Journalist Mona Eltahawy is known for ruffling feathers with her views on patriarchy and misogyny in the Middle East. She is often criticized – notably by other Arab women – for airing the region’s dirty laundry in public, for broad generalizations and sweeping claims. Her critics have accused her of pessimism and essentialism. In this episode of the Melissa Harris-Perry show on MSNBC, a fascinating, respectful dialogue ensues between Eltahawy and fellow Egyptian American Leila Ahmed of Harvard University’s School of Divinity who is an authority on Islamic Feminism.
No matter where one stands on the issues, this is a discussion worth having.
Ironically, the images used to represent Middle Eastern women in the Foreign Policy article scream Orientalism and misogyny.
Nesrine Malik a journalist of Sudanese heritage, penned an article for the Guardian titled “Do Arab men hate women? It’s not that simple” where she calls Mona Eltahawy’s article for Foreign Policy magazine, a “misdirected call to arms.” LINK
Samia Errazzouki, a Moroccan-American writer based in the Washington D.C has blogged about her disdain for Eltahawy and wrote an article for the Al Monitor magazine Dear Mona Eltahawy, You Do Not Represent “Us” LINK
Here’s a more supportive article by Sheila Musaji, founding editor of the American Muslim. “Mona Eltahawy Jumpstarts an Important Dialogue.”
Link to the Foreign Policy magazine article, “Why Do They Hate Us? The real war on women is in the Middle East.” By Mona Eltahawy
Leila Ahmed’s Harvard page
Mona Eltahawy’s website