Honor Diaries

''Honor Diaries'' is a 2013 documentary film produced by the Clarion Project, whose films have been criticized by some for allegedly falsifying information and described as anti-Muslim propaganda. ''Honor Diaries'' explores violence against women in honor-based societies, with particular focus on female genital mutilation (FGM), violence against women and honor killings and forced marriage, and lack of access to education.

The film profiles nine women’s rights activists with origins in the Muslim (and non-Muslim) world, and follows their efforts to effect change, both within their communities and beyond. ''Honor Diaries'' premiered at the Chicago International Film Festival in October 2013 and won the Interfaith Award for Best Documentary at the St. Louis International Film Festival in November 2013. It was featured from December 2013 through April 2014 on DirecTV’s Audience Network as part of the Something to Talk About film series.

The Southern Poverty Law Center listed the Clarion Project as an "anti-Muslim hate group" in 2016-2019.

Content

Synopsis

''Honor Diaries'' traces the work of nine women’s rights advocates who came together to engage in a discourse about gender inequality and honor-based violence. Combining in-depth interviews and round-table discussions with archival footage, the film examines human rights violations in honor-based societies, and the growing trend of honor crimes in Western societies.

Structure

''Honor Diaries'' is divided into five main sections. The film begins with a broad analysis of women’s rights in Muslim-majority countries, drawing attention to issues such as lack of access to education and restrictions on movement. From there, the film expands on three major crimes targeting women: forced marriage, honor killings and female genital mutilation (FGM). In the final chapter, the documentary explores the rising trend of honor-based violence in Western societies, and efforts to silence voices of opposition by intimidation.

Featured interviewees

The film features in-depth interviews with nine women who represent diverse communities throughout the Muslim and non-Muslim world. The women reside in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada and Sudan. In the documentary, the featured women share their stories from their personal lives, professional work and their struggle to fight for broad-scale change.
* Nazanin Afshin-Jam
* Nazie Eftekhari
* Manda Zand Ervin
* Fahima Hashim
* Zainab Khan
* Raheel Raza
* Jasvinder Sanghera
* Raquel Saraswati
* Juliana Taimoorazy

Production

Film production began in April 2012, prompted by producer Paula Kweskin’s participation in the Association for Women's Rights in Development conference in Turkey. There, Kweskin was introduced to numerous women’s rights activists, including Fahima Hashim, Director of the Salmmah Women’s Resource Center in Sudan and one of the featured women in ''Honor Diaries''.

The nine women who are profiled in the film met for the first time at a gathering in June 2012 in New York. The film’s producers based the concept of the meeting on the salons of the French Enlightenment, in which women hosted assemblies of intellectuals to discuss progressive issues of the day. Subsequently, producers filmed women separately, in their home towns.

After more than a year in production, the film was completed in May 2013.

Filmmakers

* Producer and writer of ''Honor Diaries'', Paula Kweskin, is an Israeli human rights attorney specializing in humanitarian law. She received her J.D. from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, and is a member of the New York Bar. ''Honor Diaries'' is Kweskin’s first film.
* Co-Producer Heidi Basch-Harod is the Executive Director of Women’s Voices Now. She is the author and editor of numerous print and online articles and op-eds that examine the rights of women in the Middle East and North Africa.
* Executive Producer Ayaan Hirsi Ali is a two-time ''New York Times'' bestselling author for her works ''Infidel'' and ''Nomad'', and is the founder of the AHA Foundation.
* Director and Editor, Micah Smith. His documentaries have screened in more than 40 film festivals worldwide.
* Producer and Writer, Alex Traiman. Traiman directed ''Iranium''.
* Executive Producer Raphael Shore is an Israeli filmmaker who has produced other films such as '' Obsession: Radical Islam’s War Against the West'', '' The Third Jihad: Radical Islam's Vision For America'', and ''Iranium''.

Coalition partners

The film website claims the following organizations have supported the promotion and distribution of ''Honor Diaries'':
* AHA Foundation
* All Afghan Women's Union

Alliance of Iranian Women
* American Islamic Forum for Democracy

Americans Overseas Domestic Violence Crisis Center

A Call To Men

Breakthrough

Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan

Canadian Women's Foundation
* The Clarion Project
* Congress of Racial Equality

Cooperation Center for Afghanistan


Council for Muslims Facing Tomorrow
* Fistula Foundation

FORWARD

Girls' Globe

Karma Nirvana

LIBFORALL

Men Can Stop Rape

The MILLA Project

Nika Water


SAFSS

Shuhada Organization

Tehrik-e-Niswan

Women’s Voices Now

World Pulse

Release and reception

''Honor Diaries'' premiered at the Chicago International Film Festival in October 2013. One month later, the film screened at the St. Louis International Film Festival, where it won the Interfaith Award for Best Documentary. It featured throughout December 2013 on DirecTV’s Something to Talk About film series on the Audience network (Channel 239).

The international launch of ''Honor Diaries'' coincided with International Women’s Day on March 8, 2014.

Media reception

Awards

''Honor Diaries'' won the Interfaith Award at the St. Louis International Film Festival in 2013.

The film was nominated for a 2015 Islamophobia award, with the nomination stating it "portrays Muslims societies as misogynistic, backward, and dominated by brutal practices that oppress women and stifle debate around practices".

See also

* ''Duma'' (2011 film)

References

External links

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Antagony and Ecstasy
{{Honor killing

2013 films
Documentary films about violence against women
American documentary films
Documentary films critical of Islam
Works about female genital mutilation
Forced marriage
Documentary films about honor killing
Films about activists
2013 documentary films
2010s English-language films
2010s American films