Please See Me

by Dina Sleiman

As many of you already know, being married to a Lebanese husband, I have a heart for the Middle Eastern world. In fact, the countdown is now under a month until the release of my newest novel, Dance from Deep Within, which will feature a Muslim heroine. And over the years, I have also written a number of songs about the Islamic world.

One of these songs, "Please See Me," has a very special sort of inspiration. In 2007, I was at a conference in Paris and heard a former Muslim woman speaking. In reference to the veiled women of the Middle East she said, "These women are crying out, 'Please see me!'" With my heart aching from the woman's passionate cry, I hurried up to my hotel room and began scribbling down words, and thus the song was born.

More recently I have been very touched by the story of a young girl from Pakistan named Malala. Malala has stood up and demanded to be seen. She has become a voice for the women oppressed by radical Muslims throughout her nation and the Middle East. After surviving a murder attempt by the Taliban, sixteen-year-old Malala has gone on to meet heads of state, and she has been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize. 

So I think it is very timely that a Middle Eastern production team has just completed this amazing live action video of "Please See Me." The producer actually depicts many images of this culture that I would have had a hard time imagining, like the difficulty of finding a suitable snack while shopping in town in the full niqab style veil. And the actress in the video has done a wonderful job at capturing the emotion of the song. I would like to share it with you today.

I hope this song will awaken your heart to the women of the Muslim world. You can order this song or any of the songs and prayers from the "A Cry for Peace" cd by clicking here. 
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Despite her conservative Muslim heritage, Layla Al-Rai longs for a chance to earn her degree in engineering and perhaps even...dare she dream...to choose her own husband. But young women from her background rarely enjoy such freedoms. When she finally talks her parents into letting her attend college, she is drawn to fellow twenty-something students, Allie and Rain, over a class project. Allie, the blonde ballerina, faces her own struggles as she deals with an ex-fiancé and a church she had hoped to leave behind. Rain, the bi-racial hippie chick, longs for something to believe in, but her questioning could cost her the love of her life. When Layla s childhood sweetheart reenters her world, it seems her dreams might become real. Until everything falls apart. When she meets truth face to face, will she find the courage to accept it even if it requires the ultimate sacrifice?
Dance from Deep Within by Dina L. Sleiman.