By Saira BhattiOn this #ThrowbackThursday, I want us to explore the female icons that have been integral to Islamic history, the spread of the faith, and innovation. We have plenty of current icons today — like Nobel Peace Prize winner, Malala Yousafzai, advocating for girls education and building schools while attending Oxford University (no big deal). Meanwhile,…
By Saira BhattiAsma Jahangir was nothing short of an icon. The Pakistani activist and human rights lawyer passed away at the age of 66 in Lahore due to cardiac arrest. Her passing on Feb. 11 is being mourned as a huge loss for Pakistan with and leaves behind a greater sense of uncertainty in the country. Here are…
By Saira BhattiThe Trump administration made an official announcement on Jan. 8, 2018, to end TPS designation for El Salvador, which will officialy end on Sept. 9, 2019. This comes shortly after the administration’s decision on Nov. 20, 2017 to end TPS designation for Haiti, and after designation was removed for Nicaragua and Sudan. According to the Department of…
By Saira BhattiA 7 year old girl was raped, strangled and dumped in a trash heap in Kasur, Pakistan. The victim’s body, who we now know as Zainab Ansari, was found last Tuesday after being missing for five days when she went for religious tutoring. Her parents were on Umrah or pilgrimage to Mecca when they found…
By Saira BhattiNow that the Christmas season has come and gone, I’ve had some time to reflect on the holidays this season. As a Muslim, I’ve never celebrated Christmas or Hannukah. But I’m not going to lie, after Ramadhan and Eid, this is my favorite time of year. For one thing it’s reminiscent of my school days and…
By Saira BhattiAround two weeks ago, a hate conference just outside Washington, D.C. called for violence against a small Muslim community known as the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. This community was founded by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad in Qadian, India, a man who claimed to be the Messiah (in the likeness of Jesus), foretold to come after Prophet Muhammad…
By Saira BhattiSupermodel Bella Hadid took a stand for Palestine on her Instagram account Thursday, a day after U.S. President Donald Trump declared Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Trump announced that the United States would be moving their embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem as a result, despite backlash from global leaders including Emmanuel Macron, Justin Trudeau and Pope Francis. View…
By Saira BhattiThe U.S. military has begun operations to withdraw its troops from Puerto Rico, claiming that the island is no longer in a recovery phase, despite over half the island surviving without power or access to clean water. Lieutenant Gen. Jeffrey Buchanan, the Pentagon’s liaison to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), said that troops would…
By Saira Bhatti(César Campos/Perú21) On October 29th, candidates for Miss Perú 2018 took the stage by storm blasting out facts on violence against women in the country instead of traditionally stating their bust-waist-hip measurements. The 23 women represented every region in Perú and gave statistics on physical and psychological violence, sexual abuse, harassment and sexual exploitation amongst others….
