Monthly Wrap-Up | June 2020
June has officially come to an end, and I’ve decided to post my first wrap-up piece as I wait for my flight back home at O’Hare.
So Long a Letter; So Long a History | Mariama Bâ, Muslimness, and Women’s Rights
Through Ramatoulaye’s reflections, Bâ highlights the institution of marriage as a structural symbol of the patriarchal system, in which asymmetrical gender relations are maintained and projected as part of the Islamic doctrine.
From Greece to Turkey: Children of War by Ahmet Yorulmaz
Children of War is one of the most important translated works released in 2020. Hassanaki’s story encourages us to resist the politics of demonization that breeds polarization and fear—fear of difference and of change.
bell hooks on Love
“When we choose to love we choose to move against fear-against alienation and separation. The choice to love is a choice to connect-to find ourselves in the other.”
“Your voices matter, your dreams matter, your lives matter”: on BLM
As Angie Thomas asks, “What’s the point of having a voice if you’re gonna be silent in those moments you shouldn’t be?”
The Real and the Imaginary: The Baghdad Clock by Shahad Al Rawi
As a war narrative enveloped in magic, love, and hope, The Baghdad Clock adds depth to the burgeoning genre of postcolonial Iraqi novels.
