By Hasnaa MokhtarPolice found the remains of 17-year-old Nabra in a pond in Sterling, VA, after she was reported missing on the night of June 17, according to NBC Washington. Friends of the victim confirmed she was walking with a group of girls after leaving the ADAMS Center, a mosque in Sterling, after late night Ramadan prayers when she…
By Hasnaa MokhtarMuslim female basketball players made history today after months of petitioning the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) to allow athletes to wear headgear for religious purposes. The federation announced today that FIBA’s first-ever Mid-Term Congress unanimously ratified the FIBA Central Board’s decision for a new rule that will allow players to wear headgear as of Oct. 1,…
By Hasnaa Mokhtar“Go back home now,” the virtual troll on Twitter screamed in caps. I was told that America did not celebrate a day for Muslim women. That I did not belong here. This invisible person hiding behind a keyboard somewhere believed that he or she has the right to exist, but not me. Because a month ago,…
By Hasnaa MokhtarHe is not far away. He is watching over you. Place your fingers on the side of your neck. Do you feel a pulse? Allah ﷻ says in the Quran that He is closer to you than that vein you felt pumping blood into your body (50:16). Can you imagine the magnitude of this bond?…
By Hasnaa MokhtarTo qualify as “marriage-friendly” material, a Muslim woman is expected to be: Martha Stewart in the kitchen. A combination of Hoover feather duster and mop in cleanness. Scarlett Johansson in sex appeal. Virgin Mary in modesty. Mother Teresa in devotion. Malala Yousafzai in activism and literacy — only for bragging purposes. Octomom in making an…
By Hasnaa MokhtarMy alarm went off at 4 A.M. I dragged myself out of my snuggly bed. I headed to the bathroom, freshened up, and performed wudu in preparation for my date. I laid my prayer mat toward qibla. “Allahu Akbar.” I started my tahajjud night prayers. Immersed in a profound, one-on-one conversation with God, I humbled myself…
By Hasnaa MokhtarI know well the feeling of being helpless. I am a woman, and I grew up in Saudi Arabia. I was boxed in. A male relative — father, husband, brother or son — had to sign me off. When? It was a required procedure whenever I wanted to travel alone, renew my personal ID, or accept…
By Hasnaa MokhtarEverything about Yusra Mardini is extraordinarily exceptional. The 18-year-old swimmer will be competing on the first Refugee Olympic Athletes team at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Her incredible swimming skills earned her a place to compete in the 100m freestyle and 100m butterfly swimming games. After fleeing war-torn Syria to Berlin, Germany,…
By Hasnaa Mokhtar“This isn’t about me. This is about the women I left behind,” said Yasmeen Harris in an emotional appeal on November 9, 2013, calling attention to the struggle of Muslim female inmates she shared a cell with. Sharing her incarceration story at the symposium “California Jails and Muslim Inmates,” Harris talked about the lack of…
