On Women's Day a blog post titled "7 Reasons You Should Date a Lebanese Woman" forcefully made its way into our timelines, because nothing screams "women's rights" quite as much as reinforcing every stereotype there is in the book.
The sponsored post published by The961 frames us as dateable service providers. We are beautiful, family oriented, can cook, and will always stand by our man, the author writes.
Thank you. Really. For highlighting how we can serve you on that one day a year we get to discuss our plight and struggle.
You must be so proud.
The piece wouldn't have fazed me as much as it did, had it been written by some orientalist wannabe journo looking to boost his/her popularity.
Remember David Constable's "Boobs, Botox and the Babes of Beirut" for the Huffington Post?
Or
The Telegraph's "War is a million miles away when the Lebanese start to party"?
Orientalist nobodies objectify us -we get it. Our own media objectifies us too. But, coming from a Lebanese man who claims to be "promoting Lebanese culture" from abroad? You've got to be kidding me, right?
So, without further ado, here are a few corrections to your seriously flawed piece.
P.S. Seriously, advertising women is borderline harassment.
Beautiful? Try fierce. We don't take no for an answer.
Lebanese women have long been seeking political participation in a system dominated by men.
The State Minister for the Affairs of Women -the country's first- is a man.
The entire cabinet includes just one woman.
There are a total of 4 women in a 128-member parliament.
But, we fight on. On Saturday a march will be held for women's rights in Lebanon. It will begin from Sassine square.
The country's civil society activists, including students, writers, and a large group of leading feminist NGOs will >march in unison to demand better rights.
We are not silent, not today, not tomorrow, not yesterday. You're just not paying attention.
Joumana Haddad, a feminist writer and journalist, will be running in the upcoming parliamentary elections.
In her latest article, 'this is how we turn the tables' Haddad writes 'you can create a democratic, civil, actual, realistic revolution, right on ground'.
Many other women will be joining the electoral race.
Supportive? Yes, of ourselves FIRST.
Activists and feminist movements in Lebanon are only growing in the country - and they are fighting for change; resisting current laws.
One example of this is Article 522 of the Lebanese penal code, which previously allowed a rapist to escape punishment if they married their victim.
ABAAD, an organization founded by Ghida Anani, decided to challenge the code with a massive social media campaign that featured a young woman struggling to get off the ground; her body black and blue.
The campaign reached millions of people, and ultimately got the law to be revised after campaigners made staged several protests> at the House of Parliament.
Although the changes in the law are still in the works and more steps will be required to be finalized, it gave the outdated law the media attention it deserved to be kicked to the ground.
Take care of their looks? More like develop an iron shield against cat-calling.
Walking the streets of Lebanon is not something women get to do without getting harassed by random men --and looks have nothing to do with it.
But rest assured, almost every catcall gets its rightful response.
We sometimes ignore, we sometimes respond back, it really depends on us. It's a choice; our choice. And the choice for many of us is all about fighting for change.
One example of this is the #NotYourAshta campaign launched in 2016.
Knowledge is Power (KIP) launched the social media campaign >providing individuals with a "platform to share their messages and vocalize their resistance against different manifestations of street and sexual harassment."
Many women across the country took part in the campaign - because it's about time it comes to an end.
"Don't coddle me, respect me," the poster in the image says.
We can cook alright ... an entrepreneurial storm!
*Mumbles "she can cook" under her breath* ... Yes, yes, some of us can, and do it with great joy... But to miss out on the innovation of Lebanese entrepreneurs is seriously problematic.
Lebanese female entrepreneurs are stealing the spotlight time and again for their ingenuity and creativity.
Aya Bdeir is just one example. As the founder of Littlebits, an open source library of modular electronics that snap together with magnet, Bdeir has made it big in the entrepreneurship scene.
She's been featured on Forbes, Business Insider and many other international publications.
She was also named on Fast Company's "Most Creative People in Business" list in 2013.
Other groundbreaking entrepreneurs include Hind Hobeika, the founder of wearable tech company Instabeat - a device that allows swimmers to monitor their heart rate and other metrics through a real-time display.
Nadine Mazloum contributed to this post.