Infidel redux
Hirsi Alí necesita estar tranquila y en este momento lo parece
Originally uploaded by dicciomixteco.
I am still reading Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali. It’s the first book in a long time that has made me desperate to strike the balance between savoring the story and reading it without cessation. (Good thing I have other required reading to get through, and a long plane ride coming up.)
Some of the stories from her life are exceedingly difficult to read, real peek-through-splayed-fingers stuff. When Ayaan’s grandmother sneaks behind her parents’ back in order to have Ayaan and her little sister ‘circumcised’ - a thoroughly inaccurate and insufficient description of the horrific act - it is impossible not to feel rage and disgust. This, despite the fact that Ayaan is able to relate such events with an almost dispassionate tone. She reports the facts, then tells you how she felt, but holds back on condemnation of those who did such unspeakable things to her and her sister.
(While no records are kept of such things, it is estimated that several hundred million children each year are subjected to genital mutilation. Born in the west? Yes, you are lucky.)
I don’t know the details of how the rest of the story of Ayaan’s life unfolds - right now, I am reading about her return to Somalia after secondary school - but I know enough to bear in mind that she did escape to the west. Yes, she now must live surrounded by armed guards and in a climate of constant danger, but it’s an escape nonetheless. Ayaan’s just so brave, and so strong. What an example for we weaklings who fail to use our voices and who are so often afraid to speak the truth. I am in awe and deeply humbled to make her acquaintance.
Filed under: Life