WASHINGTON – As Vogue marks its 125th anniversary, the fashion magazine choose to celebrate the event with a dazzling feature of diverse lives and stories of American women, featuring many Muslim women in a crucial time of the faith community.
“Since President Trump took office, he has issued executive orders directly and unjustly targeting Muslims,” photojournalist Lynsey Addarrio told The Huffington Post on Saturday, March 04, 2017.
“In my opinion, it’s important for mainstream media to show that Muslims are Americans-and many Americans are Muslims, and I hope stories like this can dispel misconceptions.”
The anniversary special, entitled “American Women,” encompasses 15 portfolios of video and portraiture shot by an array of photographers.
Addarrio, who has been photographing Muslim men and women for over a decade, shot the feature on “Islam in America,” which zoomed in on four Muslim women living in Maryland.
Among the women Addario featured is Zainab Chaudhary, the Maryland outreach manager for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a major Muslim advocacy group.
Zainab Chaudry, spokeswoman and Maryland outreach manager for the Council on American-Islamic Relations in Washington, D.C.
In her work and personal life, Chaudry also often finds herself fighting back against stereotypes about Islam and Muslim women.
“We’re not a monolith,” Chaudry said in the feature.
“There’s this idea that we’re all cookie-cutter versions of one another. The fact is, we come from very diverse backgrounds. We all have unique experiences that define who we are.”
Friday prayer at the Diyanet Center of American in Lanham, Maryland.
American Diversity
The issue was also meant to highlight diversity, by showcasing communities ranging from Standing Rock protestors to salmon fisherwomen in Alaska to Air Force service members in Honolulu.
The special wasn’t “intended as a response to the presidency of Donald Trump or to the women’s movement that has gained force in its wake,” wrote Vogue creator director Sally Singer.
“And yet, so much has changed since we began initial photography, and so quickly.”
Though the edition was not first intended to be a response to Trump’s Muslim ban and anti-Muslim rhetoric, much has changed since launching it.
Alienating Muslims was followed by mosque fires, Islamophobic fliers and hate attacks.
“Ultimately, we are all very similar, regardless of our religions,” Addario said.
“Most women want to be happy, successful, and if they choose to have families, want the best for their children.”