The Christian Science Monitor

When Iraqi women face discrimination, her legal clinic can help

After Rajaa Abd Ali felt discriminated against, she promised herself she would study law. The cases she now follows include issues of divorce, child custody, and domestic violence.

Rajaa Abd Ali says the first time she felt discriminated against because of her gender was when she was 16 years old. She was expelled from her high school in Baghdad without reason, she says. Despite the setback, she promised herself she would study law and teach women their rights.

Today, more than two decades later, she is running a project in the heart of Baghdad that’s helping women handle inequities and prejudice.

“I suffered Iraqi society’s discrimination against women in my own skin. It was an injustice. That’s why I studied law, because I didn’t

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from The Christian Science Monitor

The Christian Science Monitor5 min read
College Class Of 2024: Shaped By Crisis, Seeking Community
The class of 2024 began its college years as virtual students, arriving on once-vibrant campuses muffled by COVID-19. Most had missed out on high school graduations and proms. Now they’re graduating from college during another season of turmoil, this
The Christian Science Monitor4 min readCrime & Violence
Sudan War’s Rape Survivors Flout Taboos To Help Each Other Recover
For more than a month after she was tortured and gang-raped by seven Sudanese paramilitary fighters last July, Rania said nothing to anyone. Whenever she even thought about the attack, her body flooded with guilt and shame. “[I] felt like I was a dis
The Christian Science Monitor3 min read
Audubon’s Exquisite Bird Paintings Owe A Debt To Classical European Art
When John James Audubon immigrated to the United States from France in 1803, his timing was fortuitous. That same year, the Louisiana Purchase doubled the size of U.S. territory, deepening national curiosity about what lay in the vastness. Audubon (1

Related