Infidel | 
pickAn incredible story of a woman‘s resilience in the face of oppressive Islamic faith. This story truly opened my eyes to the reality of what it means to be an Islamic woman and how some western cultures are not helping them move forward. Having studied religion and female oppression extensively, I found this book gave a pure-voiced clarity about what I already feared for Islamic women
This was a moving read by a strong woman.
#Threat #ScaryFebruary
@MatchlessMarie
pickI‘ve wanted to read this for years, and now I finally have. It was very good, also heart breaking. I agree that everyone has the right to have their own religion. But when it becomes harmful to others, there is a problem. If the religion must be kept, reform it so no one is harmed. Mentally, physically, all of it. As an atheist, I criticize all religions and encourage critical thinking, questioning. Ayaan is brave. Womxn thank you, Ayaan!
I am told that Submission is too aggressive a film. Its criticism of Islam is apparently too painful for Muslims to bear. Tell me, how much more painful is it to be these women, trapped in that cage?
Shown: Theo Van Gogh, who helped Ayaan with the 10min film, ‘Submission, Part 1‘—part 2 was never shot because Theo was murdered. Watch the film here: https://youtu.be/6rS8FJyX3gs
In Saudi Arabia, every breath, every step we took, was infused with concepts of purity or sinning, and with fear. Wishful thinking about the peaceful tolerance of Islam cannot interpret away this reality: hands are still cut off, women still stoned and enslaved, just as the Prophet Muhammad decided centuries ago.
Shown: The religious police of Saudi Arabia: Hay‘a
It is always difficult to make the transition to a modern world. It was difficult for my grandmother, all my relatives. It was difficult for me, too. I moved from the world of faith to the world of reason—from the world of excision, forced marriage to the world of sexual emancipation. Having made that journey, I know one of those worlds is simply better than the other. Not because of its flashy gadgets, but fundamentally, because of its values.
The kind of thinking I saw in Saudi Arabia, and among the Muslim Brotherhood in Kenya and Somalia, is incompatible with human rights and liberal values. It preserves a feudal mindset based on tribal concepts of honor and shame. It rests on self-deception, hypocrisy, and double standards.
Societies that respect the rights of women and their freedom are wealthy and peaceful.
💯💯💯💯
Just looking at it, just wanting to read it—I that already meant I doubted, and I knew that. Before I read four pages I already knew my answer. I had left God behind years ago. I was an atheist. I looked in the mirror and said out loud “I don‘t believe in God.” And I felt relief. It felt right. There was no pain, but a real clarity. My moral compass was within myself, not in the pages of a book.
I know the feeling!!! It‘s like…wings 🖤🌈
I found myself thinking that the Quran is not a holy document. It is a historical record, written by humans. It is one version of events, as perceived by the men who wrote it 150 years after the Prophet Mohammed died. And it is a very tribal and Arab version of events. It spreads a culture that is brutal, bigoted, fixated on controlling women, and harsh in war.
We Muslims suppressed the freedom to think for ourselves and to act as we chose. We froze the moral outlook of billions of people into the mindset of the Arab desert in the seventh century. We were not just servants of Allah, we were slaves.
(It‘s time for an update!!!!)
I spoke sharply. I said Divine Law wouldn‘t be fair to everyone who wasn‘t Muslim. Even within Islam, not everyone thought the same way. Who would make the law? I told my father, “The rule of clerics is totalitarian. It means people can‘t choose. Humanity is varied, and we should celebrate that instead of suppressing it.”
The next morning, I decided to stage an experiment. I would walk out of the door without a headscarf. I was in my long green skirt, long tunic, and I had my scarf in a bag with me in case of trouble, but I would not cover my hair. I planned to see what would happen. I was sweating. This was really haram. Absolutely nothing happened. The gardeners kept trimming the hedges. Nobody went into a fit. Not one man went into a frenzy.
After a little while I took my coat off; I thought I might stick out less. I still had on a headscarf and a long skirt, but it was the most uncovered I had been in public for many years. And yet I felt anonymous. There was no social control here. No eyes silently accused me of being a whore. No lecherous men called me to bed with them. No Brotherhood members threatened me with hellfire. I felt safe; I could follow my curiosity.
The safest way to cause no harm to anyone seemed to be to avoid contact with any men at all times and just stay in the house. A man‘s sinful erotic thoughts were always the fault of the woman who incited them. One day, I finally stood up and asked, “What about the men? Shouldn‘t they cover? Don‘t women also have desire for male bodies? Couldn‘t they be tempted by the sight of men‘s skin?” It seemed logical to me, but the whole room laughed.
Even when all women had been covered completely from head to toe, another line of thought was opened. For this was not enough. High heels tapped and could trigger in men the image of a woman‘s legs; to avoid sin, women must wear flat shoes that make no noise. Next came perfume: using any kind of pleasant fragrance, even perfumed soap and shampoo, would distract the minds of men from Allah‘s worship and cause them to fantasize about sinning.
