The Purse and the Accidental Activist

Last September I purchased a mustard-colored leather bag from Brooklyn Industries, a chain that caters to young, trendy, and fashionable Brooklynites. However, the purse was more than just chic: Imprinted on one side was a gold symbol that appeared to be Arabic writing. As a Jewish girl walking around New York City, I knew that carrying around an object with Arabic script on it could be a really loaded cultural gesture.

Honestly, it wasn’t the Arabic script, or a burning desire to elicit questions and spark conversation that drew me to the purse. I bought it because it was pretty, functional, and just the right size. But I knew I had to find out what I was carrying around. So my first move was to consult several Arabic speakers I knew--Muslim and non-Muslim--to get different translations.

They all came to roughly the same conclusion: “Allah helps Mohammad to triumph over his enemies.” There was some disagreement about whether it meant “his” enemies as in Mohammad’s personal enemies, or those of Islam in general. But nonetheless I was satisfied with the translation. I had an answer for “Do you know what that means?” I took my new purse with me everywhere.

The first time someone approached me was in a magazine store on Park Avenue in Manhattan. I popped in to pick up some reading for the subway and the two employees, who had been having a heated conversation when I walked in, suddenly fell silent. They both stared at me for a moment, and one said, “Um, Miss? Did you know that you have Arabic on your purse?” He said it the same way someone might tell you that you have something gross stuck in your teeth.

“Yeah,” I said.

“Do you know what it means?” asked the second man.

“Allah helps Mohammad to triumph over his enemies,” I smoothly replied.

Both men were impressed. “You’re not Muslim, are you?” asked the first one.

“Jewish,” I answered.

There was silence for a moment, and then the second man asked me my name. We began a conversation that lasted at least 20 more minutes, talking about everything from jobs to where we lived to where I’d purchased the bag. Now whenever I go back into that magazine shop, the employees always recognize me and give me a hearty hello.

My bag, in addition to being the perfect size for a couple of books and a granola bar, has led me to conversations I might never have had otherwise. Different Muslims have come up to me on the street and in the grocery store to ask if I understood the Arabic script, and every single one of them was kind, cool, and excited that I had some idea what I was talking about.

Continued on page 2: »