Djamila
by: enas elmohands
In the 1960s, Algerian revolutionary, Djamila Boupacha was captured by French soldiers and raped with a broken beer bottle
and the one question she asked herself,
was
“Do you think any man would want me
after I’ve been ruined by that bottle?”
sito says, don’t ever let a man touch you down there
lazm t7fzy 3la nefsk
sharafk ahem she2 3ndk
amity says, a girl’s virginity is like a match
it’s only lit once
she who gives herself deserves what she gets
the Quran says,
حورية
virgins promised to men in paradise
reclining in brocade and silk
إِنَّ هَٰذَا لَهُوَ الْفَوْزُ الْعَظِيمُ
scholars say,
do not confuse culture for religion
point fingers at governments, blame corruption
look the other way while women are raped
and then promote open discussion
in one breath tell us we are equal, the next immoral and sinful
we muslimas have the word honor carved into our tongues by the age of nine
so when we first bleed we can’t call ourselves a woman without swallowing those desires
are taught to covet our purity see our virginity as holy
submit quietly when they cut us before we hit puberty
Allah, I looked for you in Tahrir
could not find you
mastered all 99 names of you
chanted them as if I can make freedom out of you
but I find no freedom in having a body that is chained
in burning to fuel a revolution so that men can chant for change
Allah, I will not pray to you
do not ask me to bend to a god who wrote no book for me
whose poetry erased women from my history
who created man and watched as he used bottles to mutilate our bodies
Allah, I do not fear the shaytan
I fear I’ll have daughters and they’ll live in a world where you’re still god
Allah, I learned to love you before I knew I had to love myself
was taught to find peace in your words and seek you when I needed help
Allah, my sisters are dying
and you’re still the last word they say before they close their eyes
Allah,
I will pray to you when you send down your 100th name
when the prophetess you choose carves it into Djamila’s grave.
Allah,
The Feminist
Arabic Translations:
sito: grandma
amity: my aunt
lazm t7fzy 3la nefsk: you have to take care of yourself
sharafk ahem she2 3ndk: your honor is the most important thing you have
حورية : houri
إِنَّ هَٰذَا لَهُوَ الْفَوْزُ الْعَظِيمُ : indeed, this is the great attainment (a line from the Quran)
muslimas: female muslims
shaytan: the devil
enas is a Muslim Arab-American poet whose passion is threading the arts into the dialogue of human rights as she believes they can be a profound catalyst for change. Find enas on Tumblr
11 Comments
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I love this. It was enlightening, beautiful like poetry yet teaching at the same time.
Powerful words and eloquently spoken. I could feel the emotion just reading this.
Your writing is so authentic and clear prose. I look forward to reading your post about ancient lands.
Wow this was powerful. IT hurt me that this person was raped with a bottle how horrific I couldnt even imagine.
This was so beautiful and heart-wrenching at the same time. Thank you for bringing it to life with the spoken version.
It saddens me that as women so many of us has had these experiences. Thanks for sharing your spoken word.
enas this was both sad yet powerfully deep. I felt it in my bones and had chills down my spine listening and reading this. It saddens me to know that this is happening to my Muslim sisters present day as well! Keep going! The world needs to hear more of your words 💜✨
Wow, so powerful and I LOVE your voice. It’s like an angel voice..very comforting!
Thank you for sharing this beautiful poem. You have a gift! I am happy to see you’re using it and sharing it with the world.
VERY POWERFUL!!! Thank you for sharing!!
So beautiful. Your poetry is amazing! Thanks for sharing!