Interview with Tasnim by NA ’21.
Tasnim is part of a large family where she is the youngest of her siblings. She is also a graduate from Hebron University where she studied media. Having started the first female theater group in her city, Tasnim has shown how much she cares about acting and spreading important messages about her society. Tasnim has a passion for women’s rights and gender equality. In Hebron, women are often perceived to be just mothers or prospective mothers and Tasnim hopes to help and change this societal view of girls. Recently, Tasnim has also joined a radio station and will be speaking about and analyzing different pieces of literature. Hopefully, in the future Tasnim will be able to use this radio station as a medium of discourse over social injustices. With so many ambitions and hopes to change her society for the better, Tasnim has presented a unique perspective on life in Hebron.
Transcript:
“We don’t have a spa in our city. So, I wish if I can open a spa to take care of girls, just girls, because if we have spa in another city, and we have one in a far city, but there is no girls, just boys. So I’m going to do one for just girls. No boys get in. Last time I was in Jordan, my cousin took me to the spa and I really had fun, you know! Like, it’s interesting to have the whole day to yourself and being treated as a princess. So, I loved it and I wanted to open one here to all the women and girls in my city.
You know like in my society it’s not fair for women. In a lot of fields, they are not fair for women. They saw the women as something you can own. If you marry the woman, you own her. If she is your daughter you own her. If she is your sister you own her. You have the right to tell her what she can do and what she can’t do. I hate, I hate to see girls and women treated like this. She is a person. As much as you are a person, she is a person. There are some stuff women can’t do. Just a little bit of stuff we can’t do. Okay, I believe in this, but also I believe that if we have the opportunity and we have the right chance and we have someone behind us or next to us — just give us the advice and chance, the opportunity. We can prove ourselves.
They always see her as a mother. ‘You can be a mother.’ Even when we graduate from high school and we have to go to college, if you are a girl the first thing you are going to hear is ‘you just can study something, you can teach in the school, because you are a girl and you are getting married after your education.’ Being a teacher is the easiest thing for a mother. You can’t work in a bank, you can’t work in anything that makes you late at your home. We still have some people that say if you husband hits you or treats you bad or doesn’t let you go out of the house you should say it’s okay. You should do what he wants. It’s painful when you have a bad man in you life. It’s painful.
I want to be involved when I can help. I want to be strong to help. We have a male society. They love the men more. The man is the leader. We go on the stage and say what we should say and we say what we believe in, even if we know that everyone can’t say that.”
https://soundcloud.com/nancy-kalow/tasnim-interview
