Ni putas ni sumisas / Neither Whores nor Submissive (Feminismos) by Fadela Amara

by Fadela Amara

Born in France to Algerian immigrant parents, Fadela Amara is a human rights activist who speaks with both a personal and collective voice. This book is a passionate account of her struggle to found the movement called "Ni putes ni soumises" (Neither whores nor doormats) aimed at shattering the law of silence about violence against women within the Muslim community. The questions Amara raises are part of a broader agenda that seeks to integrate French Muslims into contemporary French society. These issues also pose major political problems of national identity and the defense of a secular state.As France increasingly confronts ethnic tensions and the emergence of Muslim fundamentalism, French cities face problems of unemployment, racial discrimination, and violence. Amara's eloquent call for social and gender equality underscores a host of interconnected issues, including France's colonial past and a degradation of the suburbs that has progressively marginalized immigrant communities. Focusing on the repressive code of clothing and gender behavior imposed on young women by a minority of Islamic fundamentalist men, Amara challenges supporters of those wearing the "veil," or Islamic headscarf, in French schools, analyzes the motives behind such actions, and offers her own opinions as to its meanings. Moving, candid, and extremely timely, Breaking the Silence created a sensation when it was published in France, where it went on to win a number of awards.

Genres: Feminism, Nonfiction, Gender, Race, France, Islam

Paperback

First published October 6, 2003

Reviews

[Davinia Muque · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me ha abierto los ojos con muchas cosas relacionadas con el islam y las mujeres. Me ha encantado porque he sido capaz de conectar con la autora y admirarla. Las cosas no han cambiado mucho desde los años 70 u 80 y es una pena...

Recomiendo este libro a todas las mujeres que quieran saber un poco más sobre la historia del feminismo.

[Alexia ✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great book. When I started reading it I wasn't expecting much, to be fully honest, but after reading a couple of pages I was completely amazed by the writing and dedication of the author towards her project.

This book shows us the life of many french women on their daily fight for equality and their own rights. It's inspirational. Their strenght, their passion, their dedication... It's so beautiful and eye-opening to see how the world really is and what people, like us, are doing to fight for their rights. Inspires us to fight as well, for our sisters and for daughters and for ourselves.

This is a book that, with no doubt, I recommend.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

3’5/5

[Frumenty · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book really inspiring. It tells the story of a revolt against a growing culture of violence and control in the quartiers populaires a.k.a. cités a.k.a. banlieues, the huge dormitory suburbs of many French cities. A small but very brave and determined group of women, predominantly the daughters of immigrants, (and some sympathetic men) pushed back against the forces that want to deny women of the banlieues their basic rights and liberties. Their efforts came to a head in the "Marche des femmes des quartiers pour l'égalité et contre le ghetto" (March of Women of the Quartiers For Equality and Against the Ghetto) of 2003. The March lasted 5 weeks, over 23 stages, growing as it proceeded, drawing in thousands of women who until then had either suffered in silence or fought an unequal battle without hope of assistance.

Fadela Amara's book explains the dynamics of this particular oppression very well, and I won't attempt to explain it here. It is noticeable that in every generation there is a significant section of young women that just doesn't get feminism, I suppose because the issues shift over the years and they think feminism is all about issues that are no longer seem relevant. The movement Ni putes ni soumises (Neither prostitutes nor doormats) of which this book speaks succeeded in connecting with very many women in France for whom feminism had until then had no appeal at all.

It is significant that Fadela Amara is the daughter of Algerian immigrants, raised as a Moslem and speaking from within that cultural / religious context, while at the same time she is a French woman who cherishes Enlightenment and Humanist values. Her criticisms of sections of her own co-religionists cannot be dismissed as irrelevant opinions of an interfering western outsider. She is a strong advocate of "laïcité" (the proscription of overtly religious symbols and practices in certain public spaces), and especially of the wearing of the Islamic veil in public.

The issues are persuasively and passionately argued. I think the last chapter of the book could have been labelled Acknowledgements - just one dull chapter in an otherwise enthralling book. If you can read French this is a must-read book. Highly recommended.

