AQSAZINE Issue #2 Call For Submissions (double Issue: Immigration & Migration & Love/sex/marriage; Deadline: 15-May-09)
AQSAZINE is a grassroots publication open to 16-35 year old women and trans people who self-identify as Muslim.
It is a creative avenue for us to express ourselves, share our own experiences, and connect with others. In Arabic, "aqsa" implies the furthermost, as in reaching out to the furthest possible point. AQSAZINE aims to motivate the utmost resistance to oppression in all its forms. We strive to work from an anti-oppressive, pro-choice, queer and trans positive framework.
Types of Submissions:
Stories (fiction or non-fiction); Poetry; Artwork, Photography, Visuals; Media reviews; Articles, profiles, interviews; Self-help booklets, tip-sheets, flyers and pamphlets; Any other form of personal art or writing
Why Submit:
immigration & migration: If you feel like a minority wherever you go... if your heart longs for somewhere you've never been but that's burned into your memory... If you spend your life trying to find your place... If your physical home is occupied, forgotten, or far away... If your life consists of various checkpoints, "visas in yo' name", lawyer consultations, applications, rejections... If you've been expelled, deported, refugized, rendered illegal, or erased by your "non-status"... If you've found a new "home away from home" that is warm, welcoming and REAL... If you're searching for "home" - the place and the meaning... If you've found home in a person, community, people, or state of mind... If you've found strength in your displacement... If you were never really given the choice... your expression is welcome here.
love/sex/marriage: If you ever wonder what order the three words should come in, but often have no choice in the matter... If you believe in any or all of them and know Islam gives you the right to appreciate, enjoy, even savour them... If you've stained your sheets and are wondering what's next... If you feel like you've failed your parents... If you have forbidden loves... If your body is someone else's battleground... If you have been (or think you have been) sexually assaulted... If fear, sex, and guilt have been twisted in your head for far too long... If you risk so much of yourself and your safety to express love... If wherever you turn people try to marry you off to a "handsome doctor/lawyer/engineer"... If your heart is in the right place, but your mind and body wonder... If you've asked many questions to which you found no answers... your expression is welcome here.
Confidentiality:
Submissions will not be reprinted without the author's permission. You can use your first and/or last name, a pen name, or even remain completely anonymous. We want you to feel safe in making a contribution.
Deadline for Submissions:
15 May 2009. All submitters will be notified that their pieces have been received.
Contact Information:
To send us your submissions, questions, requests for more information or to get involved with this project and our work, email us at: aqsazine[@]gmail.com. You can also check out our blog at: aqsazine.blogspot.com.
The new issue of AQSAZINE will be launched in May of 2009 in Toronto, Canada.
Article License: Copyright - Article License Holder:
AQSAZINE