Nineteen Arab women
journalists speak out about what it’s like to report on their
changing homelands in this first-of-its-kind essay collection, with a
foreword by CNN chief international correspondent Christiane Amanpour
“A stirring, provocative and
well-made new anthology . . . that rewrites the hoary rules of the
foreign correspondent playbook, deactivating the old clichés.”
—Dwight Garner, The New York Times
A
growing number of intrepid Arab and Middle Eastern sahafiyat—female
journalists—are working tirelessly to shape nuanced narratives
about their changing homelands, often risking their lives on the
front lines of war. From sexual harassment on the streets of Cairo to
the difficulty of traveling without a male relative in Yemen, their
challenges are unique—as are their advantages, such as being able
to speak candidly with other women at a Syrian medical clinic or with
men on Whatsapp who will go on to become ISIS fighters, rebels, or
pro-regime soldiers.
In
Our Women on the
Ground, nineteen of
these women tell us, in their own words, about what it’s like to
report on conflicts that (quite literally) hit close to home. Their
daring and heartfelt stories, told here for the first time, shatter
stereotypes about the region’s women and provide an urgently needed
perspective on a part of the world that is frequently misunderstood.
INCLUDING
ESSAYS BY: Donna Abu-Nasr, Aida Alami, Hannah Allam, Jane Arraf, Lina
Attalah, Nada Bakri, Shamael Elnoor, Zaina Erhaim, Asmaa al-Ghoul,
Hind Hassan, Eman Helal, Zeina Karam, Roula Khalaf, Nour Malas,
Hwaida Saad, Amira Al-Sharif, Heba Shibani, Lina Sinjab, and Natacha
Yazbeck