By Julie LarahPhoto by Karam Almasri: Man and child during their forced displacement from Aleppo. Imagine watching disparate groups fight over your hometown with complete disregard for the safety of the civilians that remain trapped there. Aching for freedom, dignity, truth, justice and peace, civilian dissent is met with a barrage of bullets and bombs, siege and…
By Julie LarahGaza is on the verge of imminent collapse. According to a report by the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor, 65 percent of the nearly two million people living in Gaza suffer from abject poverty, 72 percent are food-insecure, 80 percent have become dependent on international aid and 42 percent were unemployed as of 2016. Electricity is in…
By Julie LarahWe want to blame her for the length of her skirt We want to blame him for not walking her home We want to blame her for the hour of night We want to blame him for not teaching her better We want to blame her for being visible We want to blame him for…
By Julie LarahThe first time I started fasting for Ramadan, I wasn’t even Muslim yet. But before we get to that, let’s talk about my anorexia. So disclaimer: I am not here to speak for everyone with an eating disorder, nor all people with mental health issues. I am not here to extort a plethora of Islamic inspiration…
By Julie LarahMarried couple Dr. Khaled Almilaji and Dr. Jehan Mouhsen thought their dreams of peace and safety were finally within reach. Both had escaped the war in Syria and moved to the United States in the hopes of completing their medical university education. Both dreamed of one day returning to Syria and using knowledge gained from university to…
By Julie LarahPhotograph by Live Updates From Syria of a child walking through a refugee camp. As the crisis in Syria gains some international attention, it’s difficult for some to know how they can best support Syrians — both local and abroad. Here is a list of some things you can do to help. Listen to Syrians….
By Julie LarahPresident Donald J. Trump said in an address Thursday evening that the United States carried out an airstrike which targeted one of Syrian president Bashar Al-Assad’s air bases. Trump asserted that this action was in response to the Syrian government’s April 4 chemical attack on Khan Sheikhoun which killed more than 80 civilians and injured hundreds more….
By Julie LarahPhoto by Hamid Kutini 2017 – Syrian Civil Defense worker carries the body of child exposed to the chemical agent dropped on Khan Sheikhoun 4/4/17 To save one life is to save all of humanity. و من أحياها فكأنما أحيا الناس جميعا (Syrian Civil Defense motto) On April 4, 2017, the city Khan Sheikhoun in…
By Julie LarahQuran – As-Saf – 61:3 Great is hatred in the sight of Allah that you say what you do not do. كَبُرَ مَقْتًا عِنْدَ اللَّهِ أَنْ تَقُولُوا مَا لَا تَفْعَلُونَ On March 27, the very first #MuslimWomensDay, Qasim Rashid made a series of tweets discussing the Islamic concept of “hijab” as it relates to men….
By Julie LarahCelebrations in Raqqa one month after liberation – Photo by Sarmad Al Jilane 2013 Four years ago, the people of Raqqa, Syria, thought their dreams of freedom had come true. They toppled the statue of Hafez Al Assad in their city on March 4, 2013, as an official sign that they’d liberated themselves from the…
By Julie LarahMembers of the European Parliament (MEP) voted on a non-binding resolution this past week that would require U.S. citizens to obtain visas before traveling to or within the European Union (EU). The vote came in response to an ongoing disagreement between the EU and USA regarding the Visa Waver Program (VWP). Under this program, U.S….
By Julie LarahSidd Bikkannavar was detained on Jan. 30 at the U.S. border and denied entry into the country until he unlocked his pin-protected phone. Bikkannavar is a U.S.-born citizen who has worked with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) for 10 years. He traveled to South America on Jan. 15 to engage in his hobby of racing…
By Julie LarahMoroccan-born Canadian citizen Fadwa Alaoui was turned away from the U.S. border after extensive questioning about her religion and views on President Donald Trump. Fadwa, who is Muslim and wears a hijab, stated she entered the U.S. many times previously — without incident — to visit her parents and brother who live in the States….
