0.1 percent between 2005 and 2007.

At present, women make up half of the six million strong population, and complaints that they are being deprived their share in the decision making due to the conservative, tribal-oriented government sector have become more vocalized in recent years. Read More »

By Feature Writer | Posted in jordan, muslim women | Comments (0)

Muslim Comedians in the U.S.: A PBS Special

May 11, 2008 – 9:59 am

This week on PBS, “STAND UP: Muslim-American Comics Come of Age” premiered as part of the ongoing “America at a Crossroads” series. Five comedians are profiled in this documentary special: Ahmed Ahmed, Tissa Hami, Dean Obeidallah, Azhar Usman and Maysoon Zayid.

ahmed ahmed

Each comedian profiled has their own angle on both the entertainment business and the experiences of Muslims in the United States. Maysoon Zayid talks about being a Palestinian-American Muslim woman who doesn’t cover her hair, a virgin, and a disabled person aspiring to become an actress.

Dean Obeidallah shares the story of how he initially stopped using his Arab last name when performing in the aftermath of 9/11, then had a change of heart and a change of direction.

Azhar Usman, who is shown praying in his dressing room at one point, discusses going through a conservative phase before realizing that his path in life ultimately lay elsewhere.

azher usman smiles

Many viewers will relate to Ahmed Ahmed’s anxiety in regards to air travel, except that in Ahmed Ahmed’s case there is the added “bonus” of traveling while Muslim and enduring extreme suspicion. And Tissa Hami’s account of enduring prejudice both from non-Muslims and Muslims (some of whom have told her that she is “going to hell”) is not exactly a laughing matter.

Yet, staying true to its subject matter, the special manages to be light-hearted as well. The featured jokes could probably make even David Horowitz laugh, or so I’d like to believe.

Prior to the premiere, I was given an opportunity to interview several of the comedians, and here is what we talked about:

Read More »

By Natalia Antonova | Posted in current affairs, entertainment, humor, islam, muslim women, religion | Comments (3)

The Arab 100: Politics Is Bad For Business

April 14, 2008 – 3:11 pm

One of the most common criticisms of the annual World’s Most Influential Arabs List is how deliberately apolitical and therefore unhelpful the exercise is.

It’s an assessment that goes to the root of modern critiques of capitalism: the idea that money is power and if you don’t have it, you don’t matter. However, I need to point out that ranking political capital in the Arab world is not particularly inspiring or exciting, if the news are to be believed.

When I was studying in the United States, I noticed that many people who criticized capitalism did not have a concrete alternative to offer, unless “let’s live in a commune, grow our own potatoes, and go to the bathroom in a hole in the ground” counts as an alternative. In the Arab world, by contrast, critics of capitalism are too ready to jump in bed with religious fundamentalists.

Suddenly, an outhouse sounds more and more appealing. Read More »

By Feature Writer | Posted in business world, muslim women | Comments (0)

The Exploitation of Sufiah Yousof

April 5, 2008 – 3:57 pm

I was looking at Al Arabiya recently, when I came across an article on child prodigy turned sex-worker, Sufiah Yousof.

Now, I am well aware of the fact that prostitution is frowned upon in all major religions, but the wording of this story, and many of the comments following it, struck me as cheap and exploitative. Let’s weep crocodile tears for Sufiah Yousof while enjoying the furtive thrill of seeing a good girl from a Muslim family go bad! What could possibly be wrong with that?

It’s easy to reduce Ms. Yousof to a two-dimensional caricature, but I suspect that her story is as complicated as any story of lived experience. Of course, a nuanced portrayal most likely means that you do not get to make a buck and/or a self-righteous fuss over the matter at hand.

Allowing people to make choices means that, every once in a while, they will do things that go against one’s ideology, perhaps even against one’s spirit. This is why people everywhere (not just in the Muslim world) are so fond of making examples out of women who stray from the fold. Women have long been regarded as property in many societies, and, in many cases, have been taught to regard themselves, their daughters, and sisters as property as well. And who wants “damaged goods”? Right?

In many ways, Sufiah’s story reminds me of the story of Britney Spears, another “good girl” gone “bad.” I am old enough to remember the days when Britney’s much-publicized virginity was the stuff of hotly-traded soundbytes and teasing magazine spreads. We just love to watch those good girls come tumbling off their public pedestals, do we not? Read More »

By Natalia Antonova | Posted in current affairs, islam, muslim women, religion | Comments (37)

My Reading Wife

March 23, 2008 – 2:20 pm

Mine is a “reading wife.” She loves to read practically anything and everything that comes by her way. Her reading habits are interesting, since she comes from a society that puts less premium on reading and more on verbal communications and images.

She is a persistent reader despite the fact that our kind of society may even look down upon people who read, because reading is not yet an integral part of our social, cultural, and psychological make up.

While in other societies it is common to see people holding books and newspapers in public places, such a sight is rare in Jordan, or, for that matter, in the different parts of the Arab world where I have also lived in. This is why I look with curiosity upon my “reading wife” simply because the reading culture or the book culture is not there to support her. In spite of that, she would munch through myriads of words, as if their meanings and extrapolations were Turkish delight.

She was socialized in a “readersless” society and had the tenacity to pick up books, opening her mind and indulge in a literature that took her far from her roots, though she continues to value our Arabic and Islamic traditions.

In between getting the house chores done, taking the kids to and from school, cooking, cleaning, and taking them (and, occasionally, me) to doctors, the flow of her reading today remains at a constant pace, a steady momentum that only she can control.

I don’t really know how she manages to find the time, but she closes herself in, finding “reading time” whenever she can. When she reads about something that really matters to her she might discuss it with me, but most modern novels, some that may be wrongly described as pulp, she leaves to herself.

I don’t mind me telling you she is putting all of us to shame, since we rarely read and looking at words on a page is not really in our blood, despite the fact our Holy Koran has instructed us it to read, and fathom knowledge; even if we have to go to China to acquire it, as the saying goes! Read More »

By Feature Writer | Posted in arts and literature, muslim women | Comments (1)

Exhausted

March 5, 2008 – 9:45 am

From explaining myself to people who believe that being married to a Muslim is similar to being Frankenstein’s bride, or Jack the Ripper’s victim.

How exhausted am I?

Imagine:

Life as a marathon.

A sweaty marathon runner with a cramp. And someone with a terrible nasal voice nagging at her shoulder, lying to her about her shoelaces. Telling her they’ve come untied.

At every mile.

By Feature Writer | Posted in arts and literature, muslim women, society | Comments (0)

Rasha Mahdi: Egyptian Caricaturist

February 10, 2008 – 8:41 am

Rasha Mahdi has been described as the first female Egyptian caricaturist.

In her bio, Ms. Mahdi lists her mother as her source of support in pursuing her goals. She also lists her background in graphic design and advertising. She has done freelance work for a variety of Egyptian publications, so, if you’re in Egypt, she might already be familiar.

Mahdi looks like she is no friend of the George W. Bush administration, though she takes on other subjects just as freely (Osama Bin Laden, Brad Pitt, and Tony Blair among them – personally, I’m a big fan of the Brad Pitt caricature; considering the fact that this man’s perfectly chiseled face has been staring at me from every newsstand). Read More »

By Natalia Antonova | Posted in arts and literature, egypt, humor, muslim women | Comments (2)