Via Maryam Namazie :
The calendar is the idea of campaigner Maryam Namazie to support Aliaa Magda Elmahdy and join her ‘screams against a society of violence, racism, sexism, sexual harassment and hypocrisy’.
Namazie says: ‘What with Islamism and the religious right being obsessed with women’s bodies and demanding that we be veiled, bound, and gagged, nudity breaks taboos and is an important form of resistance.’
The calendar is designed by SlutWalk Co-founder Toronto, Sonya JF Barnett who says: ‘I felt that women needed to stand in solidarity with Aliaa. It takes a lot of guts to do what she did, and the backlash is always expected and can quite hurtful. She needed to know that there are others like her, willing to push the envelope to express outrage.’
It’s generous of the publishers to make the calendar available for free, but I would ask my readers to also consider making a contribution to the cause via the paypal link at the bottom of Maryam’s post.
There is already criticism emerging about the calendar, and I will just point you to Maryam Namazie’s reply to some of these criticisms, isn’t it revealing how nudity is perceived by Islamists as threatening the cohesion of their society. Take women out of their body bags, and Mohammed will have fits in his grave and the world will disintegrate into doom and depravity. It’s so pathetic, it’s funny. Good on these brave women to have the courage to point it out.
