Love, Sex and Dating Queries? Young Indians Ask The Sexpert

21 June 2010

The Indian parliament’s decision to ban sex education has left young Indians with a conundrum: Where do they go to get advice on love, dating and sex?
According to an interesting article in The Guardian, they open the daily supplement of the Times of India, the country’s best-known English-language newspaper and make a beeline for the [...]

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Rebels with a Cause: Taqwacore: The Birth of Punk Islam

19 June 2010

If one thing’s surer than Sid Vicious’ steel toe caps, it’s that  Taqwacore: The Birth of Muslim Punk took courage, faith and fearlessness to complete. This recently released feature documentary about the revolutionary twists, turns, triumphs and travesties of Pakistan’s Muslim Punk movement sure ain’t for the fainthearted.
The film is based on its namesake novel, [...]

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Tunes for Tolerance: Sufi Muslim Rock Star Salman Ahmad

17 June 2010

Salman Ahmad may be the most well-known Sufi rock star of the moment.  A dedicated Muslim, who claims his ponytail is a “gift from Allah”, he’s been described as Pakistan’s Bono. The Guardian caught up with Salman in London, where he was promoting his controversial new book, which counteracts extremism through music: aptly named: “Rock [...]

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Saudi Arabia Rewrites Marriage Contracts to Protect Girls

13 June 2010

Progress comes in many ways, shapes and forms… As you may have heard, Saudi Arabia has taken the bold step of issuing new marriage contracts state the bride-to-be’s age. The aim is to curb underage marriage.
I read an interesting article on the subject at BBC Online. It talks about Saudi Arabia’s new promise, which has been [...]

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Fairytale Come True? A Swedish-Libyan Inter-Marriage with a Happy Continuing

3 June 2010

“Now I am 100% Libyan” – this might not be the typical phrase you’d expect from a blond-haired blue-eyed Swedish woman. But Elisabeth Elhazza’s whirlwind marriage to her Libyan sweetheart Khairi (who’s seven years her junior) has been, if nothing else, the epitome of an altogether unusual love story.
Our wise friends at Muslimah Media Watch [...]

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Kuwait: Friends and Families Shape Up with a New Weight Loss Reality TV Show

27 May 2010

A Kuwaiti friend of mine passed me an article about a new “diet” program on Kuwait TV that I’d like to share with you…
The article in The National spotlights Kuwait’s unprecedented growth – its rapidly expanding economy – and… waistlines. Thanks in part to the arrival of International fast-food chains, and to modern, “convenient·· sedentary lifestyles, [...]

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Didn’t The Madonna Wear a Veil? Italy’s Leading Imam Speaks Out

26 May 2010

Novara, Northern Italy, May 2010: Tunisian Muslim Amel Marmouri is stopped by the carabienieri, the Italian police, and fined 500 Euros for wearing a burqa.
Whether it’s a phenomenon or a mere fashion to apprehend Muslim women for covering up rather depends on how you look at it. For Izzedin Elzir, President of the Union of Islamic [...]

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Malta: A Catholic-Arab Culture to the Core

23 May 2010

There’s something about Malta – something more than just a picturesque, sunny Mediterranean tourist location. The smallest country in the EU, this three- island nation of just 315 square km has been independent since 1964, but it has a strong and complex cultural and historical identity.
Both Catholicism and Islam have made a strong impression on [...]

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Lebanese beauty Rima Fakih: The First Ever Muslim Miss USA

22 May 2010

I’ll bet my bottom dollar I’m not the first to tell you about Lebanese beauty Rima Fakih’s ascension to the throne as the first American Muslim woman to be crowned Miss USA.
As I’m sure you know, Rima, 24 beat 50 other gorgeous finalists in the 2010 edition of the famous stars and stripes pageant held [...]

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Chay Magazine: Lifting the Lid on Love and Sexuality in Pakistan

20 May 2010

Pakistan’s Chay Magazine is different. Focusing on sex and sexuality in Pakistan, South Asia and Abroad, this online publication boldly goes where few Pakistani websites have gone before: to the heart, soul and nitty gritty of the big existential questions.

Liberal, open-minded and candid, the mag covers love, sexuality, religion, health, class and even harassment, offering [...]

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