oops I mixed up my captions here...sorry :)

A woman cooking...yeah I know I have alot of pics of women cooking but I love FOOD! And I am usually hungry when I post these...hahahahha

People by a car...

A feast...

Today my pics of of the Chinese Muslims of Xinjiang, who are living in persecution. I beg my readers to please follow up on this and do your own research, and learn the autrocities (spelling?) that are occuring there.

P.S. I recommend the movie Dev for all you Bollywood lovers, really good movie! And I love the soundtrack!

I found the article!!! It is called the Qur'an vs. The Bible by Kenneth L. Woodward...and what I was going to say was that there are lots of stuff that the article has that are inaccurate. Some of the examples are that it claims that the Qur'an only mentions ONE women, Maryam, the mother of Esa (Mary, mother of Jesus), but that is not true! It mentions Hawwa, (Eve) and many other women (The Queen of Sheba, etc.) And alsooooo, there is a comment that the Bible doesn't mention Abraham's father. I thought that it did? Am I mistaken? Anyways, the entire mood of the article is that Islam is militant and bad, and that we just go around killing the "infidels" or whatever. I don't know, I think I am getting tired of complaining about this all, because I know it doesn't do any good, and I feel like I am whining, but I really feel hopeless, and I wish I had a voice to speak out about this. But no one listens. :(

a lovely head scarf...

Some beautiful hats...

Another lady...

Another interesting head covering and a lovely house...

A woman with a very unique head covering...

These are kids from Kyrgyzstan.

A group of Omani women...

This woman is covering her face, as some Omani women traditionally do.

An Omani Girl...

Today's Muslim Country is Oman. Here is an Omani Policewoman.

Here is the Prime Minister of Bangladesh...Begum Zia. That's right, a woman runs the country and it's a Muslim Country!

Another Bengali Woman...

Here's todays images of Muslim Women in Muslim Countries..today is Bangladesh. Here are some Bengali Women...

These women I think are in a tribe...

I LOVE this picture and I wish I could dress like that...ooooo so pretty!

Another one....

Another Uzbek woman

I've decided to start posting images of Muslim women in different countries so that people can see the difference in what we wear and people can see how different we all are. My first country is the wonderful, beautiful Uzbekistan. Please not the different ways women cover their head too. This first image is a little fuzzy I think

This is just a reminder to myself: Since I am writing a series on Women's rights in Islam....I want to talk about Polygamy in Islam, but right now I have to write a paper for school, so I don't have time. Oh yeah, and I found that article I was talking about...Newsweek, Feb. 2002, "Qur'an vs. the Bible." But right now I don't have time to write about it.

Hahahahahahhahaha OhMyGosh!!! HAHAHAHahahahahah....I just found this blog called Anti-CAIR....and it is the funniest thing. I cannot believe that someone would actually write that stuff. Doesn't anyone actually worry about if they write LIES on a blog and someone exposing them? I know for a fact that some of the quotes that they are claiming that CAIR representatives "said" are completely made up! I get a daily newsletter from CAIR for one thing, I am a member of CAIR, and I am the President of the Muslim Student's Association in my University and I have worked with CAIR alot in the past. Am I a terrorist because I am a member of CAIR?! HAHAHAHAHhHAHAHAHAHAHAhahhahahahahahahaha. That is the most ridiculous thing....gasp....I ever heard. hahahahahahah. (I am seriously dying of laughter right now) I didn't get a chance to really read through the web site, but I know that it is doctored becuase some of the things that I briefly saw I could tell had been manipulated...such as these quotes. I am really in awe at the complete stupidity and also the BLATANT LYING! Have you no shame? How do you look at yourself in the mirror in the morning? And how does it feel to be so consumed with HATRED that you've actually taken time out of your life to create a website based on it. It must be a pretty bleak life...I actually feel VERY sorry for whoever it is that wrote that. I almost wanted to write something to him/her, but couldn't find a place to post it, and then realized "what's the point?" why should I waste precious moments of my life even saying anything? It will only add fuel to the fire. I think that IGNORANCE is the main culprit here. You can't blame someone for hating you if they are completely in the dark about you...it's not ME they hate, I suppose, it's what they THINK they "know" about me. It's really sad, but with a media like ours, I can't believe it would be any other way. I am now going to go on a crusade, watching out for media that is posting LIES about Islam, and I will state WHY it's a lie. I have to clear our name somehow...The first victim of my crusade is a magazine article I read about 2 years ago, called the Bible Vs. the Qur'an. I think it was in Business week or News week or something. I remember it vaguely, and it had some completly wrong info which I will clarify, once I find that article....

