Islam is at the heart of an emerging global anti-hegemonic culture that combines diasporic and local cultural elements, and blends Arab, Islamic, black and Hispanic factors to generate "a revolutionary black, Asian and Hispanic globalization, with its own dynamic counter-modernity constructed in order to fight global imperialism. (say what!)
Monday, January 16, 2012
the meme has mutated (part 2)
Stuff Muslim Women Say Part 1
Sh*t Muslims Say
Sh*t People Say... to Arabs
Sh*t White Girls Say... to Brown (Desi/Indian) Girls
For those who speak Urdu there is
Sh*t Pakistani Girls Say
Saturday, January 14, 2012
the meme has mutated
Here are 3 different Arab/Muslim variants of the Sh*t [fill in the blank] Girls Say meme. I'm actually a little surprised that I could find three. The meme is apparently much more widespread than I realized at first. Many of the clips out there seem to have an intrinsic sexist current (by definition delegitimizing what girls say) which at times is counter-balanced by anti-racism (by criticizing prevailing stereotypes)
Shit White Girls Say...to Arab Girls
Stuff Hijabis Say
And also from zikrayat on tumblr:
Sh*t White Girls Say to Muslim Girls
I definitely was inspired by the Shit White Girls Say…..To Black Girls vid, and I kind of want to make this a video as well. All the following things have been said to me by white American non Muslim friends. It’s not cute, it’s not funny and it’s offensive.
Do you have to wear that thing on your head when you sleep?
SO….where are you from? No I mean, originally…No I mean, your parents….Oh so exotic!
Wow you’re like the only Muslim Italian person I’ve ever met!
Do you shower with your scarf on?
Do…do you have hair?
I like hanging out with you because you’re a “normal” Muslim….do you know what I mean?
I hope you don’t get offended, but you’re like the only normal Muslim I know.
My friends that we are about to hang out with just asked me if you were a crazy Muslim, LOL!
Aren’t you hot? I’d totally die in those layers.
So do you think I’m like an infidel?? Lol, jk, but seriously…
Oh my God your scarves are so unique like where do you buy them.
Let me touch the bump of your hair, wait why can’t I touch it??
(Out in public) LOL what if I just wore a hijab right now! *Throws one on*
It’s the Muslims job to educate me about Islam
Can you help me with my Arabic homework?
And I think Muslims should you know, self police.
(Walking past a police officer) WE GOTTA BOMB HERE OFFICER
Can you set me up with an Arab guy??
I’d totally date an Arab guy but I’d be scared it’d turn into another Not Without My Daughter
So you can’t lie like there is totally oppression in the Middle East…
Wait you’re not Arab? Stop I’m confused….
Pakistan is Arab right LOL
Are you going to have an arranged marriage?
And many more.
Why the "Shit Girls Say" Meme is Sexist, Racist and Should End by Naima Ramos-Chapman
Shit White Girls Say...to Arab Girls
Stuff Hijabis Say
And also from zikrayat on tumblr:
Sh*t White Girls Say to Muslim Girls
I definitely was inspired by the Shit White Girls Say…..To Black Girls vid, and I kind of want to make this a video as well. All the following things have been said to me by white American non Muslim friends. It’s not cute, it’s not funny and it’s offensive.
Do you have to wear that thing on your head when you sleep?
SO….where are you from? No I mean, originally…No I mean, your parents….Oh so exotic!
Wow you’re like the only Muslim Italian person I’ve ever met!
Do you shower with your scarf on?
Do…do you have hair?
I like hanging out with you because you’re a “normal” Muslim….do you know what I mean?
I hope you don’t get offended, but you’re like the only normal Muslim I know.
My friends that we are about to hang out with just asked me if you were a crazy Muslim, LOL!
Aren’t you hot? I’d totally die in those layers.
So do you think I’m like an infidel?? Lol, jk, but seriously…
Oh my God your scarves are so unique like where do you buy them.
Let me touch the bump of your hair, wait why can’t I touch it??
(Out in public) LOL what if I just wore a hijab right now! *Throws one on*
It’s the Muslims job to educate me about Islam
Can you help me with my Arabic homework?
And I think Muslims should you know, self police.
(Walking past a police officer) WE GOTTA BOMB HERE OFFICER
Can you set me up with an Arab guy??
I’d totally date an Arab guy but I’d be scared it’d turn into another Not Without My Daughter
So you can’t lie like there is totally oppression in the Middle East…
Wait you’re not Arab? Stop I’m confused….
Pakistan is Arab right LOL
Are you going to have an arranged marriage?
And many more.