[♥ D a n n a ♥ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Es un libro muy interesante ya que cuenta la vida de las mujeres inmigrantes francesas de barrios bajos provenientes de paises musulmanes principalmente. Cuenta cómo es vivir en una sociedad machista, la poca participación del Estado para evitar la violencia y herramientas para cambiar esta realidad.
Me gustó mucho porque es una realidad totalmente distinta a la de mi país (ya que tenemos poca inmigración musulmana), y explicó varias cosas de la religión en las cuales siempre tuve dudas (como por ejemplo, el velo de las mujeres). La autora, al profesar el islam, tiene una postura marcada y la explica muy bien, aunque me hubiera gustado que se explaye más en lo que es la religión y el feminismo.

[M-AY · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sans être d'accord avec tout et bien que son constat sur la question du voile/foulard ne soit pas totalement faussée, il ne constitue pas, pour avoir vu les 2 cas en cité, une généralité et ne devrait pas autant stigmatisé une population quand une grande frustration et conflits identitaires des français issus des dernières vagues migratoires prend ses racines dans une France qui justement "refuse de regarder et d'assumer son passé et - voire son présent - colonialiste" (et même esclavagiste quand on constate la situation des populations ultramarines) et pourrait trouver une solution via des politiques d'éducations et de considération ne voyant les origines de ces français pour la plupart issus d'anciennes colonies comme les "Autres".
Il transparaît aussi beaucoup de naïveté dans sa croyance aux actions gouvernementales dont les belles promesses ont vite été balayées se justifiant par des discours islamophobes, xénophobes et racistes (son adhésion au gouvernement sarkosyste y a été probablement pour beaucoup mais je m'étonne de la violence des réactions face à son adhésion alors que, contrairement à d'autres, elle s'illustrait depuis des années dans un engagement associatif en faveur des femmes de cité bien avant sa médiatisation... Sa préface post publication me laisse cependant perplexe sur certains points).
On se rend néanmoins compte que 20 ans plus tard le constat et les dérives dont elle donnait l'alerte sont devenus une amère réalité... Elle y esquisse aussi sans la nommer les principes d'intersectionnalité qui ont fait prendre conscience de l'impact négatif du feminisme blanc-bourgeois sur les femmes qui n'étaient pas issues de ces milieus.
Un livre à conseiller pour comprendre aujourd'hui pourquoi la guettoisation des banlieues et le clivage avec la "France républicaine' est toujours d'actualité voire s'est empiré.

[Elena · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bien en cuanto al contenido, es interesante. Sin embargo, habría que revisar la traducción y tendría que pasar de nuevo por un corrector, pues hay varios fallos que me han impedido disfrutar de su lectura tanto como esperaba. Deformación profesional, supongo.

[Manon]

Je m'attendais à un essai sur la condition des femmes dans les cités et dans une certaine mesure, l'autrice met en lumière des causes d'oppression mais c'est davantage un récit sur son expérience. Ses analyses sont donc emprunts de cette subjectivité, dommage.

[luci✿ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trata un tema bastante concreto pero muy interesante al mismo tiempo.

[Marta Millán · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ha sido ponerme cara a cara con una realidad desconocida para mí

[Alex Arias · Rating 4 out of 5]

Me lo leí para Sociología del Género

[Leilani · Rating 5 out of 5]

i read this right before i read "how soccer explains the world: an unlikely theory on globalization" and it all made sense to me ... the ties between a group struggling to find their voice and identity in the ghettos of france, a country that continues to oppress them though no longer under the blatant flag of colonialism, and with this struggle comes the tightening of gender roles because that is something that is easy to control. great read, smart ideas, as a privileged female-bodied college student, it really made me see things differently.

[Steven · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amara is compelling and even at times convincing but one cannot help but to remain mindful of her political tone and her constant endorsement of one political ideal based on personal experience. Time will tell if Amara is right but until then she remains a successor of the colonial regime.

[Kasey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Re-read?: probably not. But good book. Educational. Activism. Easy read. Although about different matters, slightly goes along with what is going on in the world right now. I would recommend it to others for a reality check on what still happens in the world.

[e smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

i learned that history resonates in the strangest ways.

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

I started reading this over the summer during my NEH Seminar... but I'm just not feeling the militant feminist thing at the moment. I'll pick this book up again later.