Difference Day Honorary Title 2016
ZINEB EL RHAZOUI
Zineb El Rhazoui (1982) is from a family of mixed background: her father is Moroccan, her mother French. Since her early adolescence she has questioned the subordinate role of women in Islam. She started her career as a journalist in Morocco, where she set up several pro-democratic, secular organisations. She was arrested on several occasions and ultimately deposed from the country. She left for Paris where she became the spokeswoman for the feminist organisation Ni Putes, ni Soumises. In 2011, following the Arab Spring, she was recruited by the magazine Charlie Hebdo. She collaborated on projects including the articles on the prophet Mohammed, for which she has received death threats from ISIS. Zineb escaped the attack on the editors of Charlie Hebdo on 7 January 2015. Since that time her life has been dominated by measures to secure her safety and security.
DJEMILA BENHABIB
Djemila Benhabib was born in Ukraine in 1972 and grew up in Algeria. Having a Greek Cypriot mother she became aware at a young age of the inequality of women in that society. In 1994, following an Islamic death sentence, her family sought refuge in France. Three years later Djemila travelled to Quebec alone, where she launched her career with Ma vie à contre-Coran, an essay which won her the Ecrivains francophones d’Amérique prize in 2009. Following Les soldats d’Allah à l’assaut de l’Occident, which was published in 2012, Charb (at that time director of Charlie Hebdo), awarded Djemila the Prix international de la laïcité. In 2013 she received the Prix humaniste du Quebec for L’automne des femmes arabes. Après Charlie was published in January 2016. In it she writes that the fall of the great twentieth century ideologies has allowed religion to return to our society. This poses a threat to freedom of thought and freedom of expression, as well as the rights of women, education, etc. Her commitment to the cause has frequently left her a victim of physical threats, intimidation and legal action by Islamic groups and their supporters, mostly in Canada.