I am so tired of all the hate. What is up with the world? And I know that this whole question has been asked a million times before, but seriously. I think I have to say that this is the most PETTY and CHILDISH thing ever. People who hate. Especially about Religion, but really about anything, skin color, etc. I was just cruising around the internet, minding my own business, and you will not believe how many sites I found that are slandering Muslims and Islam (and by the way, I'd like to ask most of them where they get their info, becuase it's laughably wrong. Once I read this article by an accredited magazine and it used a quote from the Qur'an that I'd never heard of before. I tried to look it up and there wasn't even a chapter of the Qur'an by that name! Whatever happened to checking sources? ) And as far as that goes, there are also plenty of sites out there against Christians and Jews. This is ridiculous. Correct me if I am wrong, but doesn't the idea of hurting another human being go directly against all 3 of our religions?? What... did God add a little asterisk there that said there were some exceptions to the rule? It's just plain rude, people. Sometimes it actually makes me cry. Are you happy? Is that what you want? To lower me as a person? To humiliate me? Everyday, I have to face the glares, and the ridiculously stupid comments and the whispers when I walk past people on the street and they see me in a head scarf. But I guess that wasn't enough for you. I guess you wanna kick me while I'm down and spit on me too. Okay. That's fine. I am just really sad that we all keep saying we're so freaking RELIGIOUS and then we tear each other apart every chance we can get.

The Virgin Mary...is that a head covering I see?

A Nun- A Christian woman covering her hair because of her religion. Oppressed?

What is the difference between these three pictures?

And one more thing before I forget...about Inheritance in the Qur'an. Someone brought this up to me the other day and was trying to argue with me and how this shows that Islam is very backward and anti-woman. Ok, in the Qur'an, a women inherits 1/2 of what a man inherits. Now, looking at this from afar, it may seem REALLY unfair. But let me explain. ALSO in Islam, a man is SUPPOSED to support his family (i.e. wife, kids, mother and father, etc.) Whatever he earns, he HAS to put towards caring for his family. EVERYTHING. Now, if a Woman has a job, than anything and EVERYTHING that she earns, she can legally keep for herself. She does not, under Islamic Law, put it towards her kids, or whatever. (Not that any of us are that selfish, but it IS legal, since that is assuming she has a working husband who already does support her kids). Therefore, if a man inherits 100 acres of land from his father, any of the money he makes off this land, he legally has to use to support his family. Then his sister inherits 50 acres. Any and all of that profit she gets off that land is HERS. She can do whatever she wants with it. See? The woman has it better off than the man. You have to look closer at these laws in order to understand them. It's easy to criticize unless you see the whole picture!

And as for you Christians, does it not say in your Bible: Hatred stirreth up strifes; but Love covereth all sins...Proverbs 10:12. Yes, it may be surprising, but I DO know a thing or two about the Bible. So stop the hatin' and the judgin'. For I believe it also says in the Bible: Judge not, and ye shall not be judged; Condemn not and ye shall not be condemned; forgive and ye shall be forgiven. Luke, 6:37

We need to step back, put down our guns, our bombs, etc. We need to go back to Islam. We need to be peaceful. In the end, the true villians will be seen. People will begin to see who the real Bad Guy is. And besides, in the end, Allah is the true judge of men. Those that deserve their just reward will get it. Have we forgotten that?? Have we lost our faith in Allah's judgement?? Slowly we are forgetting Islam, and replacing it with ANGER and HATRED. Two things that are not in Islam. Two things that will one day destroy the world. And only when we become TRUE muslims, will we live in peace and harmony.

