by E __ [CW: This post describes the aftermath of rape, its emotional impact of rape & experience of intense victim-blaming.] What is Hope, you ask? Hope is Love personified. Hope is Kindness acted out. Hope is a Friend, and a Lover, who offers compassion unconditionally. Hope is everywhere if we simply allow it to…
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by Atifa Othman _ There I was, bare feet and naked face, drenched in salty sweat after a 1-hour workout. I was a regular at that gym and I always tried to make it a point to look approachable and friendly. I never had a problem frequenting exercise spaces on my own (apart from the…
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by Aria Ridzuan My body is not my own. Growing up in a Malay Muslim household, it took me a while before I realized that my body was not my own. Since young, my body has been policed by everyone around me; my self-worth reduced to my physical appearance as though I had nothing else…
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This editor’s letter is guest-written by Nurul Huda Rashid _ Pertumbuhan tubuhku / Seeds & the Soil I was in primary school when I was made aware of the darkness of my skin. Its hairiness was identified as ‘gorilla’ and I was told that I could never be as beautiful as a ‘Malay’ girl. The…
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by Zubaida Ali _ Now that I am in my mid-fifties and expecting the birth of my first grand-daughter, I ponder at the thought of how she will receive her education in life. Not the academic education that will surely be given to her but the passing on of cultural knowledge such as beliefs and…
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Cover Your Eyes! I watched Titanic for the first time at home with my parents. Jack and Rose are running, a respectable bourgeois lady and working-class man, away from the assistant of her insufferable, arrogant fiance. Rose with her tight ginger curls free from the usual chignon with her wild glittering eyes. Leonardo still baby-faced…
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Beyond The Hijab 