Things are going well for Molly, especially her new restaurant delivery service. All she needs now is a good man who will love her and help her make a happy family. But for some reason, she keeps getting involved with the wrong men. After finding out the man she is dating is married, she is accosted by his angry brother-in-law, Richard. Fed up, Molly decides to cut her losses and focus on her work, only to run into Richard again at her next catering gig!
The role of women in the Italian mafias has long been overlooked. So who are they? Pure and virtuous Madonnas or dangerous Godmothers? Reduced to victim status and relegated to domestic life, women serve as the mafia's respectable facade: virtuous and docile. But, as Milka Kahn and Anne Veron reveal in this absorbing book, women have always been at the heart of Italy's criminal organisations. While the men are behind bars or on the run, it is left to their wives and mothers to uphold and pass on the 'family values'. Once widowed, some push their sons to vendetta; others become mafia chiefs in their own right. Yet many also decide to risk their lives, collaborating with the authorities and renouncing mafia society in search of normality.Through first-hand accounts of submission, complicity and revolt, Women of Honour paints a complex and fascinating portrait of the women in Italy's mafias who have overcome a culture of silence to share their extraordinary stories.--
This volume brings together the practical insights and experiences of individuals and organisations working in diverse regions and contexts to combat 'crimes of honour'. Authors examine strategies of response to such manifestations of violence against women, focusing largely on 'honour killings' and interference with the right to choice in marriage, and the related use and legal treatment of the defence of 'honour' and 'provocation' in different countries of Europe, the Middle East, Latin America and South Asia. This timely volume is distinctive in approach and content, highlighting activist and practice-orientated academic perspectives from both the South and the North. The authors give voice to the struggle to locate 'crimes of honour' firmly within the international framework of violence against women and human rights, rather than positioning these abuses as specific to particular cultures or communities. The first of its kind, this book serves as a resource in addressing 'honour crimes' and, more broadly, violence against women, and will be of interest to a multi-disciplinary academic audience as well as to lawyers, policy-makers and activists.
In June 2002, journalists throughout the world began to hear of the gang rape of a Pakistani woman from the impoverished village of Meerwala. The rape was ordered by a local clan known as the Mastoi and was arranged as punishment for indiscretions allegedly committed by the woman's brother. While certainly not the first account of a female body being negotiated for honor in a family, and (sadly) not the last, journalists and activists were captivated. This time the survivor had chosen to fight back, and in doing so, single-handedly changed the feminist movement in Pakistan. Her name was Mukhtar Mai, and her decision to stand up to her accusers was an act of bravery unheard of in one of the world's most adverse climates for women. By July 2002, Mai's case was headline news in Pakistan and under international scrutiny, the government awarded her the equivalent of 8,500 U.S. dollars in compensation money (a historic settlement), and her attackers were sentenced to death. Mukhtar Mai went on to open a school for girls in an effort to ensure that future generations would not suffer, as she had, from illiteracy. In this rousing account, Mai describes her experience and how she has since become an agent for change and a beacon of hope for oppressed women around the world. Timely and topical, In the Name of Honor is the remarkable and inspirational memoir of a woman who fought and triumphed against exceptional odds.
Problems can make you feel like God is far away, but they can also be the very things that bring you closer to him. Anchored In isn’t a book of Christian cliché’s or sweet stories to warm the heart but rather an authentic look at the hard parts of life. It challenges us to stop running from and clinging to the past, and to grasp tightly to the only unshakable Anchor that is able to sustain our souls through the storms of life. Micah shares personal stories, such as her father’s abandonment of her family, and couples them with biblical application to offer real-life glimpses of God at work. She offers inspiration to live a life full of God’s power rather than one that causes us to turn away and be paralyzed by problems. Living anchored in God’s presence is a beautiful gift that few truly experience simply because they do not understand the key to God’s power – surrender. Or if they know to surrender, they do not know how to let go of the problems that consume their lives. Through simple, tangible steps learn to surrender in every season of life. Hearing from God is not reserved for a chosen few, but rather promised to those who believe. If you are longing to experience God’s power in a deeper way, this is a journey for you. "When heartbreaking seasons shake us to our core, we often grab for everything other than God. But Micah tenderly reminds us page after page that Jesus is the only true Anchor who will hold us, steady us, and bring us through to the other side of every storm.” — Lysa TerKeurst, New York Times bestselling author and president of Proverbs 31 Ministries As a friend and guide, Micah Maddox will walk with you through life's hard times and show you how, through God's power, you can get to the other side with greater freedom, strength and victory. — Holley Gerth, Wall Street Journal bestselling author of You're Already Amazing There are times when life hurts deeply. Though the grief, struggles and pain, we need reassurance that we are not alone. Micah Maddox’s book Anchored In, renews our hope and reminds us that God’s power can carry us through the stormy seas of life. Through scripture, stories and personal applications, Micah lovingly offers hope, victory and strength for everyone’s journey. — Karol Ladd, author of Thrive, Don’t Simply Survive and Power of a Positive