Hey Hijabi has moved!

Salaams to you all,
After much frustration and hard work, my blog has moved to its very own website! Please check out:

www.heyhijabi.com
www.heyhijabi.com
www.heyhijabi.com

Thank you so much for your support, MashAllah!

The Hijabi Monologues.

‘The Hijabi Monologues’ speaks to Muslims and others too
Chicago woman and her friends create a hit spinoff about life associated with the head scarf

By Margaret Ramirez | Tribune reporter
January 9, 2009

As she takes the stage and picks up the microphone, Sahar Ullah becomes the voice of Muslim-American women who wear the hijab, better known as hijabis.

At times, she is hilarious when ranting about Muslim men and their pick-up lines. Other moments, she is chilling when she portrays a Muslim wife who contracts HIV from her husband.

Using real stories from Muslim women, this performance goes beyond the much-debated head scarf and presents a deeper journey into the soul of the Muslim-American hijabi. In a twist on another popular production about women, the show is called “The Hijabi Monologues.”

Ullah, 26, who created “The Hijabi Monologues” with two friends in 2006 while she was a graduate student at the University of Chicago, has recited the stories in small venues across the nation, captivating Muslims and non-Muslims.

On Friday night, Ullah and Arabic television host May Alhassen plan to perform “The Hijabi Monologues” at the Busboys and Poets restaurant and book store in Washington.

Hoping to take their message to a wider audience, the show’s producers will hold a Saturday workshop at Georgetown University for Muslim women interested in performing the monologues in other cities.

When asked about the connection to Eve Ensler’s “The Vagina Monologues,” Ullah said both productions reveal an unheard voice. “The Vagina Monologues” took a private body part and gave it a loud, public voice.

“The Hijabi Monologues” takes the visible head scarf and allows the woman wearing it to speak in a personal way.

“The hijab, because of how public it is, it brings out a certain set of assumptions and a certain set of experiences that only women wearing hijab would go through,” Ullah said. “It’s such a public physical marker, and we’ve infused so many meanings to it, as if it speaks for the woman.

“Yet we don’t really get to hear a woman talk about her experiences and her views.”

Unlike “The Vagina Monologues” where the vagina famously speaks and says it is “angry,” the hijab never speaks and the veil is not the focus of any of the stories. The aim is to move beyond the stereotypes imposed by the head scarf and create a better understanding of the Muslim-American woman.

“There’s already so much about what my hijab says or doesn’t say,” Ullah said. “What they’re trying to do is show people what the woman is saying.”

“The Hijabi Monologues” was born on the University of Chicago campus through a friendship between two Muslim women, Ullah and Zeenat Rahman; and an Irish-Catholic man from La Grange, Dan Morrison.

As they became closer, Morrison found himself asking more questions about Muslim women.

After listening to Ullah and Rahman’s stories, Morrison said, “You know what? We need a hijabi monologues.”

Morrison told Ullah to start writing stories about her experiences as a veiled Muslim woman living in America. Many of the monologues come from Ullah’s personal life, including a hysterical story about a Muslim girl attending a University of Florida football game searching for a place to pray.

One of the most powerful monologues is based on the true story of Leena Al-Arian, whose Tampa, Fla., home was raided in February 2003 by federal agents when they arrested her father.

As Ullah began performing the monologues, she asked more women for their stories, finding one about a Muslim teen who gets pregnant and another about a mother whose son dies in a car crash.

Reaction to the monologues has been overwhelming, Ullah said. Muslim women have said they found the stories to be realistic and cathartic. Non-Muslims said they felt connected in a way they never imagined.

One predominantly African-American audience in California, for example, was moved by a monologue called “I’m Tired” in which a woman talks about feeling tired of being under constant scrutiny.

“When people came up and say, I really connected with them, even though I’m not Muslim or even though I’m not a woman . . . that’s why we continue to do it,” Ullah said.

Free Palestine!

Assalaamu Alaikum to everyone. I hope that 2009 brings you health, happiness and love, inshAllah!

There are many who will be less fortunate. The community in Gaza is suffering immensely and our support is greatly needed.