Why the "Shit Girls Say" Meme is Sexist, Racist and Should End by Naima Ramos-Chapman
Friday, January 13, 2012
Thursday, January 12, 2012
black and latino
What does it mean to be black and Latino in the U.S.? Featuring interviews with Latino actors Laz Alonso, Tatyana Ali, Gina Torres, Judy Reyes, singers Christina Milian and Kat DeLuna, journalist Soledad O'Brien and others.
Labels:
afro-caribbean,
afro-cuban,
afro-hispanic,
afro-latino,
black,
black hispanics
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
dhoruba bin wahad / keith ellison
A lively exchange on the nature of effective political change between Rep. Keith Ellison and Dhoruba Bin Wahad. This was actually part of a longer talk by Bin Wahad which took place Feb. 28 of last year, but Ellison happened to be in the audience when Bin Wahad started to criticize the Congressional Black Caucus.
From: Kasama
Labels:
black muslims,
black panthers,
dhoruba bin wahad,
islam,
islam converts,
keith ellison,
palestine,
politics,
race,
racism
Monday, December 26, 2011
habibi
I finally finished Craig Thompson's Habibi and I'm basically left with mixed feelings. On the one hand, especially considering Thompson is a non-Muslim, the work should be viewed as an intricately crafted graphic novel which affectionately and beautifully weaves together islamicate elements into a multi-layered anachronistic narrative. The basic story deals with the life of two slaves, a boy and a girl, who meet as children and move in and out of one another's lives. This main story is then embroidered and echoed by a diverse collection of elements including Quranic and Biblical texts, meditations on Arabic calligraphy, Sufi poetry, alchemical and astrological concepts, Middle Eastern pagan myths, Chinese numerology, and even modern physics. On the other hand, the work is also full of Orientalist cliches and one-dimensional characters (misogynist men in turbans, black eunuchs, half-naked harem girls, flatulent palace officials and horny sultans). Moreover, I don't want to give away any spoilers but I really didn't find the ending very satisfying. Basically the storytelling was stylistically rich and impressive but the characters lacked depth and humanity.
The Hooded Utilitarian: Can the Subaltern Draw?: The Spectre of Orientalism in Craig Thompson’s Habibi
Majjal: Self-Conscious Orientalism in Craig Thompson’s Habibi
The Hooded Utilitarian: A Conversation about Habibi’s Orientalism with Craig Thompson
CBR: Craig Thompson discusses "Habibi"
Wired: Craig Thompson’s Habibi: Gorgeous, a Bit Overwhelming
The Guardian: Habibi by Craig Thompson – review
Islam and Science Fiction: Islam and Sci-Fi Interview of Craig Thompson
The Hooded Utilitarian: Can the Subaltern Draw?: The Spectre of Orientalism in Craig Thompson’s Habibi
Majjal: Self-Conscious Orientalism in Craig Thompson’s Habibi
The Hooded Utilitarian: A Conversation about Habibi’s Orientalism with Craig Thompson
CBR: Craig Thompson discusses "Habibi"
Wired: Craig Thompson’s Habibi: Gorgeous, a Bit Overwhelming
The Guardian: Habibi by Craig Thompson – review
Islam and Science Fiction: Islam and Sci-Fi Interview of Craig Thompson
Labels:
arab,
arabs,
comic books,
comics,
graphic novel,
islam,
islamicate,
middle east,
middle eastern,
orientalism,
slavery
Friday, December 23, 2011
islam, science fiction and afrofuturism
Two new websites I've "discovered" recently:
Afrofutures, an online magazine dedicated to Afrofuturism and related topics, and Islam and Science Fiction: A Website on Islam, Muslims and Science Fiction. The latter site's definition of "science fiction" apparently includes graphic fiction as well which explains their interview with Crag Thompson, the author of Habibi. I'm actually in the middle of Habibi right now. I'm still not sure how I feel about it. Thompson is certainly well-intentioned and Habibi is certainly not as obviously problematic as Frank Miller's Holy Terror but it also isn't totally free of orientalist cliches either. Maybe I'll do a mini-review when I'm done.
Afrofutures, an online magazine dedicated to Afrofuturism and related topics, and Islam and Science Fiction: A Website on Islam, Muslims and Science Fiction. The latter site's definition of "science fiction" apparently includes graphic fiction as well which explains their interview with Crag Thompson, the author of Habibi. I'm actually in the middle of Habibi right now. I'm still not sure how I feel about it. Thompson is certainly well-intentioned and Habibi is certainly not as obviously problematic as Frank Miller's Holy Terror but it also isn't totally free of orientalist cliches either. Maybe I'll do a mini-review when I'm done.
