Living Islam Out Loud: American Muslim Women Speak
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Living Islam Out Loud presents the first true generation of American Muslim women who have always identified as both American and Muslim. Without previous examples of how to be American Muslim women, these pioneers have had to forge new identities for themselves and for future generations. Writing from diverse experiences and perspectives, the contributors include Sarah El-Tantawi, who has spoken on Muslim issues on Politically Incorrect and Hardball, and Asra Nomani, a former reporter for the Wall Street Journal. These voices, among others, speak out about the hijab (a traditional headscarf), relationships, sex and sexuality, activism, spirituality, and more. Publishers Weekly Muslim activist Abdul-Ghafur edits this book of essays and poems, all related to the experience of growing up Muslim and female in the United States. Two of the best and most absorbing essays come from African-American women: Khadijah Sharif-Drinkard, who grew up in Harlem and became a successful corporate attorney and public servant, and Precious Rasheeda Muhammad, who describes her childhood in the Nation of Islam as a dynamic, educational experience. But the tone of some of the other contributors can be whiny. Many seem marked by tragedy, varying from things unrelated to Islam (having an autistic child) to tensions arising from ethnic cultures (marrying a non-Muslim, enduring abusive semiarranged marriages). Some of the authors engage in vague spiritual discussions about the omnipresence of God and compare Islam to a forest, with male chauvinism being the weeds in the forest, but their ideas are too abstract to enhance one's understanding of Islamic spirituality. As with many anthologies, there is some repetition of ideas, not only within the book itself but also echoing themes from the authors' previous writings. Although the contributions are uneven, this anthology opens the door for other writers to explore the important and understudied topic of Muslim American women. (Sept.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.
Saleemah's story7Pt. ICrossroads17How I met God19To be young, gifted, black, American, Muslim, and woman36Pt. IILove51Remembering love53My own worst enemy55Marrying a believer67Finding home72Fumbling toward ecstasy75On the edge of belonging86Pt. IIIThe strongest of faith95A day in the life97Hijra from Harlem116The Muslim in the mirror130Being the leader I want to see in the world139An Islamic bill of rights for women in mosques153An Islamic bill of rights for women in the bedroom155Pt. IVSoul journeys157A meditation on the clearing159A siren song174Blessed divine woman181My son the mystic184My sister's prayer199
