Overview

The first anthology by Jewish women of color, with the original edition published in 2003, The Flying Camel 2022 edition remains ahead of the curve and includes new material: a cover and introduction featuring celebrity Yemenite-Israeli band A-WA, along with a musical framework for understanding issues addressed throughout the anthology; a preface sharing how the book was birthed into being and how to use it today; original poems by editor Loolwa Khazzoom, matched with the themes of each essay in the book; and a comprehensive study guide for book clubs and university courses. Like the proverbial phoenix rising from the ashes, the seventeen women of The Flying Camel boldly emerge from the wreckage of their ancient civilizations and invite readers on an intimate journey of self-discovery, creativity, and defiance. Drawing from personal and ancestral memories, amidst the pursuit of soul-filled dreams and longings, anthology contributors navigate geopolitical upheaval and cultural homelessness, crisscrossing four continents and stepping back and forth through the spiritual portals of time. Nothing is quite as it seems, we learn, with identity constructs, loyalties, and politics dependent on so many variables that, ultimately, the borders perhaps dissolve into the greater expansiveness of who we are. Alternately raw and fierce, vulnerable and tender, these gripping stories are deeply personal and uniformly honest, providing a secret passageway deep below the narrow scripts and slogans of today's identity politics, and leading straight into the chamber of the heart. Reflecting a diversity of experience and perspective, and drawing from a collective wealth of knowledge, the stories naturally weave through topics including exile, body image, sexuality, class division, religious practice, domestic violence, the Middle East conflict, and other pertinent issues, in ways that are both insightful and refreshing.

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9798985540901

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Reviews

A provocative collection that attempts to untangle complicated webs of anti-Semitism, racism, and misogyny, The Flying Camel presents a chellenging introduction to complex struggles around issues of identity and community. -Angela Y. Davis, Civil Rights Activist and Author The experiences, ideas, and values of Jewish women are not monolithic. Khazzoom, founder of the Jewish multiculturalism movement, brings us the plethora of voices present in global Judaism. The fact that these voices are female makes this collection of essays all the more exciting and groundbreaking. Jewish women, in all our difference and diversity, unite! -Rivka Solomon, editor, That Takes Ovaries! The Flying Camel provides a wonderful opportunity to reflect on an unjustly neglected identity and to see it through the eyes of those who have lived it. It is certainly true that the lives of Jewish women from the Arabic-speaking world are unknown to too many in our society and that our understanding of questions of Arab, Jewish, and American identities are diminished by our ignorance. I find this book useful in the courses I teach on questions of identity and ethics in the contemporary world. -Kwame Anthony Appiah, Professor of Afro-American Studies and Philosophy, Harvard University The Flying Camel is a truly innovative and original contribution; there is no other book dealing with this topic in the literature on Women's Studies. -Lila Braine, Professor of Psychology, Barnard College-Columbia University The Flying Camel illuminates the ethnic diversity among Jewish women and explores the misconceptions that many Americans (and others) have regarding the Jewish population and the Middle East conflict, e.g., that there cannot be an overlap between Arabs and Jews. The trend today is for Women's Studies curricula to become increasingly diverse and international in scope, and therefore I think that the book would be of interest to many faculty teaching women's studies courses. The collection also is very timely. It clearly counters the stereotypes of Arabs that have been so unfortunately fueled by the recent tragic events, and brings more understanding of the complexity of the Middle East conflict. -Jill M. Bystydzienski, Professor of Sociology, Iowa State University The Flying Camel fills an important curriculum gap in Anthropology and Gender Studies. It is particularly timely now, as questions regarding the culturally prescribed rules and variations in practice by Middle Eastern women is most relevant. I teach courses in Gender Studies and find a book on this topic most helpful. -Janet Chernela, Professor of Anthropology, Florida International University Loolwa Khazzoom has compiled a captivating collection of first-person accounts that makes us alternately cry for and celebrate the all-but-forgotten Jewish women of Africa and the Middle East and their American descendants. Stories of adventure, loss, degradation, courage, and personal triumph provide insight into the fascinating mix of Moslem and Jewish culture and its collision with contemporary American values. At this time in our history, we as Americans are starting to wake up to the world around us, especially to the plight of women in the Middle East. Khazzoom's work makes a fine contribution toward lifting the veil from our own eyes. -Carrie Yang Costello, Assistant Professor of Sociology, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee The Flying Camel is the first collection of its kind, and in showcasing the vast diversity of the global Jewish experience (something far too few white American Ashkenazi Jews are aware of), it's invaluable. -Bitch

Author Information

Loolwa Khazzoom (KHAZZOOM.com) is an innovative multimedia artist and educator. Her work has been featured in The New York Times, BBC News, Rolling Stone, and other top media worldwide, and she has presented at Harvard University, the Simon Wiesenthal Center, Barnard Center for Research on Women, and other leading institutes worldwide. She offers dynamic programs that integrate music, poetry, readings, storytelling, and heart-centered conversations - designed to uniquely engage and inspire participants.Khazzoom's diverse body of work shares the common theme of alchemy - transmuting the energies of pain and suffering into those of healing, joy, wholeness, beauty, and love, through a radical willingness to do whatever it takes to be truly well. To this end, Khazzoom has released many original albums, videos, and books.From 1990-2010, Khazzoom was a trailblazing Jewish multicultural educator. She founded and directed numerous ground-breaking organizations - through which she educated Jewish community leaders and laypeople alike, about global Jewish history and heritage, and through which she radically transformed thinking and language about Jewish identity, community, education, and practice. In this capacity, she accomplished many firsts, including leading the first egalitarian Mizrahi/Sephardi services and developing the first curriculum about Jewish communities across the globe.Today Khazzoom leads two musical projects: Iraqis in Pajamas combines Iraqi Jewish prayers with original alternative and punk rock, and Shaddai Chants is a New Age take on Iraqi Jewish chants, for use in sacred dance practice, meditation, yoga, massage, and sleep. Both can be found at KHAZZOOMusic.com.

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