MENA - Tumblr Posts

i had shared what is happening in sudan on a long facebook post last night, but it virtually received almost little to no engagement or shares from the nearly 600 “friends” i have on the site.

this morning, my great-aunt was shot by the soldiers fighting for power, and God forbid, i lose more of my family members before eid this friday.

please read below to understand what is happening and how you can help my country. i hope the tumblr community can show more kindness than the lack of support and advocacy i’ve seen elsewhere.

يا رب اجعل هذا البلد آمناً 🇸🇩

the lack of awareness and advocacy from the African, Arab, and Muslim diaspora and the human rights community has been painful.

while Western media has done little to no coverage of the ongoing conflict in the capital city of my motherland, Sudan, it appears that the rest of the world also partakes in normalizing crimes and violence against SWANA people.

violence and war hurting the SWANA region are NOT ordinary occurrences — no one, regardless of race, creed, ethnicity, religion, and gender, should experience the unprecedented amount of violence that harms my two living grandmothers, aunts and uncles, and baby cousins who live in Khartoum.

your decision to ignore reading or educating and discussing with others about what is likely to be a civil war is complicity in viewing SWANA people as individuals who regularly experience conflict and are undeserving of help.

the silence is damaging, and it is up to us as privileged members of the diaspora (or individuals living in the Western world committed to human rights) to support the people of my country and their dream for a stable, democratically elected government.

what is happening in Sudan is a fight that started on April 15 between two competing forces for power — the Sudanese Army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) — neither groups are representative of the needs of our people. The Sudan Army is loyal to the dictator, Omar Al-Bashir, and the RSF is responsible for the genocide in Darfur.

with both power struggles backed by different Arab and Gulf nations, the two parties have been fighting for power for the last few years. While they worked together to try and end the people’s revolution, they lost. however, they are now in a constant power play of who will get to rule the nation.

this all means that war is NOT a reflection of my country — violence does not represent the SWANA people. Sudan is a nation of beautiful culture, strong women, intellectual and influential Islamic scholars, poets, and youth at the front lines of the revolution. we are a people committed to a region of peace for ourselves and the rest of the Ummah.

my family and the rest of Sudan’s innocent civilians are at the most risk, with many currently without drinking water, food to eat, electricity, and complete blockage to any mosques during the final nights of Ramadan, our holiest month of the year.

i ask that you please keep Sudan and our people in your prayers — donate to the Sudan Red Crescent or a mutual aid GoFund Me, email your representatives if you live in a country that can put pressure on either competing force of power, discuss this with your family and friends, and please do not forget to think about SWANA people — our brothers and sisters in Syria, Yemen, Lebanon, and many others need our love and support.

الردة_مستحيلة ✊🏾

#KeepEyesOnSudan

Adopted Mixed Egyptian-Italian, Some Notes on the Coptic Diaspora

@k-herrold said:

I have some doubt about a character of mine, who is mixed Egyptian/Italian, but gets adopted by an Italian woman and has no relationship with either of their parents. I intended to write this character raised into italian culture by their aunt because thats the only one she knows, but I’m thinking: should I give them some knowledge about egyptian culture too? Or should I avoid this topic? I’m a white italian, maybe I’m not the right person to write about this

First part’s easy: YES! YES! Please let them know their Egyptian culture and heritage, there’s no reason why they couldn’t, and a disconnection/reconnection narrative is best suited towards Ownvoices (read this tag on cultural disconnection for why). 

If your character’s heritage is Muslim Arab Egyptian, get thee to the Arab and Muslim tags. This post on an Egyptian Muslim adoptee may be helpful. If your character’s heritage is Coptic, continue as I will give you some research items to consider. 

From what I know on the topic of language revitalization, I can tell you that the Coptic language and culture is in a precarious position. Ever since the Muslim conquest of Egypt, the Copts have been a minority, and have faced persecution from the government and genocidal attacks from extremist groups. Do research on the history here, as there’s quite a lot that’s happened. Arabic is the only official language of Egypt, and this has led to the significant decline in Coptic speakers. There has been an effort on the part of the Eastern Orthodox church to revive Coptic, but it is heavily mixed with Greek influences; revitalization efforts for more traditional forms of coptic are currently being undertaken by modern linguists, Egyptologists, and religious leaders. Take a quick look at this AP Archive story for more context on both the linguistic and cultural front (the video is un-subtitled, sadly, so consider it a supplement to the actual transcript and storyline on the page). All this to say that keeping her already in touch with their culture & language will mean a lot. 

There are many Coptic diaspora groups, with a notable destination being Italy, in fact! Perhaps you already knew this? This means that your character will probably have more resources to stay in touch with their heritage as opposed to living elsewhere in Europe, which is great. As for how the character might reconcile Italian Catholicism and Coptic Christianity, or what cultural connection looks like for them, I have no expertise or experience; your best bet is to find a Coptic Christian to consult. Since you’re Italian, use that to your advantage and find Italian-language sources on the Italian Coptic diaspora community. Cheers,

~ Mod Rina

As an adoptee raised by an Italian mom, I was still given some exposure to my own Chinese culture. My mom exposed me to Chinese language courses, Chinese lunar new year, and a Chinese mythology book when I was little. I highly recommend giving this character knowledge about their own Egyptian culture. Cultural disconnection, which is what I experience as an adoptee, is definitely best suited to ownvoices only because white people writing about cultural disconnection sounds like erasure. Good luck!

~Mod Sci

Calling all followers with Coptic heritage, let us know your thoughts! Your input is appreciated :)

I'm shocked and heartbroken hearing what happened to her she did not deserve anything those "people" did too her