I designed this outfit to encourage Palestinian solidarity, whether you are going to a protest, masjid, or just your daily routine.

Show support for your brothers and sisters!

Free Palestine by Hey Hijabi!

Seeking Justice Against Anti-Hijab Judge in Georgia

CAIR Seeks Sanctions Against Anti-Hijab Judge in Georgia

State attorney general asked to protect religious, legal rights
A prominent national Islamic civil rights and advocacy group today called on Georgia Attorney General Thurbert E. Baker to bring sanctions against a judge in that state who has repeatedly barred Muslim women wearing religiously-mandated headscarves, or hijabs, from entering his courtroom.
Yesterday, the Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) reported that a Muslim woman was jailed and then released following a dispute over whether she could enter the judge’s courtroom in Douglasville, Ga., while wearing her hijab. In the past year, other Muslim
women have either been jailed under similar circumstances or barred from that judge’s court.
Today’s Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported: “Lisa Valentine, also known by her Islamic name, Miedah, 40, was arrested at the Douglasville
Municipal Court for violating a court policy of no headgear, said Chris Womack, deputy chief of operations for the Douglasville police.
“Judge Keith Rollins ordered her held in jail for 10 days, but she was released Tuesday evening. The reason for the early release wasn’t immediately clear…
“Other Muslim women said the same judge has ordered them to remove their hijabs.
“Sabreen Abdul Rahman, 55, said she was asked to take off her scarf when she went to the municipal court last week with her son. ‘I can’t. I’m
Muslim,’ she mouthed silently to the bailiff, who then removed her from the courtroom, Rahman said…
“Halimah Abdullah, 43, said she spent 24 hours in jail in November 2007 after Rollins held her in contempt of court for refusing to remove her head covering. Rollins could not be reached for comment.”

In a letter sent today to Attorney General Baker, CAIR National Legal Counsel Nadhira F. Al-Khalili wrote in part:
“We assert that Judge Rollins’ actions violate the Georgia Code of Judicial Conduct…It is also our contention that a courtroom is a ‘public
facility’ under Title III of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and denial of access to the courtroom based on religious beliefs or practices is therefore discriminatory.
“In addition, we believe Judge Rollins’ actions are in violation of First and Fourteenth Amendment rights to freedom of religion and equal
protection under the law. The United States Supreme Court has held that a state may not infringe upon the free exercise of a citizen’s religious observance absent a compelling state interest. We believe that no such compelling interest exists in these cases.
“Judge Rollins’ policy of exclusion would prohibit court entry to all Sikh men wearing turbans, all orthodox Jewish men and women wearing yarmulkes or head scarves, all Christian women wearing religious head coverings, and all Muslim men and women who wear skullcaps or scarves…
“I would therefore respectfully request that you take appropriate action to ensure that the legal, religious and civil rights of Georgians of all
faiths be maintained. I would also request a formal investigation into this matter, sanctions where appropriate, and an assurance that all
those wearing religious attire be allowed in state courtrooms.”
A copy of the letter was sent to the Judicial District Professionalism Program of the State Bar of Georgia. CAIR also contacted the U.S.
Department of Justice, which now says it is looking into the case.
CAIR, America’s largest Islamic civil liberties group, has 35 offices and chapters nationwide and in Canada. Its mission is to enhance the
understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.

In Morocco!

Salaam Aleikum sisters! I have not been able to acess the internet since I got here to Morocco and so I am sorry that my posts have been slow. I am staying with a wonderful family and will post all about my trip when i get back, inshAllah!

As Salaam Alaikum!

Welcome to my Hey Hijabi! blog. I am a hijabi living in Chicago wanting to represent and spread the love I have for Muslimah style from all over the world. Check back for posts on hijabi styles, how-to tips, videos, hijabi street photos and much more insh’Allah!

I want to thank Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta’Ala for giving me the strength and patience to begin this endeavor that I have been wanting to do for so long. I hope that this blog will help Muslimahs appreciate and enjoy the benefits of wearing hijab. I can’t wait to make this dream a reality, Insh’Allah!

Binya