Thresa Skeslien-JenkinsBeing able to sit down with four Muslim women from very different backgrounds helped me to better understand the diversity within the Muslim community-not only diversity in backgrounds but also diversity in practices, interpretation, emphasis and solidarity. As someone that comes from the dominant society (having parents born and raised in America, being white, raised Christian), I was worried that I would be unable to connect to women who struggled far more in an American society that seems to exclude them. However, I was inspired by the women’s persistence and willingness to continue to be their most authentic self despite criticism. Additionally, I was able to break down many stereotypes regarding Muslim women as I was able to hear first hand their journey of autonomy in Islam as well as hearing that not every woman is targeted or undermined in American society as we might assume from media portrayals. This class, and project specifically, helped me to reinforce the importance of breaking down binaries, look beyond the simplistic image of communities that is represented in the media and step out of my shell to meet and discuss important issues with those that are different from me.
Thank you Dr. Considine and all of the women willing to participate in our project as we have been incredibly enlightened and are excited to continue learning and fighting unfair stereotypes. Anu DwarumpudiThis course has provided me an opportunity to understand Islam and the lives of different women from various backgrounds. I came into this course knowing very little about Islam and the daily practices of a Muslim. As a non-Muslim women, my lack of knowledge of the religion became apparent as I interviewed these women and learned their perspectives. I realized that some of my perceptions of Islam and Muslim women were shaped by the media and society. Through the interviews that I conducted, I was able to break down my own preconceived notions about covering and Muslim women. I previously considered the hijab to be just a religious act. I never realized the deeper meaning of modesty, lifestyle and female empowerment that is attached to the hijab.
One aspect of my research that struck me was how much Muslim women compensate to make other people feel welcome to reduce the target on their backs. Muslim women we talked to have stated that they will often smile more or be very hospitable in public settings to be less of a target because of their religion. As a non-Muslim, I never felt the need to portray a welcoming attitude just to avoid hate crimes and discrimination. One of the most powerful moments I encountered in my research is the strength Muslim women have in their choice to cover especially in this political climate. For example, Noor decided to cover around the election season to stand up for her faith and fight against the islamophobia industry. Most of the Muslim women we talked to are so confident and comfortable in their faith and are not afraid to stand up for their faith and tear down prejudices. Islam is the first religion that I ever explored outside my own. When I decided to visit Centro Islamico, I was very nervous and curious to step inside a mosque. My Centro Islamico visit was one of the biggest learning experiences I had and opened my eyes into the diversity and openness of Islam. I look forward to understanding Islam better and reducing the Islamophobia present in society. Alec TobinI thought I had a lot of experience with interviews. In high school, I conducted various formal interviews with people of different backgrounds and opinions. Because of the limited depth of the interviews and the topics we discussed, however, I never felt like I learned anything new from the people I spoke with. It wasn’t until this experience, in which my interviewees genuinely surprised me with their passion and unique perspective, that I realized how incredibly valuable a good interview can be. I am excited that our interviews offer perspectives that many people at Rice and elsewhere would otherwise be unable to learn from.
We achieved this because we spent time developing well-researched and provocative questions. We asked our interviewees about important things: religion and their relation to a hostile world. Through these questions, I had the opportunity to talk to women from completely different cultures about their strongest convictions and most powerful experiences, which I am very grateful for. The biggest challenge has been handling the passionate and nuanced words of our interviewees with proper care and respect. While the interviews speak for themselves to some extent, the curators of the website have to make important decisions about how to present people and their stories. In our presentation as well, we make decisions that affect the representation of our interviewees. While one goal of this project is to give a voice to these people, I wonder if my voice ever overpowered that of our interviewees. Sierra CowanGrowing up in West Texas in an extremely Christian household, I never met a Muslim before coming to college; and honestly, a lot of my family buys into the Islamophobia industry. I signed up for Dr. Considine’s course hoping to learn more about the Muslim community and combat the various stereotypes that had been seemingly brainwashed into me since I can remember. However, conducting this study and hearing the narratives of these Muslim women has done so much more than merely educate me. Their individuality, passion, strength, independence and resilience truly inspired me. Researching data and narratives on hate crimes for the literature review and then meeting these amazing women who are victims to such activity moved me. Interviewing women who are courageous enough to openly wear a Hijab and/or speak up about their faith to a complete stranger empowers me to not just be content with the slice of education on Islam offered to me in this course, but also to serve as an ally for them going forward and remain open to learning from such powerful women.
It disheartens me that I used to ambivalently scroll past the constant influx of Islamophobic articles and comments on my Facebook timeline, and that I used to stay quiet at family gatherings when the topic arose. However, now I have not just knowledge, but also physical people to think of the next time any of these events occur, and I am challenging myself to have the courage to advocate for these women and the Muslim community. I know that I will do so, because I understand that it’s crucial to changing the attitudes towards Muslims in this country. America is supposed to be a place where people from all walks of life are welcome and free, and partaking in Dr. Considine’s class and this study motivates me to do anything and everything that I can in making that statement true for the Muslim community moving forward. I cannot express enough gratitude and praise towards these women. Thank all of you for being who you are and constantly fighting for your right to be that person. I am honored to have heard your stories and to join all of you as an ally for the Muslim community. Allison YelvingtonI learned an immense amount about Muslim Women and the motivations behind their decisions in this project. The background research I did was very enlightening into setting the stage as to the institutional and widespread problems faced by Muslim Women in America, and then it was so interesting to see the interviews that highlighted the individual impacts of these systematic issues. I am glad we pursued an interview based format, because hearing directly from local Muslim Women was the richest way to develop these ideas. Though I did not complete any interviews myself, as the website took a considerable amount of time, I helped transcribe the interviews and determine their highlights for features on our interview tab and the Facebook.
Through the process of this project, compiling the interviews, and personally painstakingly creating the website and Facebook page I was exposed to a variety of voices and experiences. I am glad to have been able to work to create the best platform I could to showcase these voices, and I hope I did an adequate job. |