Woman Life is hard. Most of us have learned that truth firsthand, the hard way. Trials, broken dreams, and the unexpected storms of life can leave us stuck in the past or numb in the present. Anchored In is more than a pep talk or quick-fix formula—it is a way of life. It should be required reading by every believer, whether your storm is in the past, the present, or looming on the horizon. Regardless of the forecast, grab a copy and get anchored in! — Vicki Courtney, best-selling author of 5 Conversations You Must Have With Your Daughter, Move On, and Rest Assured Micah speaks about deep issues, pains, and struggles because she has been there. In the pages of Anchored In, you will find the healing hope of God. It’s brave, authentic, and powerful. — Courtney DeFeo, author of In This House, We Will Giggle When I watch the news each morning and feel the swirl of circumstances around me, it’s easy to feel powerless in this crazy world. Micah reminds us that it’s not our job to be powerful. It’s our gift to be connected to a powerful God. Through the vulnerable telling of her personal story and the timeless truths she embeds, Micah holds out a lifeline to us that’s Anchored In hope. — Amy Carroll, author of Breaking Up with Perfect and Proverbs 31 Ministries speaker and writer With tenderness and understanding garnered through personal experience, Micah Maddox points us to the healing power available to those who are anchored in relationship with Jesus Christ. Some shredded places in my heart have been mended. — Cindi Wood, speaker, author of Anonymous: Discovering The Somebody You Are to God One of the purposes of an anchor is to keep the ship from drifting or being dragged by the wind. A drifting ship could easily be damaged. A drifting Christian faces the same hazard. There are many events, pressures and influences that can cause us to drift in the Christian life. Micah has skillfully uncovered these areas while pointing us back to God’s anchoring presence. The lessons and real-life stories in this book provide direction on how to anchor our lives in the Lord. You will be enriched by this devotional. — Francie Taylor, Vice President, Keep the Heart, LLC Do you desire to discover God’s power regardless of your circumstances? Want to experience a deeper relationship anchored in the power and presence of the Holy Spirit? If so, you’ll love Anchored In. Micah Maddox brilliantly unpacks the power and presence of God (available for our daily living) and helps readers break free from paralyzing problems to embrace God’s propelling power for abundant living. — Julie Gorman, Co-founder of Married For A Purpose and author of Two Are Better Than One: God Has A Purpose For Your Marriage Micah's warm and engaging style feels like a conversation with a dear friend. She encourages her readers to run to the Lord through every circumstance of life, and to experience His power in every part of their story. She reminds us that we serve a God who transforms, a God who gives us His power to face every situation, a God who gives victory through our surrender to Him. He is good, and Micah's heartfelt words remind us of that truth. — Kristin Schmucker, author; founder of The Daily Grace Co.
Honour killing, as it is widely understood, is the cold-blooded murder of a woman or a man involved with her, by the male members of her household in order to cleanse the reputation of the family, clan, community or tribe. This violent tradition in the name of religion, custom and culture continues to be carried out in a significantly large part of the world. The majority of people still believe that honour killings happen for reasons such as marriage from choice or a love affair of a kinswoman, rape, a demand for divorce from a woman, or the birth of a female child, all of which are perceived as bringing shame on the family. However, current research on honour killing suggests that there are a number of intriguing and very cleverly knitted plots of jealousy, greed, violence and murder which show that, in the name of honour, various other purposes are being served and people are killed in ways which give the impression that they are honour killings. By collecting data from people involved in such situations, this book opens a Pandora’s box, showing that such killings are carried out not to assuage the hurt honour of a patriarchal society, but to serve a variety of malign intentions, goals and agendas. It will serve to let the world comprehend the phenomenon of honour-related violence where culture and crime unite under the umbrella of highly discriminating laws against women. This book consists of twenty-six testimonies from those involved in honour killings, bringing together interviews with killers, victims and the falsely accused.
A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF 2020 "An exemplary work of investigative journalism." —Parul Sehgal, The New York Times The murder of a Pakistani social media star exposes a culture divided between accelerating modernity and imposed traditional values—and the tragedy of those caught in the middle. In 2016, Pakistan’s first social media celebrity, Qandeel Baloch, was murdered in a suspected honor killing. Her death quickly became a media sensation. It was both devastatingly routine and breathtakingly brutal, and in a new media landscape, it couldn’t be ignored. Qandeel had courted attention and outrage with a talent for self-promotion that earned her comparisons to Kim Kardashian—and made her the constant victim of harassment and death threats. Social media and reality television exist uneasily alongside honor killings and forced marriages in a rapidly, if unevenly, modernizing Pakistan, and Qandeel Baloch’s story became emblematic of the cultural divide. In this definitive and up-to-date account, Sanam Maher reconstructs the story of Qandeel’s life and explores the depth and range of her legacy from her impoverished hometown rankled by her infamy, to the aspiring fashion models who follow her footsteps, to the Internet activists resisting the same vicious online misogyny she faced. Maher depicts a society at a crossroads, where women serve as an easy scapegoat for its anxieties and dislocations, and teases apart the intrigue and myth-making of the Qandeel Baloch story to restore the humanity of the woman at its center.
