Miriam Cooke and Hijab Trendz

During this hour on Focus, we talk with Professor Miriam Cooke about how she got started studying Muslim women and their writing and why their writings are important. She talks with us about women who inspired the feminist movement in the Middle East and why it became important during the 1990’s. Cooke is a Professor of Arab Cultures at Duke University and the Director of the University’s Middle East Studies Center. She’s been a visiting professor in Tunisia, Romania, Indonesia, and Qatar and is one of the foremost scholars on Islamic Feminism and Arab Culture.

Then during the second half of the hour, we talk with Mariam Sobh. She’s the founder and editor-in-chief of Hijab Trendz, a fashion blog for Muslim women. Host Jim Meadows talks with Sobh about her decision to cover her hair, what it means and how some Muslim women are choosing not to.

What misconceptions about Islam should be corrected? Do you wear a hijab? Maybe you choose not to… We want to hear from you. Join our conversation on Facebook and Twitter @Focus580 or post in the comments section below.

Cooke is speaking at the University of Illinois campus in Urbana at 12:00 p.m. Monday, March 4 in the Levis Faculty Center, 919 W Illinois St.