Meena: Heroine of Afghanistan

Author: Melody Ermachild Chavis

Meena founded RAWA in 1977 as a twenty-year-old Kabul University student. She was assassinated in 1987 at age thirty, and lives on in the hearts of all progressive Muslim women. Her voice, speaking for freedom, has never been silenced. The compelling story of Meena's struggle for democracy and women's rights in Afghanistan will inspire women the world over. Meena: Heroine of Afghanistan is a portrait of a courageous mother, poet, and leader who symbolizes an entire movement of women who dare to influence the fate of nations. It is also a riveting account of a singular political career whose legacy has been inherited by RAWA, the women who hold the keys to a peaceful future for Afghanistan. RAWA has authorized this first-ever biography of their martyred founder.

Meena, Heroine of Afghanistan: The Martyr Who Founded RAWA, the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan

Reviews

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Kirkus Reviews:

A timely biography conscientiously detailing the brief but courageous life of the young woman who founded the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan (RAWA) ... A vivid celebration of a contemporary heroine.

Grace Paley:

Meena: a life, a country, Afghanistan, women's lives, bravery, and determination to educate girls and young women in the face of the crudest oppression. After Meena's murder, the women inspired by her, despite great danger, continue the work. An important book.

Shailja Patel, poet and performer:

Melody Chavis has pulled off an amazing feat. She takes us through the history of the world's most oppressed women -- and manages to leave us inspired. She walks us through the life of a woman who endured unbelievable hardships, devastating defeats, traumas and tragedies — and we emerge filled with hope. Meena's battles for the women of Afghanistan blaze with determination, energy and humor.

Nawal El Saadawi, author of A Daughter of Isis and Walking Through Fire:

This is an interesting and useful account of the struggle of waged by a young Afghan woman against religious fundamentalism in Afghanistan. The United States government encouraged and supported the Taliban and Osama bin Laden in the struggle to "contain" Soviet expansion for a number of years. Meena was a victim of religious fundamentalism, but also of big power interests.

Bettina Aptheker, professor and chair of the Women's Studies department at the University of California, Santa Cruz:

Melody Ermachild Chavis has written a deceptively simple, clear, and absolutely stunning portrait of a selfless revolutionary and of the organization of the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan, which she founded. Meena inspires, humbles, and haunts us. Ultimately, Meena compels us to act -- for peace, justice, for democracy, and above all, for the liberation of women. Please read this book. It is a gift from the women of Afghanistan to the women of the world.

Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan:

We have long dreamed of a comprehensive biography of Meena. Now Melody Ermachild Chavis has realized this dream. This is not only the first-ever book on Meena's glorious life and struggle, but also an authorized work written in close connection with RAWA. Melody can be proud that she has written about a woman whose name, heritage, and the organization she founded have always been a thorn in the side of the fundamentalists whose violence became known all over the world on September 11, 2001. For this, RAWA is indebted to Melody Ermachild Chavis.