WOMAN OF THE BLACK

Your black is not beautiful

But where are you? Oh, woman of the black fabric

Why do you hide?

Do you live a painful life?

You have no rights        

Forced to be a wife

With the tears of your eyes

Behind the black fabric you hide

You have no voice

You have no face

You have no choice

Don’t you wonder why?

Men don’t hide

But why must I?

Is it pride?

Religion?

Tradition?

The law?

What would they do? Stone you?

Oh, woman of the black fabric!

You must hide

Or you will die  

 (dedicated to my dear friend Shahanna Ali from Iraq. R.I.P)

Reviews

[Duane Klinger]

Very touching. Very powerful. Very well written! I agree with Rene, it is a prespective that needs to be shared. I had a Muslim friend who came here for a year and in that year I learned so much about their culture. She cried on my shoulder, afraid to return home. She recently moved back here, has adapted our culture and has become quite successful. Nicely done!
MKLINE

[ShameemAkhtar]

Very deep and powerful, very well written

Very touching

Woman of the black fabric... Very powerful sentence

Overall stunning

[Pratik]

It strikes you....and as you have said it, there are many meaningless traditions that are still prevalent that are aimed at keeping women in the backseat. Your poem does justice to all the women out there.. Nicely put together :)

[RISHABH ARORA]

very empowering !!!! and the logic is so simple ~~~ ^-^ ... i like it

[roy mccarthy]

very deep and powerful poem!

[MmeCorpse]

Wow. Very sad, but so true... My condolences to you and your friend, and to all the women and children over there who are oppressed... it's horrible.

[hopelessromantic]

powerful i liked it

[Coyote Poetry]

A powerful poem with a sad story. I believe each person need opportunity and their own life. I told my three daughters. Have a job and pay your own bills. Never depend on a man. Ownership and control is hard to regain after being lost. I like the way you described the questions of the poem.
"Men don’t hide
But why must I?"
Thank you for a excellent poem.
Coyote

[Neva Flores Smith - Cha..]

Soul touching. My heart goes out to you as I am sure yours misses your friend.

[NightShade]

Powerfully provocative work like this forces one to ponder society (any society, really) and the expectations put on those who dwell within them. I couldn't help but think of a book Reading Lolita In Tehran, as I read this. then, I saw the dedication. Incredibly well done. This is the stuff that sticks with you for awhile.

[SpokenWord]

I am left almost speechless. I try to respect others culture and I try to understand that every culture is not like mine. People have told me in the past of why women are forced to dress in black and cover up. In a way it makes me wonder if the men there are not strong enough to resist the temptation of visually seeing a woman. I don't understand and maybe I never will. I am sorry about your friend it seems by this poem she made a choice to stand up and in doing so she was silenced. Interesting and thought provoking write.