After I had finished laughing at the desperately fabricated concept of the 72 virgins and the bigoted men who illustriously invented the idea for their own sexual satisfactions, there was a feeling of sorrow and heartbreak for such a beautiful thing to be twisted and corrupted and made revoltingly obscene. And there is also rage--as …
Continue reading Figments of Patriarchal Imagination: 72 Virgins
A warrior. And a teacher, and a mother. She had 2 sons from one marriage, both of whom were killed in battle, and a son and a daughter from a later marriage. She was also involved in the treaties of Aqabah, Al-Hudaybiyah, Khaybar, and Hunayn. The battles in which she fought included the battles of …
Continue reading Islamic History and the Women You Never Hear About: Nusaybah bint Ka’ab
So sometimes I forget that when I go on a reckless rant not everyone knows what I'm talking about. =P I've had a couple of questions from non-Muslims in regards to what this nailpolish thing is all about, and I suspect some were secretly wondering why I seemed to be on the verge of psychotic …
Continue reading Menstruation in Islam (Quick Clarification on Last Post)
It's almost over actually, but someone tweeted today that her mother asked her, "Are you wearing nail polish to announce to the world that you're menstruating?" To which I personally would have answered: Fuck yeah. I'm actually not as fond of nail polish as I am of red lipstick and black eyeliner. What I prefer …
(Fractions of this post were written in the comments section of Feministe, of AlmostClever, and probably other places.) This has been brewing for a while, but today I read a discussion that pushed it over the top. AlmostClever is so lovely and patient, and a much better person than I am for putting up with …
Continue reading You’re wrong: The Interpreting Islam Edition
One of the incredibly inspirational women I follow on Twitter tweeted that her mother in law, who was visiting, had said about her sweet adorable daughter, "I wish the baby was fair like you and not dark like me." And it was heart-breaking. Not only the reality that would be difficult to address with the …
There is an absurd amount of focus on modesty and women when Islam requires that both sexes incorporate modesty into their lifestyles. This is because we live in a patriarchal society in which men believe they have a right to women's bodies--and also because such societies encourage the development of reputation over character: modesty is …
the fatal feminist 