New York-based filmmaker Bassam Tariq shares the most beautiful images from his story project, 30Days/Ramadan, where photos from the Muslim holy month of Ramadan reveal that media stereotypes of Muslims aren't nearly as colorful or interesting as snapshots from within the community.
Aman Ali and I have been on the road for the past 15 days exploring Muslim America. We started our trip in Alaska, somehow ended up in Hawaii and are… Read the rest of the article: 15 days exploring Muslim America
During Ramadan last year, Aman Ali and I visited 30 mosques in 30 days around New York City. Regular Boing Boing readers may remember our two-week stint guestblogging here during that experiment. This year, while I was in Pakistan, we decided on a whim to revisit that adventure, but this time, take on the rest of America. We didn't know what we were getting ourselves into.
Our Ramadan road trip trip this year drew much interest from big media, thanks to the "Ground Zero Mosque controversy" and Terry Jones' Quran-burning fiasco. It was unsettling to sit through interview after interview, fielding questions about mosque construction and the state of the American Muslim community. Every TV interview eventually veered into "Islam on trial" territory, and we were the ones defending it. Aman and I became Ambassador Muslim. It sucked.
Ramadan ended, the news cycle moved on, and we were lost to the archives. We're good for clicks, but only when we're controversial. And as far as that part goes, I am happy it's all over. But I'll miss every other part of our 30-day adventure. It's been two weeks since we've been back and already I miss the road, the people we met, and the America I experienced.
The following photos come from our month-long road trip through Muslim America. I've selected a special assortment of images for Boing Boing, and am honored to share these photos with you.
Two women wearing niqab pass through a broken street. 115 is the number to call an Edhi ambulance. The number is imprinted over all Edhi paraphernalia. I wanted to share… Read the rest of the article: The Edhi Ambulance: first responders in Pakistan (photo essay)
No wonder Congress was fighting so hard to pass the Mutant Registration Act. I found this on my friend's Facebook. An imam who looks ambiguously Asian leads a cast of… Read the rest of the article: The Other Secret Identity of Superheroes
On Sundays, most Pakistanis will turn away from their usual Indian TV consumption and catch Coke Studios on one of the many Pakistani channels that have syndicated it. I blogged… Read the rest of the article: Shah Jo Raag fakirs on Coke Studios (video: traditional Pakistani music)
There is homosexuality in Pakistan, like there is in Iran and the rest of the world. It's just this moment isn't one of them. And though these two men are… Read the rest of the article: An Intimate Moment on the Beach
Since it's pride week, I thought I'd share a small story about the disenfranchised transgendered community here in Karachi. Ashi stands by the door of the shared house where she… Read the rest of the article: Aziz and her dignity (a Boing Boing guest-dispatch from Pakistan)
Bassam Tariq is a Boing Boing guestblogger who is the co-author of 30 Mosques. A blog celebrating the NYC mosques during the Islamic month of Ramadan. He lives in Harlem,… Read the rest of the article: A Farewell and Edhi
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