By: Eman Imara While browsing the internet, I stumbled upon an unexpected question from a man responding to a girl’s comment, asking, “Why do you accept dating men through dating apps but refuse engagement?” I laughed heartily, initially assuming it was a joke. I didn’t want my expectations to be disappointed, but it turned…
Why don’t women occupy decision-making positions in religious institutions? In the grand mosque of my town, situated in one of the provinces of the Delta, I sit in the area designated for women and notice that the space allocated for them is significantly limited compared to the area reserved for men, separated by a…
Daughters of Abdul-Rahman rebels against the reality of Arab women September 24, 2022 Watching an Arabic film that attempts to tackle numerous feminist issues all at once can often result in a fragmented treatment, as the plot becomes congested with events. However, Daughters of Abdul-Rahman offers a different experience. In this film, the issues…
Unsafe Work Environment for Female Journalists and Civil Society Workers: An Additional Burden and Personal Challenge October 11, 2022 After graduating from the Faculty of Media at Cairo University, I began an internship at the news department of a daily newspaper. My direct supervisor closely monitored my work and training on a daily basis.…
Forge ahead, my dear November 3, 2022 Oumayma, a young Arab woman who relentlessly sought to escape her family’s oppression, remained oblivious to the fact that life had choreographed a splendid spectacle for her, with the future eagerly awaiting her arrival, ready to fling open its doors. All she had to do was…
Reluctantly, I dance. December 23, 2022 “I need God.” These were the words allegedly whispered by the Lebanese dancer, Dany Bustros, to her confidante before she tragically took her own life with a bullet. In the moments leading up to that fateful shot, Dany found herself besieged by financial distress stemming from accumulated losses…
Wealth created by women, claimed by men January 24, 2023 “From 2017 until 2022, he traveled to Qatar. He made around one million Egyptian pounds [approximately $33,000], while I’m stuck here with the children. He used to come every two or three years without realizing the hardships I faced as he worked abroad, which…
The specter of aging that haunts me in my mid-twenties May 31, 2023 Yesterday, I visited my neighbor, a young woman in her twenties—one year older than me—and a mother of three. After welcoming my mother, sister, and me into her home, I was shocked to hear her say to my mom, “May God…
Yasmina Hilal, On Self-Love, Mothers, and Grandmothers April 13, 2023 Yasmina couldn’t truly love herself until she felt that she was an extension of her mother and grandmother. Thus, her latest artwork, ‘I See Myself in You,’ was born. Yasmina sits on a white bed in front of a cotton-candy pink wall. “My grandmother…
The struggles of my little great one October 16, 2022 I was twenty-nine years old, carrying my first child, when I learned that I was expecting a daughter. I couldn’t explain the mixture of conflicting emotions between love and worry. Now, eleven years later, I realize that in my little one, I see my past,…