There are hundreds of laws in Islam that are being misrepresented or directly broken by the very judicial system that is supposed to uphold them. Yes, I do believe in a country being controlled by Shariah law. I think that this would be the best possible country, the most peaceful, and pure and fair. But so far, I do not believe that any country today is being ruled under Pure Shariah Law. And this shames me. When some American can come up to me, and say "Look what you people do to your own women! How can you be a muslim!" it stabs me in the heart. I try to explain that this is not Islam, but the question is, why isn't it? If we all call ourselves Muslims, than we should ACT like Muslims. I shouldn't have to defend myself and my religion 24/7 just because some MEN somewhere think that the only answer is to blow up the whole damn world. An eye for an eye only makes the whole world blind. Gandhi said that. We as Muslims should take a look at Gandhi and his fight with nonviolence. When you FIGHT back with violence, they (Israel, USA, Britain, etc...) can just say "Look, the Muslims LOVE violence, they are a violent people...we have to civilize them. We have to get rid of them..." It only give them reason...

As for beating your wife, this is NOT in the Qur'an. At least not in the context that some "scholars" claim that it is. And in the Hadith as well, there is nothing about beating your wife. Quite the contrary. Once, the Prophet (saw) was asked about beating your wife. He said that if you choose to beat your wife, beat her with a swak. For those of you who don't know what a swak is, it's a sort of toothbrush. It is made from a very thin peice of, I think, bark?? It looks sort of like those really thin incence sticks. What he was trying to say here is...DON'T BEAT YOUR WIFE!!! It's a little bit of sarcasm!! Like, if you're going to beat someone, beat them with a tissue. See? You can't really BEAT someone with a swak!! But alot of people are really splitting hairs here by saying that that means you can beat your wife. Here's a story to back up my case: Once a man, who had sinned a great many sins, came across a dog who was dying of thirst. The dog was hanging around a well of water, but couldn't get into the well to get some. The man, taking mercy on the dog, took of his shoe and filled it with water for the dog. Allah forgave the man of all his sins, because he had treated one of Allah's creatures with mercy and compassion. Is not a woman better than a dog?? Should not a woman be treated with mercy and compassion. This is Islam. Beating your wife is not!

Ok, I'm back again to continue my discussion on Women's Rights in Islam. I have decided to dedicate my life (however difficult this may be) to fighting for the rights of my sisters in countries that have severly restricted their existence. Now I had mentioned previously that yes, American's (I suppose) cannot solely be blamed for this ridiculous "image" that they adhere to of Muslim women. I can see how some of this stereotype would indeed be created based on what is happening in some countries. However, THIS IS NOT, and I repeat, NOT ISLAM!! The Prophet (salla lahu alaihi wa salaam) put a stop to so many backward practices such as female infanticide. (the killing of innocent female babies) because Allah T'ala created female just as he created man. And a baby is the creation of Allah, regardless of gender. No one has the right to take another's life...only Allah prescribes the day when we will enter this world and the day when we will leave it. To kill another is to consider yourself as powerful as Allah, which is Haraam (bad, very bad). So when, in certain countries, people are angered by the birth of a daughter, or they mistreat their daughters, they are committing a great sin. There are MANY Hadith that state what a reward it is to have a daughter and to treat her well. There is one Hadith I can think of off the top of my head that states that if you have 3 daughters and treat them right, then you will surely go to Paradise (inshallah).

Now, I'm really going with this, but I have to stop because I have to go somewhere. But, If I remember later, I will continue this discussion on Women's rights in Islam, along with some more examples of direct defiance of this by Islamic governments. And I use the term Islamic here, rather loosley.

One word. Illiteracy. (Hope I spelled that right). For instance, in Saudi Arabia in 1975, the literacy rate of women was 4%. Now, grant it, that WAS 1975, but in most of the Middle East the situation hasn't improved much these days eiter. It is usually between 30% and 50% depending on the country. (Which, I might add, is ANOTHER thing going against the Qur'an. The Qur'an states that Women and Men should be created equal. It also states that Knowledge is one of the most important things in our religion, therefore making education one of the best things you can do, and continue to do throughout your life-I'll find direct verses if I need to in order to back this up.) Look, if you don't know what the Qur'an says because you can't read it, than how are you going to know the rights you have that are clearly stated in it?? I know this for sure, because I have an example to give you...my fiance is from Bangladesh. He has read the whole Qur'an, in ARABIC. Sounds impressive right? Well, here's the clincher. He can't speak Arabic!! So, while he was reading it in Arabic, he had no clue what he was reading (this is common in alot of non-Arab countries). So he has NEVER read the Qur'an. I have. In both Arabic AND English. He has gotten into alot of arguments with me about Islamic practices, stating that it is written in the Qur'an. I for one know that it isn't written in the Qur'an, and will therefore remind him that he has never actually read the Qu'r'an, so how the heck does he know??! If I told you I had a million dollars in my pocket, would you believe me if you didn't see it for yourself??

