Jasmine Bager

Afikra is a "communal exploration of Arab history and culture"
Afikra has now expanded beyond NYC to parts of Europe and the Middle East
NEW YORK: Typically, when young Arabs meet up in a large group they gather for two main reasons: To protest or to party. Afikra, though, takes the middle road, describing itself as a “communal exploration of Arab history and culture.” It feels like a cozy college lecture without the grades — but everyone gets schooled.
It all started in New York four years a...

Models showcasing collections from Saudi designers transformed the Museum of the City of New York into a work of art last week
NEW YORK: In dresses eliciting a “I want that” response, models showcasing collections from Saudi designers transformed the Museum of the City of New York into a work of art last week as they sashayed down the runway and into the hearts of every woman looking for inspiration on how to be fashionably modest.
And that’s exactly what the dedicated panel discussion brough...

It isn’t often that you open a book and leap into your childhood. A wave of nostalgia washed over me as I flipped through New York-based photographer Ayesha Malik’s book, Aramco: Above the Oil Fields.
“We don’t stop to check the ordinary, which is why I do. We are so hyper-stimulated.”
Her Pakistani father was an expat working for the oil giant Saudi Aramco in Saudi Arabia and, like me, she was raised in the Kingdom. But unlike me, a Saudi national, she lived in a gated community in Dhahran, ...

Just a stone’s throw away from the high-finance hustle of the World Trade Center in NYC, I came across a simple blue-and-white sign on a glass door that read: The Poets House. The first thing I noticed was the peacefulness that embraced me upon opening the door. I smiled at the way the natural light spilled onto the space, creating a sort of halo over some of the heads of the people on the seats nearest to the windows.
“Art helps to keep us and our democracy healthy, by circulating ideas and ...

One of my earliest childhood memories was having cash in my hand and roaming a baqala, or a corner store, in my Middle Eastern hometown. I remember the South Asian employee who patiently watched me decide which treat to buy and, once I tiptoed my selection to the counter, helped me count the change and add my candy to a small plastic bag. My watchful parents knew that big grocery stores wouldn’t give us that kind of special treatment, so they trusted my siblings and me to walk on our own thro...

The 14th Street subway station was hot and noisy with gossip and foot traffic, with a lingering scent of something musty I couldn’t immediately identify. I could hear mediocre performers play instruments in the distance, the subway’s automated announcements weaving into the sounds of subway trains screeching. My eyes scanned the dingy subway tiles until I found a splash of bold checkered color. As soon as I approached, I noticed myself relaxing. The man standing there greeted me with a cheerf...

Earlier this week, I did something perfectly ordinary: I renewed my U.S. driver's license. That's something I couldn't do in my home country of Saudi Arabia because there is no women's section at the DMV — there is no such process at all. But after decades of protests, The Kingdom announced on September 26th that it will allow women to drive next summer. And while that will be a welcome change, as a Saudi woman, the change I'm really waiting for is something far more fundamental. I want women...

In this op-ed, Jasmine Eager explains why Saudi Arabia lifting the ban on women driving is so important.
On the morning of September 27, I was giddy to visit the DMV in New York City. To most people, this visit would be a dreaded and boring routine stop, but not for me. I was excited to be able to go at all. Unless you grew up as a woman in Saudi Arabia, as I did, I truly don’t think anyone could comprehend how emotional a visit to the DMV could be.
Just hours after successfully renewing my d...