Muslim Women: Past and Present

Recommend a Muslim Woman

Throughout the ages, from the earliest days of Islam to contemporary times today, Muslim women have been and continue to be active leaders in their communities and countries across the world. This directory is a growing archive of leading Muslim women scholars, activists, writers, politicians, artists, religious and spiritual leaders, civil society leaders and more. Please contribute to this archive by suggesting Muslim women to be featured through our recommendation form.

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Aishah Shahidah Simmons

photo of Aishah Shahidah Simmons

Known For: President / Documentary Filmmaker / Lecturer, AfroLez® Productions, LLC
Country: United States

About

Aishah Shahidah Simmons is an independent documentary filmmaker and activist whose work focuses on using the moving image, the written and spoken word to centralize the literal and metaphorical margins. Ms. Simmons, a survivor of sexual violence, produced, wrote, and directed NO! The Rape Documentary.

This Ford Foundation-funded documentary explores the international reality of rape, other forms of sexual violence and healing through the first person testimonies, scholarship, spirituality, and activism of African-Americans. NO! also explores how rape is used as a weapon of homophobia. NO! is a recipient of the Audience Choice Award and a Juried Award at the San Diego Women’s Film Festival; and Best Documentary Award at the India International Women’s Film Festival. Subtitled in Spanish, Portuguese, and French, NO! has been widely distributed internationally to battered women’s shelters, rape crisis centers, government agencies, NGOs, and colleges/universities.

A recipient of numerous awards and grants, Ms. Simmons has lectured extensively and her writings have been anthologized in the U.S. and in Europe. Her cultural work and activism have been highlighted in several media outlets including NPR, Radio France, BET, Ms. and Essence magazines. She is also featured in Farah Nousheen’s documentary Nazrah: A Muslim Woman’s Perspective. Ms. Simmons is now turning her cinematic lens to a feature length documentary, which she is working on with her mother Gwendolyn Zoharah Simmons, on African-American Muslim women.

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This search feature will enable you to find Muslim women alphabetically by their first names. Many Muslim names have alternative spellings once rendered into English so if you cannot find the name you are looking for, please try the general search tab where you can enter keywords of your choice.
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This search feature will enable you to find Muslim women chronologically by the Common Era century. We are actively building the archive of Muslim women leaders from the past, as well as from today, and we would welcome your recommendations of women to feature. Please complete our “Recommend Muslim Women” form and check the site again in the near future as we actively expand this section of the portal with your suggestions.
This search feature will enable you to find Muslim women by their Country. We are actively building the archive of Muslim women leaders from the past, as well as from today, and we would welcome your recommendations of women to feature. Please complete our “Recommend Muslim Women” form and check the site again in the near future as we actively expand this section of the portal with your suggestions.
This search feature will enable you to find Muslim women leaders by entering the keyword(s) of your choice. If you cannot find a particular woman that you are looking for, please let us know by completing our “Recommend Muslim Women” form and check the site again in the near future as we actively expand this section of the portal with your suggestions.