OK, SO here is the cold hard truth: Islam brought so many rights to women that Muslim women were living better than their counterparts in Europe for centuries. Here's the kicker. Over time, "Muslim" governments have been inching little by little away from Islam and Shariah law that eventually many of the women that live under these governments have lost everything gained to them. For instance, can you tell me where it says in Shariah law that you can divorce your wife and throw her out on the street and never speak to her again? (And then the same idiots that make this the rule don't allow the poor women to get a job...what the heck is she supposed to do? Is food going to fall out of the sky?) No! This is not Shariah. A man is supposed to provide compensation for a women after he divorces her so that she can support herself. Unless she remarries or her family takes her back he is supposed to continue to support her with money. And besides, what about the freaking dowry?? In alot of countries, the BRIDE'S family has to pay a dowry to the groom's. What Qur'an were they reading anyway?? A man is supposed to give a dowry for the Bride, and that money is her's to keep forever, to spend however she likes. I know Shariah law, guys. Noone could pull that crap over on me and get away with it. So why (you might ask) are these women going along with it...I'll tell you why....but hang on, i have to post this blog...

Ok, so I think that I have finally reached my wits end. I am soooo tired on American Stereotypes of Submissive Muslim Women that it is going to drive me to drink (and that's against my RELIGION!) (Disclaimer: I actually will never willingly drink alcohol as Allah is my witness...) So I have done alot of thinking. I've done alot of brainstorming, and I think I have come up with some answers. Why do American's stereotype Muslim women?? Many reasons. First off, the Media plays a major role in this. Second off, I think that alot of American women are freaked out at the idea that any woman would actually think of a hijab as a feminist symbol of their equality with men (sounds weird? Well it's true!) but most of all, and I really hate to admit this, because I am ashamed of it, alot of Muslim women ARE subjugated and mistreated. Now, this doesn't mean that Islam has anything to do with it. Quite the contrary! Hang on, I have to post this blog...if I'm idle too long, my computer does some freaky deaky stuff...

Ok, so I think that I have finally reached my wits end. I am soooo tired on American Stereotypes of Submissive Muslim Women that it is going to drive me to drink (and that's against my RELIGION!) (Disclaimer: I actually will never willingly drink alcohol as Allah is my witness...) So I have done alot of thinking. I've done alot of brainstorming, and I think I have come up with some answers. Why do American's stereotype Muslim women?? Many reasons. First off, the Media plays a major role in this. Second off, I think that alot of American women are freaked out at the idea that any woman would actually think of a hijab as a feminist symbol of their equality with men (sounds weird? Well it's true!) but most of all, and I really hate to admit this, because I am ashamed of it, alot of Muslim women ARE subjugated and mistreated. Now, this doesn't mean that Islam has anything to do with it. Quite the contrary! Hang on, I have to post this blog...if I'm idle too long, my computer does some freaky deaky stuff...

OH yeah! I also wanted to say that I am reading the book "White Teeth"right now by Zadie Smith and it is the funniest book ever!! I can't put it down. It's hilarious. It's an ironic, sarcastic and humorous look at immigrants in London (Bengali and Jamaican) and how they interact with each other in various generations and also how they interact with the English around them. Funny! MUST READ!

Um, yeah. I just wanted to say that I recently saw Fahrenheit (sp?) 9-11 and it was GREAT! I saw it twice...it was so disturbing and depressing though. Afterwards I felt so hopeless...like everything was so messed up and we were all screwed and there was no solutions. But it was definetly a must see for all Americans, espescially so close to election time. If George W. Bush gets elected again, I will keel over from shock right there is the spot. No warning...just keel over. Only Allah know what will happen to our country then. Only Allah knows.