Women of Courage

In all of my readings, there are two women authors who stand out. Not just because of the books that they have written but more for their personal lives and their stories, their tragedies, triumphs, and survival. The women are Ayaan Hirsi Ali and Immaculee Ilibagiza.

Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a Somalia writer and politician, is the founder of women’s rights organization, the AHA Foundation. Hirsi is a prominent critic of Islam and their treatment of women. Her screenplay, Submission, with the Dutch filmmaker, Theo van Gogh, led to his death and for her, death threats and relocation from the Netherlands.

Hiris has written two outstanding books that detail her life and plight - Infidel and Nomad. I highly recommend both books, especially for women readers to realize how free we are in the United States of America. They both are good books to learn about the restrictions and classless society that Muslim women find themselves living under.

Infidel is Hirsi’s memoir. I found it to be one of the most fascinating books that I have ever read. The subject matter at times was difficult to comprehend. As I read the book, I found myself going through a lot of different emotions. The books shows how Hirsi survived civil war, female mutilation, brutal beatings, living under the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood and living in four unstabled countries. Hirsi is a survivor and voice for women who have had their voices stifled and their lives ended.
In 1994, Immaculee Ilibagiza, a Rowandan, was a 24-year-old college student when she was caught in the Rowandan genocide which lasted for 3 months. More than one million ethnic Tutsis were murdered. In her book, Left To Tell, she tells how she survived with seven other women for 91 days in a tiny bathroom.

Ilibagiza’s mother, father and two brothers were killed during this time. Only she and another brother survived. Yet, Ilibagiza has been able to face the man who killed some members of her family while he was in jail. She forgave him. This most amazing woman had been able to forgive the man who killed her family and has been able to move on with her life. That is a lesson for all mankind.

Both women, as are the books they have written, are incredible writers and story tellers. I would not have wanted to have gone through what they had. But I would like to be strong, and courageous and a model for other women like Ayaan Hirisi Ali and Immaculee Ilibagiza.