![An illustration of a social media post of a woman taking a selfie with a mother and daughter in the background, with 21,567 likes and caption: YoursSincerely "Appreciate what you have." On the left of the image is a white rectangle with black text that reads:⠀ We see an increase in commendable acts of charity [during Ramadhan]; everyone wants to donate cash or food items to the needy. But nobody thinks about or wants to question the system that perpetuates poverty.⠀ - Teaching ‘feel-good’ Islam: Toxic Positivity & Silencing the Oppressed by Mysara Aljaru](https://beyondhijabsg.files.wordpress.com/2019/05/img_1992.jpg?w=800)
by Mysara Aljaru _ An ‘Islamic’ Toxic Positivity “You just need faith in Allah, you are where He wants you to be.” These were words I frequently heard growing up, especially from religious teachers in weekend madrasahs I used to attend as a child. It seemed reassuring at that time. Why wouldn’t it be, right?…
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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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by Amber _ Part one was about an experience Thauria went through in a full-time religious institution (Madrasah). I am immensely grateful to have shared such important experiences with Thauria in our Madrasah for the past 12 years and I am so honoured that she invited me to write about my experiences as well. What…
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by Thauria __ Growing up, many Muslims around me strongly believe that Madrasahs are institutional representatives of the Muslim community, which is not a baseless sentiment. Madrasahs have been institutionalised as the representatives of the community through legislation such as AMLA (Administration of Muslim Law Act). However, in many ways, this representation has been internalised…
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by NL __ Awakening Story At the age of 8, I used to take swimming lessons at the Clementi Swimming Complex. For merely twenty dollars a month, many students, or rather their parents, willingly signed up for the swimming courses programmed by the school. On Tuesdays after school, a lot of us would leave class…
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by Naima Khan _ I was 14 when I had my first orgasm. It happened by accident and I was completely unprepared. I wasn’t precocious as a teenager. At that stage, other girls were starting to grow into their adult bodies and learning the ways in which their clothes and mannerisms affected the boys around them.…
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Beyond The Hijab 