I went to Sister Aziza and said, “The other girls won‘t become Muslims. Their parents have taught them other religions. It isn‘t their fault, and I don‘t think it‘s fair that they‘ll burn in Hell.” Sister Aziza told me I was wrong. Through me, Allah had given them a choice. If these girls rejected the true religion, then it was right that they should burn.
Religion makes PERFECT sense!!!!🤔🧐 #atheist
Sister Aziza told us about the Jews. She described them in such a way that I imagined them as physically monstrous: they had horns on their heads, and noses so large they stuck right out of their faces like great beaks. Devils and djinns literally flew out of their heads to mislead Muslims and spread evil. Everything that went wrong was the fault of the Jews.
😩😩😩
If a woman aroused a man who was not her husband, she was sinning doubly in God‘s eyes, by leading the man into temptation and evil thoughts to match her own. Only the robe worn by the wives of the Prophet could prevent us from arousing men and leading society into fitna, uncontrollable confusion and social chaos.
f u c k t h a t
It was a normal, routine thing: after the Friday noon prayer you could go home for lunch, or you could go and watch the executions. Hands were cut off. Men were flogged. Women were stoned. In the late 1970s, Saudi Arabia was booming, but though the price of oil was tugging the country‘s economy into the modern world, its society seemed fixed in the Middle Ages.
😩😩😩horrific
All the women in this country were covered in black. They were humanlike shapes. You could see which way they were looking only by the direction their shoes pointed. We could tell they were women because the lady who was holding our hands tightly to prevent us from wandering off was covered in black, too. You could see her face, because she was Somali. Saudi women had no faces.
😔💔
A woman who is baarri is like a pious slave. She honors her husband‘s family, feeds them without question. She never makes demands of any kind. She is strong in service, but her head is bowed. If her husband is cruel, if he rapes her, taunts her about it, if he decides to take another wife, or beats her, she lowers her gaze and hides her tears. And she works hard, faultlessly. She is a devoted, welcoming, well-trained work animal. This is baarri💔
People ask me if I have some kind of death wish, to keep saying the things I do. The answer is no: I would like to keep living. However, some things must be said, and there are times when silence becomes an accomplice to injustice.
pick41 of 2021. Day 8 book 5 for #marvellousmarch .This book tells Ayaan‘s experiences as a muslim girl growing up in Somalia. It details her departure from her country, religion and how she became a human rights advocate. Good book!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
#readathon
pickThis was a harrowing and intelligent read of Ayaan Hirsi Ali. It‘s a very well written autobiography where she beautifully explains are feelings and describes what happened to her and the choices she made. She‘s a controversial figure for denouncing the damar Islam does to women. This definitely a must read that I recommend. You‘ll learn a lot about Islam in Somalia, Somalian culture/history, and much more...
I loved this book. Need to read the second one she has #heretic and the third Nomad. I must be a heretic myself because one of my favorite songs is Dear God by XTC http://www.metrolyrics.com/dear-god-lyrics-xtc.html #nofemmeber
This is not a quote from the tagged book, but it is from the author, Ayaan Hirsi Ali. #tolerance #quotsy #quotsynov17
pickWow! Probably one of the best books I've read this year. Ayaan Hirsi Ali is a revolution. This book is a memoir that tries to bridge the gap between Islam and the west. A subject I've read a lot about but this woman is a powerhouse. A former Muslim turned atheist fighting for Muslim women's rights and nearly getting killed for it. Read this book!!
"I have been lucky, and not many women are lucky in the places I come from. In some sense, I owe them something.... I need to seek out the other women held captive in the compound of irrationality and superstition and persuade them to take their lives into their own hands." (349)
pickA powerful and inspiring memoir of the arduous journey away from an environment of restrictive and repressive beliefs, and into the realization of One's voice and impact in life. Ayaan Hirsi Ali tells her story of finding her path out of Islam and into being one of the most influential voices against barbaric religious practices, repressive and dangerous ideals, and the power and unity of operating with reason, equality, and altruism.
Finalists are in for our March book!
🔗 Vote for your final choice here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/6TYMWVV
They're all such great choices! We'll announce on Monday. Don't be confused by the graphic—since we launched Books That Shook Us, we're just expanding & not everyone has Litsy (though we wish they would)! If you're not following us elsewhere we're @/booksthatshook on Twitter and @/booksthatshookus on Instagram. Lots of extra stuff! 🎉
Am also sat here pissing myself over finding this book at goodwill. #😱😱😱😱😱😱😱 #soexcited #hopeyouallhavebeencool
I've had this one on my tbr list for quite a while...ebook deal until 10/15.
pickThis amazing book peels back the experiences of a desperate refugee. The author grew up in Somalia, a specific culture. This author has a strong bias against the Muslim faith, due to the oppression,the misogyny in her extended family. Being a refugee in Europe is the2nd part. Worth getting there.
