Written to commit Mona Eltahawy’s words and work to memory
We are
More Than what’s
on/of/in
our beds
& the hues
on our heads
More Than what’s
between/amongst/within
our limbs
& the language
of our hymns
More Than what’s
in/under/behind
what he
& the patriarchy
may have said
More Than what’s
/ calculated / quantified
documented / described
/ demanded / commanded
conscripted / restricted
/ prescribed / proscribed
in.of.on.under
ideas
cloths
coverings
outings
triggers
policing
scarves
scoffs
hair
hues
fabrics
dues
& locks
in worldwide
interconnected blocks
/ locks
linger in layers
laid long ago
/ clocks
rattle in lyrics
sung long ago
we shall resist
/ reclaim (our bodies,
our rights)
& persist (or bodies,
our fights)
— not simply
co-exist
for we are More
– More Than
About the Poem
After listening to an interview with Mona Eltahawy on The Takeaway, her words “We are more than” and her work on its many applications have lingered in/of/on my head. In Headscarves and Hymens: Why the Middle East Needs a Sexual Revolution, Eltahawy writes that “we are more than what’s on our heads and we are more than what is between our legs”. I compiled this piece together to commit Mona Eltahawy’s work and words to memory.
About the Author
Jen Schneider is an educator who lives, works, and writes in small spaces throughout Pennsylvania.