Thursday, December 22, 2011
fbi organizes almost all terror plots in the united states
The FBI has in recent years used trained informants not just to snitch on suspected terrorists, but to set them up from the get-go. A recent report put together by Mother Jones and the Investigative Reporting Program at the University of California-Berkley analyses some striking statistics about the role of FBI informants in terrorism cases that the Bureau has targeted in the decade since the September 11 attacks.RT: FBI organizes almost all terror plots in the US
The report reveals that the FBI regularly infiltrates communities where they suspect terrorist-minded individuals to be engaging with others. Regardless of their intentions, agents are sent in to converse within the community, find suspects that could potentially carry out “lone wolf” attacks and then, more or less, encourage them to do so. By providing weaponry, funds and a plan, FBI-directed agents will encourage otherwise-unwilling participants to plot out terrorist attacks, only to bust them before any events fully materialize.
Additionally, one former high-level FBI officials speaking to Mother Jones says that, for every informant officially employed by the bureau, up to three unofficial agents are working undercover.
The FBI has used those informants to set-up and thus shut-down several of the more high profile would-be attacks in recent years. The report reveals that the Washington DC Metro bombing plot, the New York City subway plot, the attempt to blow up Chicago’s Sears Tower and dozens more were all orchestrated by FBI agents. In fact, reads the report, only three of the more well-known terror plots of the last decade weren’t orchestrated by FBI-involved agents.
The report reveals that in many of the stings, important meetings between informants and the unknowing participants are left purposely unrecorded, as to avoid any entrapment charges that could cause the case to be dismissed. Perhaps the most high-profile of the FBI-proposed plots was the case of the Newburgh 4. Around an hour outside of New York City, an informant infiltrated a Muslim community and engaged four local men to carry out a series of attacks. Those men may have never actually carried out an attack, but once the informant offered them a plot and a pair of missiles, they agreed. Defense attorneys cried “entrapment,” but the men still were sentenced to 25 years apiece.
"The problem with the cases we're talking about is that defendants would not have done anything if not kicked in the ass by government agents," Martin Stolar tells Mother Jones. Stolar represented the suspect involved in a New York City bombing plot that was set-up by FBI agents. "They're creating crimes to solve crimes so they can claim a victory in the war on terror."
Project Censored: FBI Agents Responsible for Majority of Terrorist Plots in the United States
Friday, December 16, 2011
Thursday, December 15, 2011
put your money where your morals are
By now you've probably heard about the controversy surrounding the reality show, All-American Muslim and Lowe's decision to pull out as an advertiser in response to Islamophobic pressure from the Florida Family Association. At the moment it seems that Lowe's and Kayak.com are the only companies who admit that they've been pressured into dropping their ads from the show, but the Florida Family Association claims to have influenced a much longer list of companies:
The American Muslim: American Companies Accused of Joining the All-American Anti-Muslim Bandwagon - updated 12/14
MPAC: Action Alert: Stop Bigots From Pressuring Advertisers For TLC’s ‘All-American Muslim’
Loonwatch: All-American Muslim: Kayak Executive Robert Birge Issues World’s Worst “Apology” Ever
The idea of boycotting Lowe's, Kayak.com and the rest of the companies has got me thinking more broadly about the ethical implications of our purchasing decisions. Depending on the issues which are important to you (e.g. labor practices, support for Israel or other regimes, animal cruelty, genetic modification, sustainability, other environmental impacts, sweatshops, use of pesticides, etc.) it can be a challenge to go to the store without being complicit in one kind of wrongdoing or another. (There are even some smart phone apps out there to help you navigate as you shop)
Some other resources you may want to look at are:
Ethical Consumer: List of Active Boycotts
Palestinian Boycott Divest Sanction National Committee
AFL-CIO National Boycott List
Muslim Yellow Pages
The big picture lesson seems to be that small, locally-based, independent businesses are generally better than impersonal chains.
