This is too good not to share. Marie “Riese” Lyn Bernard writes a fantastic article about why Taylor Swift is a feminist nightmare:
The rush to exalt Swift is (I believe) a desperate attempt to infuse our allegedly apocalypse-bound country with a palatable conservative ideology in the form of a complacent, repressed feminine ideal. It’s working ’cause Swift writes good songs and America is terrified that its children have been scarred by Britney Spears’s psychotic vagina and Miley Cyrus’s obnoxious adolescence.
I’m not just posting this because I’m a Lady Gaga fan. Promise.
I won’t be shaking up Capitol Hill, though. I’m in Washington, D.C., this week to meet up for my second AMCLI fellowship retreat!
The first retreat, held November 2009 in Tarrytown, New York, was absolutely amazing. We were sequestered away at the Rockefeller estate and a bit secluded–this gave us lots of time to get to know each other and work together. However, the D.C. retreat will be more interactive, and I’m incredibly excited to jump in and get started!
I’ll admit, I haven’t seen Amreeka. It hasn’t come to any theaters near me (and I haven’t been able to find it online anywhere,cough, cough). But I jumped at the chance to interview the woman who wrote and directed it, Cherien Dabis.
Check out our interview over at Racialicious:
FF: Though Amreeka focuses on the mother/son relationship, there are definitely stereotype-breaking elements to the film, and it sounds like your next film will have similar themes. Do you feel that this is a large part of how you tell stories and make films?
CD: Absolutely. What my family experienced during the first Gulf War really opened my eyes. I became obsessed with the media and the stereotypes it perpetuated. I realized that there were virtually no authentic portrayals of Arabs anywhere in popular culture so I made a conscious choice to try to do something about that.
And Amreeka is opening to a wider release in theaters soon–so make sure to check it out. I know I will!
Happy 2010, everyone!
I’m always excited for the clean slate and the promise of a new year. Enshallah, the new year (and the decade ahead) will be good to us all!
On a plane, one has few choices as to how to the pass the time. I have a difficult time sleeping on planes for long periods (which is why international flights are the worst), so when I’m not clacking away on my laptop, it’s magazines and books.
I have a pretty standard rotation: I always pick up that month’s Harper’s Bazaar at the airport. But beforehand, I pop by my local bookstore to get the latest edition of Bitch magazine–feminist analysis of pop culture in fun-size bites! In addition to my magazines, I always bring a book or two.
I’ve been on a plane a lot lately. And I’ve gotten a lot of reading done. And since I’ve been reading some pretty good stuff, I thought I’d share it with you.
- Children of Dust by Ali Eteraz. Following Ali Eteraz as he chases his ideals and ricochets off the shattered results is a fascinating ride. He has been on journeys most of us will never come close to undertaking, but many of his experiences have behind them the same hopes, rebellions, and hunger for belonging that the rest of us struggle with. His memoir is a bright look into resilience and renewal: Eteraz reminds us that no matter how disappointed we are with today, tomorrow will always bring something new. It’s a pretty amazing book: you’ll devour it on the plane, and then you’ll put on your Snuggie and turn on your reading light to read it again when you get home. Eteraz talked about the book on NPR’s Fresh Air–give it a listen.
- Push by Sapphire. After Precious screened at Sundance and the entire feminist and anti-racist blogosphere started talking about it (including my lady Latoya Peterson, who has some great articles about it at Jezebel.), I was dying to read this. I’ll be honest: I picked up this version at the Minnesota St. Paul airport, which has a nice discussion guide in the back. You can bet I’ll be seeing the movie when I get a chance.
- Zeitoun by Dave Eggers. There is a reason that this book was on The New York Times best seller list for so long last summer. There is a reason why all of my Muslim colleagues have been raving about the book and Eggers. Everyone has been talking about this book because it is a sad story wrapped up in a beautiful one, and because the Zeitouns (on whom the book is based) are amazing people, and because Eggers tells their story incredibly. On top of all this, Eggers has done wonderful work with the Muslim community through this book, and all of the author proceeds from it go the Zeitoun Foundation, which aids in the rebuilding of New Orleans.
If your gift list has a reader on it, I suggest you pick up some of these books!
No pun intended.
I’ve been buzzing with excitement about this all week! We unveiled our new site design at Muslimah Media Watch today. Check it out!
Most exciting is the fact that we finally have an official logo:
Let us know what you think at the site, or tell us on Twitter.
Ali Shariati from the weekly U.K. magazine The Muslim Post interviewed me about Muslimah Media Watch and its recent success at the Brass Crescent Awards.
Their website is currently under construction, but Mr. Shariati was kind enough to float me some .pdfs of the published version. Here’s the story itself and then my interview.
Muslimah Media Watch cleaned up at the Brass Crescent Awards, winning Best Female Blog and receiving an honorable mention for Best Group Blog. That’s almost three for three, friends!
This is the third year we’ve been in the running, and the first time we’ve received something more than an honorable mention. Pretty exciting stuff!
More exciting is the fact that MMW will be getting a facelift soon. Stay tuned for important developments on our site and on Twitter.
Thank you to all of our readers and friends and fans for supporting us, today and every day.
The final round of voting for the annual Brass Crescent awards is open now!
Muslimah Media Watch made it into three categories! Best Female Blog, Best Group Blog, and–for the first time ever–Best Blog!
Voting is open until November 27, 2009. Get your vote in now!
Maybe this year we’ll get an award! I’ve already cast my vote. Make sure to cast yours, too.
elan magazine is “the guide to global Muslim culture” and they interviewed me about Muslimah Media Watch and other fun stuff:
Editor, writer, blogger, and now textbook author, Fatemeh Fakhraie is known for her smart critiques, keen analysis and unique perspective. But how did she get started as a writer? Where does she hope her career will go? elan steals a moment from the busy schedule of the woman behind Muslimah Media Watch to learn about her professional goals, the women she admires and her aspiration of becoming the next pleasant, pantsuit-wearing Wilhelmina Slater.
