AN ACT of defiance last year by a young Egyptian atheist, who posted nude pictures of herself on the Internet, this week became the focal point of an extraordinary female backlash against religious fundamentalism.
Aliaa Magda Elmahdy
Aliaa Magda Elmahdy’s brave stand gave UK-based ex-Muslim Maryam Namazie the idea of launching the Nude Photo Revolutionaries Calendar in support of the blogger, who said that the pictures she posted were:
Screams against a society of violence, racism, sexism, sexual harassment and hypocrisy.
Elmahdy describes herself on her Facebook page as :
An atheist living for the past five months with her boyfriend, blogger Kareem Amer, who, in 2006 was sentenced to four years in a maximum security prison for criticizing Islam and defaming former president Hosni Mubarak.
Yesterday – to mark International Women’s Day – the calendar was launched on Namazie’s blog.
Click on pic to see a promotional video for the calendar
She said:
What with Islamism and the religious right being obsessed with women’s bodies and demanding that we be veiled, bound, and gagged, nudity breaks taboos and is an important form of resistance.
The calendar is designed by Sonya J F Barnett who said:
I felt that women needed to stand in solidarity with Aliaa. It takes a lot of guts to do what she did, and the backlash is always expected and can quite hurtful. She needed to know that there are others like her, willing to push the envelope to express outrage.
Among those supporting the calendar initiative were Nina Sankari, who said:
In solidarity with Aliaa Magda Elmahdy, I would like to stress that our bodies (and thoughts) belong to us and to nobody else.
And Anne Baker said:
Men in frocks constrain, control and intimidate women the world over in the name of God … it has to stop.
Poppy Wilson St James added:
I find it strange that it is more acceptable to seen on screen violence and guns than even a nipple. There is something wrong with our mindset if that is what we accept as the norm and shy away from nudity which is a completely natural state.
And Emily Dietle pointed out:
If it weren’t for people who took a strong stand against misogyny and for free expression, we’d still be in an age where showing your ankles was taboo.
You can join the “Scream” on Facebook and on Twitter under the hashtag #NudePhotoRevolutionary, and you can buy and download the calendar via Namazie’s blog. Proceeds will go towards supporting women’s rights and free expression.
Hat tip: BarrieJohn
All strength to these naked ladies, and all who yearn for a human-friendly world, free of needless hate and superstition.
Naked ladies + pissed off fundies.
It’s a two-fer!
Aliaa Magda Elmahdy: Aha! Agile lady, madam!
I’m sure that the regulars on this site will note this real courage in the face of genuine persecution, and not the wimpy, bleating, self serving kind that the ‘persecuted’ christians whine about in this country.
Brave girls.
From today’s New Statesman:
http://www.newstatesman.com/blogs/nelson-jones/2012/03/women-religion-religious?
More power to them. Its always inspiring to hear of brave people.
Way to go ladies, you are beautiful. Masy all the women and real men in this world stand up and support you
@barriejohn: Thanks for the New Statesman link. Not much support in the comments for the Sky Fairy. They could be comments from this neck of the woods – encouraging. I had my say.
tony e
Hear, hear.
Speaking of women’s rights,check out the $52,000 full page ad in
today’s(Fri.)NYTimes,blasting the US Catholic Church’s position
on women’s issues.The money was donated in ONE weekend to
FFRF(.org)and is raising cries of anti-Catholic bigotry.
Wa-a-a-a-a-a-h!
Broga: “I had my say.”
Hahahahaha!!!!!
Here’s the ad in the NY Times:
http://ffrf.org/news/releases/nyt-ad/
@ed-words: A most encouraging ad and, of course, it will attract outrage from the usual suspects.
Broga – Bill O’Reilly will predictably do his nut, I’m sure.
Pete H. Yes. Thanks for the link to the add. I note that the Archbishop of Canterbury is at present visiting the Pope. We are told that they both agree that gay marriages are very, very bad. These marriages, I don’t know quite how, could cause the collapse of civilised life as we know it. Actually, when religion butts in much of life isn’t so very civilsed. Anyway the two “leaders” – as the BBC reverentially refers to them – will be praying together. I don’t think the continuing infestation of the RC Church by paedophiles will get much discussion. Gay marriages provide a much better topic and, true to the faith, the opposition to them is another example of religious interference with others’ happiness.
Is the Sandra Fluke fiasco getting any BBC coverage?
Google her name and take your pick.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/sandrafluke
Correction: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandra_Fluke
(includes videos)
Well done ladies ! I was also pleased to see an organiser of Slutwalk in the calender, hopefully OLFA etc will get together with them to organise against female genital mutilation and ask loudly why no one has ever been prosecuted for it in the UK (or the USA to the best of my knowledge).
Let’s drop millions of pictures of naked women on Muslim countries… maybe they’ll all kill themselves………..