Hi habibs & habibas! Fatimah Asghar and I are co-editing an anthology called HALAL IF YOU HEAR ME with the hopes of amplifying the voices that so often get left out of the conversation about Muslimness, and so we invite Muslim women, gender non-conforming/nonbinary, queer, and trans writers to submit poems and essays for consideration!
We live in an Islamophobic world, where Muslim people are constantly under attack by the western world, or must prove their innocence when they’ve not even committed a crime. We live in a world of rigid gender roles and gender violence, where women, gender non-conforming, queer and trans people are victims of violence. Where they have their gender expressions, freedoms, and desires policed. There’s pressure from both Muslims and non-Muslims to fit into severe stereotypes of Muslim identity and the ways in which it is acceptable to be Muslim.
We want to dispel the notion that there is one correct way to be a Muslim, particularly for women, gender non-conforming, queer and trans people. We want to hold space for our multiple intersecting identities, and to celebrate and protect those identities. We want to use our writing to carve out this safe space.
We are looking for new or published poems on any subject. Writing that is directly related to being Muslim is great, but so is writing that is not. We are also looking for essays and artist statements from contributors that directly grapple with what it means to be Muslim in today’s world, as well as how that manifests in your work and lived experience. If you know anyone else who you think would be a good fit for this anthology, please let us know their names and contact information. We would love to make this as inclusive as possible.
Our submission deadline is December 1st, 2016. Please submit poems electronically to [email protected]. If you would like to submit but are worried about the deadline, please let us know as soon as possible. Please include a cover letter, contact information, and limit your submission to 5 poems, or 1-2 essays.
With love,
Fatimah Asghar & Safia Elhillo