Susan notes: the story says the calendar would be sold to raise money for charity. However, I've been to the Islamic
Family And Social Services Association website and am unable to find how to order the calendar. I've emailed asking for information, but no answer so far....
A Grade 3 teacher with a passion for kickboxing is one of 13 Edmontonians featured in a new calendar celebrating local Muslim women.
Noreen Bashir will be seen in the calendar wearing boxing gloves and a sports hijab at the gym where she works out almost everyday. The martial arts champion first took up the sport as a way to exercise while recovering from a car accident.
"I've ... never been part of any kind of project like that before especially in our community and I'm actually very proud to represent the Muslim women of Edmonton," said Bashir.
The calendar is the brainchild of local photographer and filmmaker
Shazia Javed. The women featured in the calendar were nominated by the
local Muslim community and include medical students at the University of
Alberta, a local youth worker and a pizzeria owner who raised triplets
on her own. Some, but not all, wear head coverings.
"I chose the women which represented a wide spectrum," Javed said.
"To me, it's all about what they do, rather than for what they wear, and
whatever they choose to wear doesn't hinder them from doing anything."
Sonika Kaliraman is a rarity - she is one of 200 Indian women who wrestle professionally, and one of only about 50 women who can represent India in international championships.
She is tall and graceful - and it's hard to imagine her tossing opponents onto a wrestling mat.
But Sonika, 26, is the daughter of India's wrestling champion, Chandgi Ram.
She has been living her father's dream for 10 years now, and hopes for success in next year's Commonwealth Games in Delhi. She won gold at the Asian Women Wrestling Championship in 2000.
Her real shot at national fame came this August, when she took part in Khatron Ke Khiladi - the Indian version of popular American reality show, Celebrity Fear Factor.
''[Bollywood star] Akshay Kumar [who hosts the show] once exclaimed on the set - "Wrestler? She looks more like a model!" says Sonika.
Her appearance on the show, and the subsequent attention she received from the media have had an effect on her.
More than 1,000 followers of a multi-religious sect in northern India have pledged to marry female sex workers who want to escape exploitation.
Young Hindu, Muslim and Sikh men have been queuing up at the Dera Sacha Sauda (Abode of the Real Deal) in the town of Sirsa as "wedding volunteers". They say they are doing so to stop the women from being exploited in brothels.
They also claim that their move is part of a campaign to stop the spread of the HIV/Aids virus. The Dera Sacha Sauda (DSS) is one of many religious sects operating in northern India. Most take root by offering community services, social welfare and spiritual leadership but over time, as their followings grow, they often seek political influence.
Correspondents say that in religious terms, the DSS is hard to classify. Many experts argue that it is not, as some have said, an offshoot of Sikhism. More than 1,200 DSS members have signed pledges to marry the sex workers following a call from DSS chief Ram Rahim Singh a little over a month ago.
Susan notes: I would love to see more article such as this Canadian Globe & Mail piece by James Hinchcliffe, a Toronto-based race car driver who voices his support for women in car racing.
If you are even a casual sports fan, and as long as you haven’t been living under an enormous rock for the past five years, you have most likely heard of Danica Patrick. And guys, if the name doesn’t ring a bell, just pick up your latest Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition and turn to page six. You’ll realize you know her better than you thought. And while Danica can be found heating up the pages of magazines like SI, it is her talent for burning rubber that has made her famous.
Danica is a driver in the IndyCar series and has been since she busted onto the scene in 2005 with Rahal Letterman Racing.
Earlier this week she announced a three-year extension of her contract with the newly renamed Andretti Autosport (formerly Andretti Green Racing) meaning fans will get to continue watching her blaze a trail in open wheel racing.
With her family mired in deepening poverty, Sajida Mohammad was
happy enough that her father accepted the proposal of marriage when it
came. The man who would become her husband was a stranger to them all,
but he promised financial help and there seemed to be no other options.
It was, however, a decision the 28-year-old Iraqi woman came to
bitterly regret because, within a month, her hopes had collapsed and
the newlywed found herself being sold as a prostitute by her spouse.
“For
a short time he was nice to me, and did give my family some money and
that was good,” she said. “Then we moved house, to a small apartment
and one day he invited some friends over and told me I must do anything
they wanted, even if it was something that should only be between a man
and his wife.
“I rejected the idea, but my husband was drunk and he beat me.”
According
to Ms Mohammad, the attack was so severe that she lost consciousness.
After recovering, she said, her husband laid down the law: she would
work for him and have sex with whomever he brought back to their flat
in Karrada, in central Baghdad. If she complained, he would stop giving
money to her parents or even kill her.
“I didn’t have any choice
and so I did what he told me,” Ms Mohammad explained. “I lived that
kind of life for a year. I slept with any man he brought to me. I
didn’t see any way to escape from it, and I couldn’t tell anyone what
was happening.”
Susan notes: the story says the calendar would be sold to raise money for charity. However, I've been to the Islamic
Family And Social Services Association website and am unable to find how to order the calendar. I've emailed asking for information, but no answer so far....
Sonika Kaliraman is a rarity - she is one of 200 Indian women who wrestle professionally, and one of only about 50 women who can represent India in international championships.
More than 1,000 followers of a multi-religious sect in northern India have pledged to marry female sex workers who want to escape exploitation.
With her family mired in deepening poverty, Sajida Mohammad was
happy enough that her father accepted the proposal of marriage when it
came. The man who would become her husband was a stranger to them all,
but he promised financial help and there seemed to be no other options.