Had You Been A Muslim: Joumana Haddad and the Liberated Arab Woman

When Lebanese writer and poet Joumana Haddad's I Killed Scheherazade: Confessions of An Angry Arab Woman was published in 2010, it was described as a bold treatise, intentionally designed to be revolutionary, written in manifesto style. Recently, a revived interest has situated it in more superficial terms as "a provocative new book which "lifts the veil" on what the "Arab Spring" really means for women," with Haddad as the liberated Arab woman telling all about her unliberated sisters. In fact, this theme is so familiar some have made the mistake of describing Haddad as the brave provocateur Muslim woman, along the lines of Irshad Manji, despite the fact that Haddad is an agnostic who who grew up in a conservative Catholic family.

Cover of I Killed Scheherazade

It is fitting however that her book, I Killed Scheherazade, is described as provocative, since in the book's Foreword, Haddad explains that it was provoked by the words of a journalist interviewing her, who noted, "Most of us in the west are not familiar with the possibility of liberated Arab women like you existing." In response, Haddad retorted "There are many "liberated Arab women" like me. And if you are not aware that we exist, as you claim, then it is your problem not ours."........

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/mmw/2012/01/had-you-been-a-muslim-joumana-haddad-and-the-liberated-arab-woman/