Noorjahan Akbar
Today I woke up to a wonderful ray of sunshine otherwise known as Shafiq Mureed, a famous Afghan musician, being his adorable self and promoting equality.
In a heart-meltingly sweet video, Mureed puts his baby girl to sleep and talks about the importance of men participating in raising their children. He feeds his daughter, plays with her and sings her to sleep.
Participating in household chores is often seen as a taboo for men in Afghanistan. Men who do their part at home are often seen as feminine, “girly,” or “too submissive.” The societal pressure is so harmful that from a very young age boys are told not to spend time in the kitchen.
“I think only dignified men help their wives in raising children, not undignified men. Do not consider this (doing our part) as against our dignity and honor,” Shafiq Mureed says in his video.
By speaking out in such a public way, Mureed has not only broken a gender stereotype but also introduced a role model to other Afghan men. In his now-viral video, Mureed calls on other men to be part of their children’s education and raising and encourages them to take videos of themselves doing so and share it publicly to cause change in public attitudes.
This is not the first time Shafiq Mureed has inspired Afghanistan. He has made some of the most heartwarming patriotic songs calling for national unity. Earlier he produced a beautiful Hazaragi song, which carried several important messages. First of all, given he is a Pashtun and historically there has been tension among Pashtuns and Hazaras, the fact that he made a Hazaragi song sent a message of peace and acceptance. Secondly, the beautiful scenery of the video portrayed a peaceful Afghanistan- not the one we usually see on our televisions. Thirdly, the video featured a joyful shepherd girl playing freely in the fields. And finally, the song called for happiness and togetherness. It carried the message of enjoying and celebrating life and its little blessings- something extremists hate. In other words, the Hazaragi song was perfect. Yet he found a way to outdo himself. Thank you, Shafiq Mureed!
Shafiq Mureed’s message:*
My message to men: I want all my countrymen to share this video with their friends as much as they can, so that all Afghans take a note of it, and realize that they should help their wives in bringing up their children together. I think only dignified men can help their wives in raising children, not undignified men. Do not consider this (doing our part) as against our dignity and honor. I saw a brother’s video. I forgot his first name, but his last name was Arab. He had also made a video with his daughter and that encouraged me to make a similar video. I thought I am also human like him and believe that men should help their wives in bringing up their children. So I call on my Facebook fans who are married and have children to make a similar videos or take pictures showing that they are helping at home and post them on Facebook. Let’s fill Facebook with videos and pictures like this so we can show the world that our men are also aware and help their wives.
*Translation courtesy of my good friend Bismillah Momand.