3M (Command, Scotchbrand tape),
Airborne Vitamin,
Amway, (says it has been misrepresented)
Anheuser Busch Inbev (Select55),
Art Instruction Schools, (says it has been misrepresented)
Bamboozles,
Bank of America (Cash Rewards), (says it has been misrepresented)
Bare Escentuals,
Brother International (Ptouch),
Campbell’s Soup, (says it has been misrepresented)
Capital One,
Church & Dwight (Oxi Clean, Arm & Hammer),
City Furniture,
Conagra (Hunt’s Diced Tomatoes),
Corinthian Colleges (Everst411),
Cotton, Inc.,
Cumberland Packing (Sweet’N Low), (says it has been misrepresented)
Dell computers,
Diamond Foods (Kettlebrand Chips),
Estee Lauder (Clinique),
ET Browe (Palmer’s Cocoa butter),
Gap, (says it has been misrepresented)
General Motors (Chevy Runs Deep),
Good Year,
Green Mountain Coffee, (says it has been misrepresented)
Guthy Renker (Proactiv),
Hershey kisses,
Home Depot, (says it has been misrepresented)
Honda North America,
HTC Phones,
Ikea,
JC Penney,
JP Morgan Chase (Chase Sapphire),
Kayak.com (admits to cancelling ads)
Kellogg (Special K),
Koa Brands (John Frieda),
Leapfrog Enterprise (Leapster Explorer),
Lowe’s (admits to cancelling ads) *** now removed from list on FFA site with no explanation
Mars (Dove Chocolate),
McDonald’s, now removed from list on FFA site with no explanation
Nationwide Insurance,
News Corp (We bought a zoo movie),
Nintendo (Mariokartz.com),
Novartis (Theraflu),
Old Navy,
Pernod Ricard (Kahlua),
Petsmart,
Pier One,
Pfizer (Centrum vitamin),
Procter & Gamble (Align Probiotic, Crest, Febreze, Mr. Clean Magic Eraser, Pur, Tide),
Progressive Insurance,
Prudential Financial,
Radio Shack,
Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse,
SC Johnson (Drano, Glade, Scrubbing Bubbles),
Sears (says it has been misrepresented)
Signet (Kay Jewelers),
Sonic Drive-ins,
Subaru,
THQ (uDraw),
T-Mobil,
Toyota (Camry),
Volkswagen,
Vtech (Mobi Go, V Reader),
Wal-Mart
Whirlpool (Maytag) (says it has been misrepresented) now removed from list on FFA site with no explanation
The American Muslim: American Companies Accused of Joining the All-American Anti-Muslim Bandwagon - updated 12/14
MPAC: Action Alert: Stop Bigots From Pressuring Advertisers For TLC’s ‘All-American Muslim’
Loonwatch: All-American Muslim: Kayak Executive Robert Birge Issues World’s Worst “Apology” Ever
The idea of boycotting Lowe's, Kayak.com and the rest of the companies has got me thinking more broadly about the ethical implications of our purchasing decisions. Depending on the issues which are important to you (e.g. labor practices, support for Israel or other regimes, animal cruelty, genetic modification, sustainability, other environmental impacts, sweatshops, use of pesticides, etc.) it can be a challenge to go to the store without being complicit in one kind of wrongdoing or another. (There are even some smart phone apps out there to help you navigate as you shop)
Some other resources you may want to look at are:
Ethical Consumer: List of Active Boycotts
Palestinian Boycott Divest Sanction National Committee
AFL-CIO National Boycott List
Muslim Yellow Pages
The big picture lesson seems to be that small, locally-based, independent businesses are generally better than impersonal chains.
Labels:
boycott,
labor,
occupy wall street,
politics
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
imagine! china invades america! or "why do they hate us?"
This is amazing (except for the very last frame). If they could just find a way to genetically splice Ron Paul and the Rent is Too Damn High guy, he would be the perfect candidate.
Also see Loonwatch's: Eye-Opening Graphic: Map of Muslim Countries that the U.S. and Israel Have Bombed
many can be religious... you ain't spiritual
For more from Muslim blogger/artist, Mickey Boston / Big Brosky he shares some of his religious orientation in: Many can be Religious…you ain’t Spiritual
latin america's message to the arab world
Al Jazeera: Latin America's message to the Arab world by Pepe Escobar
Latin Americans should share their experiences with democratisation with other countries in the global South.
Latin Americans should share their experiences with democratisation with other countries in the global South.
Labels:
arab,
arab spring,
arabs,
latin america,
politics
Friday, December 09, 2011
"afro-trini muslims are zealots"
In a recent interview with the Trinidad Guardian, Imam Hydal (of the Ahmadiyya community) discusses Islamic extremism in Trinidad & Tobago. His comments are interesting but I wish he had been more responsible in his words. He frames the problem of extremism in very binary terms. On the one hand you have good "docile" Desi Indo-Trini peaceful Muslims. And on the other hand, you have extremist Saudi-trained zealot convert Afro-Trini Muslims.
The interview raises all sorts of issues in terms of racism among Muslims, ownership and authority in Islam, "traditional" interpretations versus "Salafi/Wahabi" interpretations, and other questions. It will be interesting to see if the story sparks a thoughtful response in the Trini media.
The interview raises all sorts of issues in terms of racism among Muslims, ownership and authority in Islam, "traditional" interpretations versus "Salafi/Wahabi" interpretations, and other questions. It will be interesting to see if the story sparks a thoughtful response in the Trini media.
Labels:
afro-caribbean,
caribbean,
islam,
muslim,
racism,
salafi,
tobago,
trinidad,
wahabi,
west indes
Monday, December 05, 2011
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