Akhdam women tell their stories of violence, injustice & poverty in Yemen

From http://www.witness.org & SAF | The video chronicles the lives and injustices against the Akhdam women in Yemen. The 'Akhdam' , singular Khadem, meaning "servant" in Arabic, are a social group in Yemen, distinct from the majority by their darker skin and African descent. Although they are Arabic-speaking and practicing Muslims, they are regarded as non-Arabs and designated as a low caste group, frequently discriminated against and confined to unskilled and menial labor. In a society already riddled with patriarchy and poverty, the distain and discrimination against the Akhdam renders Akhdam women easy targets of violence and abuse. Akhdam women are subject to hate-based attacks and sexual assaults without any type of legal or social recourse.

This video, produced by Sisters Arab Forum for Human Rights and WITNESS, features the stories and voices of three women, Haddah, Qobol, and Om Ali. Their stories of violence, injustice and forced poverty uncover the legacy of discrimination the Akhdam live with and the necessity of urgent action against these atrocities.

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• human rights
• women's rights
• Yemen
• middle east
• WITNESS
• Sisters Arab Forum
• Akhdam
• women

[Witness]

Please be respectful of each other and those in the video. We'd prefer not have to delete comments or turn off comments. Thank you.

[jadorrre]

@gosogoso77 This is NOT bull!!..please dont comment on yemeni issues..just cause ur married to a yemeni doesnt make u an expert on yemen..it does happen in yemen..Islam is not to blame but many yemenis that have allowed these practices exist and have not spoken against them over the years are to blame!! I hope these yemenis find justice soon.

[zaujababa2]

this is so not Islamic behavior and deplorable...i pray the uprising in Yemen gets rid of the status quo leaders, and 'maybe' change the situation for these people as the world watches. BUT, i seriously doubt it. This kind of attitude goes DEEEP. Generations. They will still be treated less than, more than likely. God Bless them.

another ?: the difference in skin color between these akhdam and yemenis proper is miniscule. it's truly ridiculous....

[ScopedOUT2]

@Witness These Khadam (meaning servants/maids) are actually Somali refugeees who have fled war torn Somalia for Yemen. They're mistreated heavily and Yemen is really a bad place to be on earth.

Many Yemenis haven't fully embraced Islam and engage in things which are prohibited such as tribal warfare, honor killings, theft, homosexuality and as you see here - discrimination.

[BoxingTheStars68]

@samysamy25 Excuse me?

[samysamy25]

No surprises ...these Yemenites are so similar to Ethiopians :)

[Beccafield555]

this is fantastic! It has made me want to go out and help the world, and i am going to show it to all of my friends to help these people

[jadorrre]

thank you for putting this up!! This has to stop. Its a shame some yemenis are treated as inferior and any yemeni that believes in this crap caste system (sada,jazzarein, akhdam,etc) is part of the problem!! I can't beleive there are idiots that believe in this stuff. What did our Prophet teach us? What did our deen teach us? Only piety matters. I hope change comes to yemen so that these shameful disgusting practices against these poor yemenis stop.

[jadorrre]

@gosogoso77 This is not bull..it does happen in yemen..Islam is not to blame but many yemenis that have allowed these practices exist and have not spoken against them over the years are to blame!! I hope these yemenis find justice soon. Yemenis are aware of this issue but unfortunately have done nothing about it till now. Maybe the international community will have more mercy on these yemenis then their own people . No human should be treated like this.

[gosogoso77]

This is such bull. There are Yemeni cultural issues and then there is Islam. Non-Arabs are never inferior to Arabs. I am Muslim and a non-Arab. I am married to a Yemeni. This is inaccurate and is obviously made to make Islam look bad. Not very original.

[LonelyKetchup32]

@temokam On the contrary its the other way, after all, The Ethiopians did spread its empire over a quarter of The Arab peninsula . And don't even for a moment think you have the right to take the piss out of somalis and ethiopians, they were the ones who had helped early Muslims converts to migrate in their land to escape persecution in their own country.