Aniseed Balls

We often hear Muslims of both sexes parroting that Muslim women are treated equally, and I have commented before about how this is at odds with much of what we see. It really does appear to be a veneer of disingenuous obfuscation. But sometimes the façade slips, and we see the true prejudices unmasked and undiluted. Last month the Hudson Islamic Centre in upstate New York had a high-profile ground breaking ceremony for a new mosque after years of praying in a basement. Local dignitaries were invited, speeches made, and the project unveiled. The entire community of mostly first-generation Bangladeshis had been invited. Unless you were female. One of the local Muslim women, Jabin Ahmed Ruhii, was frustrated enough to expose the farcical situation on social media, and a storm blew up. The president of the Islamic Centre, Abdul Hannan, said that no discrimination is allowed in their mosque or religious ceremonies. Are you ready for what he said next? He explained with no hint of em