As a child, I grew up in a world that was part fantasy and part reality. I was very visual, and my mind would often wander as I looked at objects, observed patterns, and listened to conversations. I gained a particular interest in observing people and the way they behave. My mother took me along […]
Category Archives: Women’s Roles and Situations
My Feminism between the USA and the UAE
Feminism Is Too Strong of a Word I did not identify myself as a feminist until fairly recently. Growing up, I always had the image of a feminist as an angry men-hating, bra-burning, refusing-to-shave-her-legs woman. I have since been enlightened- according to recent research, there are numerous self-identified feminists who have never burned a bra […]
Humanity transcends
In the Greenaway Art Gallery GAGPROJECTS exhibit at Art Dubai 2015, four circles of equivalent size were hung on a wall. These were Persian daf, drums made from goatskin stretched over wooden frames, which had been re-imagined as light-boxes by the artist Nasim Nasr. Each goatskin drum became a canvas for a different image, with […]
Slam Poem of Women
I’ve been tryna write a song about women for a while Sifting through my mind’s cabinet for the gender file When I looked back at it today I found out the vile Truth that my perceptions were mere deceptions and I was in denial The file was sabotaged, scribbled with faulty illustrations Of a […]
The Skinny, the Average, and the Curvy: Confessions of Bullied Bodies
By: Sana Kamal and Mirna Alsharif The Women and Gender in the Middle East class at the American University in Dubai (AUD) held a workshop on women’s bodies. The workshop explored the societal standards that women are urged to adopt when it comes to their bodies. Dr. Pamela Chrabieh, Professor of women and gender studies […]
How I re-discovered Feminism
I It was a Wednesday afternoon, a day before the weekend started. But, it was also my third consecutive year walking the same campus grounds. It started to feel like a routine to me more than anything else; weekdays are not but mere anticipation for the weekends and the weekends are spent dreading the […]
Breaking Stereotypes
I am Ermida Koduah, a young woman from New York City. This spring I studied in the American University in Dubai. Taking the Women & Gender in the Middle East course this semester has helped me view the Middle East in a more positive way. I see the similarities between here and my own culture, […]
Women and Ambition: Don't you Dare Reach for the Stars
Growing up I remember watching a very popular Egyptian play by the name of Madraset el Moshaghbeen. The play tells a story about a classroom of boys who have been labeled misfits due to their low academic level and behavioral issues. Most teachers who attempt to teach this class of students quit after a few […]
Attache-moi?
On en a trop parlé de ce sujet qui nous turlupine à un point tel de nous donner un vertige tenace. La femme libanaise, ses joues refaites, ses rondeurs surfaites, son 4×4 avançant contre vents et marées (de pauvres bagnoles qui pétaradent sur l’autoroute) avec l’envie cuisante d’arriver à point à ce rendez-vous de beauté… […]
عودة
لماذا لا تبكي فتصبح ساقية مساري نحو آنية المستحيل؟ لماذا لا تسامر من لا يعرف من اسمي سوى شذا الكذب يملأ يدَي رجلٍ كرهه روّاد مقاهي الميناء فاستنشق عبير الغَيب، وغرق في آخر بطاقةٍ حملت آخر كلماتي؟ لماذا لا تضع كيودي العديدة بين صفحات مذكراتك فتغدو ملاذاً لأنفس شوارعنا تحملها القطط الضالة تلعقها الكلاب الشاردة […]