Tired of journalists unloading their Islamophobia, problematic white feminist views: Arooj Aftab

Singer Arooj Aftab is calling out journalists who are 'unloading' their opinions on her just because she's a Pakistani woman.

Taking to Twitter, the Grammy-winning artist has shared her thoughts on the same, penning, "So tired of journalists just casually unloading their cultural imperialism, Islamophobia, problematic white feminist views and straight-up ignorance into me just because I am a Pakistani woman." She added, "Can they please do better. How do we make this happen."

So tired of journalists just casually unloading their cultural imperialism, Islamophobia, problematic white feminist views and straight up ignorance into me just because I am a Pakistani woman. Can they please do better. How do we make this happen

— arooj aftab (@arooj_aftab) November 6, 2022

In an interview with DW, Aftab had previously shared that she felt she didn't fit in. “When I was growing up, I felt that to dress or look different, to think differently, caused a lot of friction and made me feel like I wasn't fully accepted. Not being able to imagine freely or be yourself is not healthy, and is like death for an artist," said the singer.

Constructing a sense of place is important for Aftab's music because of its transnational quality. Her music doesn't feel quite Pakistani nor Western. It transcended duality, provoking the listener to imagine a new place: one of inclusion.

"This generation is really bold and demands things, they want equality," she asserted, adding that young people now don't want to be limited to fixed categories. "For years, Asian artists were pushed to the sidelines — but now there is an emerging space, opening up the world to more beautiful things, which always existed but weren't known," she said.

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