For most people, going to a beauty salon and getting a haircut is routine. But for Muslim women in Massachusetts who cover their hair for religious reasons, it can be a real challenge. At a traditional hair salon, they risk men seeing them without their headscarves on. But that is now changing. Massachusetts’ first salon and spa established specifically for Muslim women opened on Monday. Shamso Ahmed is the woman behind the new business. She says she’s been dreaming about this since she was a young girl. At the age of 10, Shamso Ahmed fled the civil war in Somalia and arrived in Boston... Read more about Massachusetts Gets Its First Hair Salon Designed For Muslim Women

Indonesia recently hosted an unusual conference of Muslim women religious scholars that attracted hundreds of participants from across Indonesia as well as from countries such as Kenya, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. This International Forum of Women Ulamas (Muslim religious scholars) concluded by issuing fatwas, or nonbinding religious edicts, against child marriage, sexual abuse and environmental destruction. It is believed to be the first-ever such gathering of Muslim women ulamas. Women have long been sidelined from the teaching and interpretation of Islam. But today, in many countries,... Read more about How a growing number of Muslim women clerics are challenging traditional narratives | WWRN - World-wide Religious News