Women in Black - Egypt
By Jess McCabe | 26 May 2008, 14:59
The BBC is running a series on Muslim women called ‘Women in Black’.
My Private Casbah has some excerpts that made it onto YouTube, but readers in the UK can watch the latest episode on iPlayer.
Set in Egypt, the episode covers hijab street styles, plastic surgery, bloggers (including some feminists - clear from the screenshots but not acknowledged by the presenter), Egyptian sexologist Dr Heba Kotban, who has an internationally-syndicated TV show, and more.
Arima has been watching the whole series, and concludes:
[It] portrayed various cultural dichotomies and elements of Egyptian society very well. It also is one of the first episodes to deal with real issues (many criticised the Dubai episode for its frivolity). Amani Zain brought in discussions about the Muslim woman’s right to work, the Islamic awakening, religious attitudes to cosmetic surgery , female genital mutilation and the authenticity of some women’s desire to wear hijab -some are compelled to by society or family.All these themes were against a backdrop of fantastic styles, colours and gorgeous gorgeous fashions.
Over at Hijab Style, Hayah has some further analysis and is looking forward to next week’s episode, set in the UK.
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