A Little Off the Top
Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve heard a lot of chatter about something women call “guriya”. None of my dictionaries are of any use (guriya literally translates as “cotton seed”). Nor are...
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The 98%
What does it mean to be a Muslim? Is it a self-proclaimed title? Is it acting in accordance with Koranic laws? Is it praying five times a day? Is it cultural? For a...
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Secrets and the Price of Passing
I can’t keep a secret for a minute. I give gifts the day I buy them. When I try to hold something back, my face contorts a little, as if the information is...
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Beyond the Mud Wall
I spend so much time with women behind the mud walls of their compounds. Shielded from the male gaze. Protected from strict norms of coverage, silence, and invisibility. Here, behind the bricks, women...
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The Edge of the Circle
This afternoon, huddled under the shade of a giant neem tree, women gathered for a dress ceremony. In the fistula world, dress ceremonies are held to honor women whose fistulas have been successfully...
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Shameless
For women here, shame (or, kunya) is a way of life. It’s hard for me to keep up with everything that causes it. Saying the name of your husband out loud brings a...
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Sai Hankuri
Although there were three of us sitting under the late afternoon sun, none of us made noise. I could hear the sound of a pestle banging spices against a mortar from a...
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