Jasad magazine casts an unprecedented spotlight on sexuality in the Arab world

I know you think I lost my mind posting a story about muslim sexuality but this is bigger than the topic of the articles. This is a story of a muslim woman standing against culturally oppressive and backward thinking muslim men. I have pointed out for years now that if islam can change and enter this century it will be the women that force the change. The men of islam have enforced strict and violent control over muslim women since mohammed justified the abuse of females as his right. I sincerely hope the magazine flourishes if for no other reason than its success will force muslims to finally compare the modern world with the seventh century.

Jocelyne Zablit, 31 March, 2009, AFP
BEIRUT: From explicit articles about masturbation and homosexuality to columns about “My First Time,” Jasad (Body) is out to shine a spotlight on Arab cultural taboos, and the glossy magazine that is already the focus of controversy. The first issue of this quarterly publication, the brainchild of 38-year-old writer and poet Joumana Haddad, hit Lebanese newsstands last December. Tongues have wagged ever since about a daring venture into uncharted territory in the largely conservative and Muslim Middle East.
-I should point out that pornography is available in every muslim country but a magazine that openly addresses sexuality is groundbreaking.

“It’s true that this is a first in the Arab world,” Haddad told AFP. “I put open handcuffs near the word Jasad on the cover of the magazine to illustrate that I wanted to unlock a taboo.
-The handcuff crack almost led me to post one of my favorite pictures but Doctor Bulldog is a square and would have censored it.

“We need to stop treating our bodies, especially we women, as if they’re something to be ashamed of,” she added. “We have so many issues to deal with without having the extra weight of needing to cover our bodies.”
-I have pointed out a few times that muslim women are sexually active. Despite the often seen moral equivalency arguments and attempts to deny it, muslim women troll for men just like any other culture. Granted they do have to be careful. We have seen plenty of examples of young women murdered because muslim families refuse to step out of the past.

The December issue of Jasad, which sold for $10, includes articles on self-mutilation and cannibalism. The cover story of the March issue focuses on the penis.
-I cannot resist reminding the muslims that we have also pointed out numerous times that most of their sexual insecurity seems to be related to their sub sized male organs.

Other articles deal with battered men and women, transsexuals and the “Kama Sutra.” A regular feature is “My First Time,” in which a well-known figure talks about his or her first sexual encounter and subsequent sex life.
-Imagine the possibilities “my first time with an infidel” or “Ronin, my first real man.”

Sexually graphic images – including reproductions of works by famous artists such as Salvador Dali, Pablo Picasso or Francis Bacon – accompany the articles by authors from Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, the Palestinian territories, Saudi Arabia and Syria. Pseudonyms are not allowed.

The magazine has drawn the wrath of religious authorities and women’s organizations in Lebanon who are calling for its closure on the grounds that it amounts to pornography.

“We are all in favor of modernity,” claimed Aman Kabbara Shaarani, head of the Lebanese Council of Women, an umbrella group of several organizations. “But this magazine, under cover of being cultural, appeals to sexual instincts. Subjects that teach our youngsters how to make love do not fit in with our moral values and civic education.”
-She sounds like she could be a fat ugly bitch to me, just sayin.

Shaarani said she had written to the highest religious authorities in the country – both Christian and Muslim – as well as to Cabinet members and the censorship bureau calling for Jasad to be banned. “I will not give up because there needs to be a media watchdog for these sorts of publications,” she said. “We are considering taking this before the courts.”
-She knows damn well her husband hides magazines under his bed. I have yet to see a muslim male that doesn’t regularly view porn.

For now Lebanese authorities appear content to let publication continue. Haddad, who is also culture editor of the well-known Lebanese daily Al-Nahar, argues that her publication does not target minors and is sold in a sealed plastic envelope clearly marked for adults only.

She said she regularly receives hate mail and her website has been hacked into 15 times and had the words “There is no god but God” in Arabic left on the server. Haddad says she is not moved by such threats and stands ready to defend herself.
-You go girl. We get some interesting mail around here as well and we usually avoid controversial topics (ok, not really, we seek them out, but you did smile when you read that).

“I’m not afraid of controversy,” she said. “I am passionate, I believe in this project and sales have demonstrated there was a need for it.”
-Teaching muslim women that they are human, have needs and need not fear their basic needs can only empower them; I can see why muslim men are intimidated by her honesty.

The magazine’s first issue – all 3,000 copies – sold out within 11 days. Sales of the second issue, printed at 4,000 copies, have so far been brisk, Haddad said.

Outside Lebanon the magazine is sold by subscription only as no bookstore in the Arab world would dare stock it, she said. “The highest number of subscribers, 282 out of some 400, are in Saudi Arabia, where the magazine was met with much enthusiasm,” said Haddad, who financed the project herself.
-I should get an autographed issue for encouraging and supporting this project.

So far advertisers have shied away for the most part, fearing a backlash.
-Cowards.

While Haddad admits that some of the articles and pictures in “Jasad” may be shocking to some, she rejects any notion that the Middle East is not yet ready for such a publication.
-Even in the 80’s it was common for us to trade porn to muslims, they love it. What they are scared of are modern women.

“Why should we treat the Arab world as a minor?” she asked. “People against this project should go back to our own literary heritage which includes ‘The Perfumed Garden’ and ‘Thousand and One Nights.’ These works could shock even the most liberated of Western readers.”
-Well, I have never seen Doc’s library but I am betting he has a few non-scientific books. I of course would never touch anything pornographic as it belittles women. Having said that; ladies keep the pictures coming as I am developing a method to detect future melanomas by using photographs. Your moment of youthful exuberance could one day save your life. Do not send them to Doc he is a perv.

Explore posts in the same categories: Arab Street, censorship, Freedom of Speech, Lebanon