It took a while, but after protracted discussions, my late mother finally had come around to the idea. “Habiba, you don’t need to get married” she’d said. I had finally convinced her that the opportunity cost of marriage was too great to sustain. I read Fatima Adamou’s piece with great…
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Many of my single women friends are over 30, and some are now over 35. Together we either laugh till we cry, or cry till we laugh when we talk about the challenges of meeting and marrying Muslim men. The situations we find ourselves in today are both funny and…
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from the altM archives
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I am thirty-seven, single and childless. The latter two of these three descriptives are taboo within the Muslim community. Whether you live in America, Pakistan or Egypt, if you are not attached to a husband and with a brood of children in tow, you are an outsider. Extended family and…
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A deep magenta shalwar chemise lay draped on the bed. I had not worn such things in years, but today, while visiting a Washington, D.C. suburb, a Pakistani aunty told me to come over to her house and pick one out. I selected the one with the richest hue possible…
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Tiny Love Story “And what do you do?” so many have asked. “I tell stories,” the girl said. One by one they’ve walked away, not understanding the language she speaks. Until one day… “I tell stories,” said she. “Then you are brave,” said he, “and you should keep telling them….
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On Tues., Aug. 16, 2011 Nazish Noorani was shot and killed while on an afternoon stroll in the suburbs of Boonton, NJ. Nearly three and a half years after her death, a jury has found her husband, Kashif Parvaiz, guilty of her murder. Finally. Not that you’d know this if you’ve been…
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Rushing into a physical relationship before establishing social commitment is harmful on a personal and societal level. A sad reality is that the online dating industry is built on this shadiness for purely economic reasons. A sadder reality is that well-intentioned people are sucked into it. It’s a downward spiral…
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Dear Mo, Salaam, I met a guy through a friend and because things are going well, I’d like to know whether or not he sees a future with me. I am refraining from broaching the subject because so far he and I have not discussed our pasts in detail. Relationship…
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Yelli is a free Tinder-like app for Android and iOS smartphones, created by three New York-based Muslim millennials who wanted to help connect single Muslims in a fun and practical way. The topic of online marriage remains sensitive and controversial, since the assumption in traditional Muslim society is that people will…
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