''Insoumise et dévoilée'' ''(Unsubmissive and unveiled)'' is an
autobiography
An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life.
It is a form of biography.
Definition
The word "autobiography" was first used deprecatingly by William Taylor in 1797 in the English peri ...
by Karima, published in 2008.
Plot summary
''Insoumise et devoilée'' is the story of Karima, a 32-year-old Muslim woman from
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
who talks about her life and her violent education, from her childhood to her forced wedding in
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...
. She was beaten by her father to get her to follow their conservative traditions. This book was a real catharsis for the young woman. She broke the silence, but was threatened with murder even before the release of the book. The
Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
community of
Verviers
Verviers (; wa, Vervî) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium.
The municipality consists of the following districts: Ensival, Heusy, Lambermont, Petit-Rechain, Stembert, and Verviers. It is also the ...
wanted to stop her from releasing the book and took her to court.
The trial
On 18 March 2008, the family of Karima (her parents and two sisters) took her to court. They wanted to ban the book, forbid its sale or get some parts removed. A petition circulated in Verviers against ''Insoumise et dévoilée''. People talked about "hchouma" (the shame) that the book would have spread. She answered: "I am zen, because all these threats, all these pressures, I knew that all my life". On 8 April, the court gave permission to the author to carry on selling the book. The judgment said that the story was a testimony of her whole life, not only focused on the family. "It's a victory for me but also for the girls who live the same," says Karima.
In August 2008, a second trial to change the publisher arrived. She changed to
Luc Pire
Luc or LUC may refer to:
Places
* Luc, Hautes-Pyrénées, France, a commune
* Luc, Lozère, France, a commune
* Le Luc, France, a commune
* Luč, Baranja, Croatia, a settlement
People and fictional characters
* Luc (given name)
* Luc (surname)
...
.
The association
On 27 June 2008, Karima founded her association "Insoumise et dévoilée" to help women who got the same experiences. She organized travels to Morocco to prove to politicians the difference between Muslim women in Belgium and women in Morocco.
The prizes
In September 2008 : the prize " Le Prix Condorcet-Aron " .
In November 2009 : the prize " Le Prix Théroigne de Méricourt De La Femme wallonne 2009"
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References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Insoumise Et Devoilee
French books
2008 non-fiction books
Autobiographies
Books about Islamism