Based out of Delhi, Masooma began her career as a lawyer in Mumbai in 1989. She moved on to publishing a few years later, editing magazines on Design and Beauty from Delhi. Currently, she works as a trainer on gender issues, specifically on sexual harassment and gender diversity in the workplace.
Born and brought up in the UK, Zehra is from a loving, well-traveled Bohra family. She continued her travels, moving to the United States over 20 years ago and has two beautiful children who make her proud every day. Notwithstanding her profession as a Technology Project Manager, she has learned a tremendous amount about health, psychology and culture thanks to the hundreds of amazing people she has connected with in her work for WeSpeakOut (formerly Speak Out on FGM). She is forever grateful
Farzana is a Toronto, Canada-based author of three novels: Stealing Nasreen, Six Metres of Pavement (which won One Book, One Brampton, 2017, won a Lambda Literary Award in 2012 and was short-listed for the Toronto Book Award in 2012) and All Inclusive (a Kobo 2015 and National Post Best Book of the Year). She was named as one of CBC Books’ “Ten Canadian Women Writers You Need to Read Now”, was voted Best Author in NOW Magaz
Jaria Hussain-Lala has been working in the domestic Abuse sector at various levels for over 19 years. Jaria first came into contact with FGM in 2006 through her wider domestic abuse work. In 2011, she established the Greater Manchester FGM forum which brings together practitioners, policy makers and survivors which, nationally, has been held as a good practice model in addressing FGM. During this period, Jaria authored the first regional eLearning training package on FGM, introduced minimum s
Born and brought-up in Mumbai, Samina is a published author and social worker. She was subjected to FGM as a little girl because her grandmother wouldn’t have it any other way. She believes that any form of Human Rights violation is unacceptable in a civil society, and intends to fight against it for as long as she can.
Sakina is a social science researcher. She has worked in the field of education and technology for transparency in India. She has been an FGM survivor. She believes that women should have an equal standing in society and intends to work in that space.
Yasmin is a Dawoodi Bohra based in Mumbai. She studied Home Science and Fashion Design. She is a nature lover and and adventure enthusiast.
Tasneema is an Mtech from IIT Kharagpur. She works in the field of content and publishing. She lives in Mumbai and has one daughter who equally shares her commitment towards campaigning for womens’s rights.
Nazia is a liberal arts graduate, trained in social science research and writing. She is passionate about women’s rights, and is aspiring to work in the field of human rights. Her experience in the field has inspired her to work in the area of violence against women. She is motivated by the belief that everyone deserves to live a good life, and is aiming to build a career in something socially relevant and meaningful.
Saleha is a Mumbai-based journalist with DNA. High on feminism, she strongly speaks out against injustice. A short film on FGM during her college days jolted her out of reverie and gave her food enough to advocate against the prevalent inhuman practice.
Alifya lives in New York, USA and is a Medical Coder by profession. She has two lovely daughters who she has protected from khatna.
Rashida lives in the USA. She was born in India and spent her early years in Mumbai, India. She staunchly believes that when the woman is educated, the family prospers and, consequently, the community prospers too. She hopes to witness a law banning the barbaric practice of FGM/FGC in India and in the world in her lifetime. She is a Pharmacist by profession and loves to run and compete in full marathons.
Ummul is the founder of a management consultancy training firm, Continuing Education and Training Center (CETC), Competing in a male dominated profession, through sheer hard work and passion she has successfully broken the glass ceiling and made a mark for herself.
Ummul is among the pioneers to introduce the Employee Assistance Program in India, a confidential counseling service, and is working towards creating awareness on importance of mental health at workplace.
Ummul
Fiza is a design graduate. She is a strong feminist and believes in voicing her opinion on women’s issues. While studying, she created an oral history installation on the issue of FGM where she focused on the role of women as oppressed and oppressor in the community which had internalised patriarchy.
Hanan is originally from Mumbai and now works as a Corporate Finance consultant in London. She has always worked to support equal opportunities for women in the workplace. It was shocking for her to find out that FGM had had a big impact on the lives of her closest female relatives and hopes this movement will challenge and change the status quo.
Tanvee is a corporate and transactional lawyer practicing in Mumbai. She has grown up watching the female members of her family being strong leaders in society and hopes that movements like this will help women all over the world overcome gender prejudices and change their lives for the better.
Based in Delhi-NCR, Shama teaches Law at the O.P. Jindal Global University. She holds a Masters in Law from the University of Oxford. Her career began as an academic and an activist in 2016. She is deeply interested in socio-legal aspects of gender, power, and the political machinery. She is grateful to WeSpeakOut for providing her a platform for using her skills to change her world. Shama believes words are powerful - stamped by the parliament, they become law, and accepted by individuals or