She finally died. That’s what he sought for so long. He wanted his daughter to be punished. The only fitting punishment, of course, was death. Honor. The father had waited for his daughter to cross the parking lot. Honor. Her body crumpled under the two ton SUV. Honor. She was in a coma for two weeks before she finally died from her injuries.
Twenty year old Noor Almaleki died on November 2, 2009 in a hospital in Glendale, Arizona. According to her father, Faleh Hassan Almaleki, justice was finally served.
His daughter was wearing make-up and fashionable clothing. She was working at a fast-food restaurant. She wanted to go to college and have a career. Worst of all, she wanted to marry someone that she chose and not be part of an arranged marriage. All of this, according to her father, brought dishonor to the family. He said his daughter was “too Westernized.”
A visit to Noor’s MySpace and Facebook pages reveals a radiant, beautiful young woman who is being grieved by many heartbroken friends and relatives. One thing becomes very clear while reading the comments left by these numerous acquaintances- there is no doubt about exactly what happened to Noor. One commenter states rather flatly, “Yet another honor killing in the United States.” The term, “honor killing” shows up repeatedly on the websites with one commenter exclaiming, “Honor killings make me so angry and sad. The level of deranged extremist thinking some men have is alarming.”
According to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, there is a global epidemic of men from a variety of cultures and religions who are motivated by a strange sense of duty. Wives, daughters and sisters who have dishonored the family may be raped, beaten and killed for offenses as innocuous as a poorly served meal.
Wait. Wait. This is the part of the essay, where I attempt to make some broader point. I am supposed to take this particular tragedy and address some larger issue or lesson. The media is buzzing with angles on her death, but I can’t find one. I can’t figure out what the death of Noor Almaleki means. It has to mean something, right?
Maybe the broader point relates to escalating religious and cultural extremism. Maybe the big picture is about how multiculturalism doesn’t stand a chance when people will draw lines in blood. Does her death mean that despite many improvements, women all over still suffer at the hands of abusive men? Do we learn a lesson about ignorance and violence or about the suffering of the innocent? It all seems abusive to the memory of a young woman. I won’t use her death as a means to some rhetorical end. What does her death mean? It means she’s gone.
Mourn the death of Noor Amaleki.
John V. Daum
Chattanooga
johnvdaum@gmail.com