Zohra Daoud
Encyclopedia
Zohra Yousuf Daoud (b. 1954, Mazar-i-Sharif) is a former Afghan
TV celebrity
and model
now a citizen of United States
. In December 1972 Dawoud became the first and only woman to this date ever to be crowned Miss Afghanistan, months before a bloodless coup forced King Zahir Shah into exile. She remains the only official Miss Afghanistan and the current title holder to date.
community, using her spare time volunteering for her community's cause. In 1996 she co-founded the Afghan Women Association of Southern California, and she still hosts a radio talk show on the 24-hour Voice of Afghanistan. However, Zohra maintained a low profile about her former beauty queen status until September 11, 2001
when Daoud grew weary of the media's treatment of Afghan women as illiterate, burqa-clad victims, and felt the need to speak out.
In that context, Zohra began her new project Women for Afghan Women, an organization to promote Afghan women's human rights, in April 2001. As a part of that project she also co-authored a book http://www.amazon.com/dp/1403960178/ by the same name, that was edited by Sunita Mehta, and also featured contributions from Homaira Mamoor, Gloria Steinem
and Eleanor Smeal
and others.
Zohra also held negotiations with a Taliban delegation in the United States at the beginning of their rule, to put the case for liberation for her sisters back home and has spoken at various Human Rights
conventions and conferences, including the Afghan Women's Summit, that was held in Brussels
in December 2001.
In June 2005, she was also speaker at the Afghan Arts & Film Festival organized by Afghan Communicator at California State University
, Northridge
where she emphasized the importance of Afghan art and culture.
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
TV celebrity
Celebrity
A celebrity, also referred to as a celeb in popular culture, is a person who has a prominent profile and commands a great degree of public fascination and influence in day-to-day media...
and model
Model (person)
A model , sometimes called a mannequin, is a person who is employed to display, advertise and promote commercial products or to serve as a subject of works of art....
now a citizen of United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. In December 1972 Dawoud became the first and only woman to this date ever to be crowned Miss Afghanistan, months before a bloodless coup forced King Zahir Shah into exile. She remains the only official Miss Afghanistan and the current title holder to date.
A social activist
Throughout their stay in America, Daoud remained involved in the Afghan AmericanAfghan American
An Afghan American refers to an American with heritage or origins in Afghanistan.-History and population:Afghan Americans have a long history of immigrating to the United States, as they may have arrived as early as the 1920s...
community, using her spare time volunteering for her community's cause. In 1996 she co-founded the Afghan Women Association of Southern California, and she still hosts a radio talk show on the 24-hour Voice of Afghanistan. However, Zohra maintained a low profile about her former beauty queen status until September 11, 2001
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
when Daoud grew weary of the media's treatment of Afghan women as illiterate, burqa-clad victims, and felt the need to speak out.
In that context, Zohra began her new project Women for Afghan Women, an organization to promote Afghan women's human rights, in April 2001. As a part of that project she also co-authored a book http://www.amazon.com/dp/1403960178/ by the same name, that was edited by Sunita Mehta, and also featured contributions from Homaira Mamoor, Gloria Steinem
Gloria Steinem
Gloria Marie Steinem is an American feminist, journalist, and social and political activist who became nationally recognized as a leader of, and media spokeswoman for, the women's liberation movement in the late 1960s and 1970s...
and Eleanor Smeal
Eleanor Smeal
Eleanor Smeal is a feminist activist, political analyst, lobbyist, and grassroots organizer...
and others.
Zohra also held negotiations with a Taliban delegation in the United States at the beginning of their rule, to put the case for liberation for her sisters back home and has spoken at various Human Rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
conventions and conferences, including the Afghan Women's Summit, that was held in Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
in December 2001.
In June 2005, she was also speaker at the Afghan Arts & Film Festival organized by Afghan Communicator at California State University
California State University
The California State University is a public university system in the state of California. It is one of three public higher education systems in the state, the other two being the University of California system and the California Community College system. It is incorporated as The Trustees of the...
, Northridge
Northridge
Northridge is the name of some places in the United States of America:*Northridge, Los Angeles, California, a community in California's San Fernando Valley** California State University, Northridge** The Northridge earthquake of 1994...
where she emphasized the importance of Afghan art and culture.