LOS ANGELES — For years, Ariana Delawari, an Afghan American activist and the daughter of the former governor to the Central Bank of Afghanistan, has made “Be Gone Taliban” a saying. But seeing the resurgence and the change the U.S. recognized terrorist group brought to her family’s home country of Afghanistan is something she and many other activists are using their platform on social media against.

What You Need To Know

  • Afghans worldwide displaying their colorful, traditional clothes in opposition to the oppression and all-black attire mandated by the now Taliban-controlled Afghanistan
  • Afghan Americans like Ariana Delawari are using their platform to voice for Afghan women's rights
  • Afghan Americans are stepping up for new wave of refugees coming in to the country by volunteering, providing supplies and support
  • Ani Zonneveld, Founder of Muslims for Progressive Values, shared that coverings in Muslim societies began as a way to level social classes and was later reinterpreted by religious leaders to its most extreme form of covering a women's entire body

“Historically, we had many religions. We had such a deep history and so I think people don’t know that about our people, you know? That this fundamentalist group has taken the country but it has no representation of the history,” Delawari said.

As humanitarian efforts to assist refugees continue, Delawari and other Afghan Americans are sending a reminder of their colorful culture worldwide through the hashtag, #DoNotTouchMyClothes. It's meant as opposition to the oppression and the all-black attire the Taliban are requiring women to wear in the country. 

“It could seem like it’s just about a dress or attire. But it’s about something so much deeper for us. It’s about freedom and it’s about preserving our culture that’s at risk of being stripped away,” Delawari said.

That’s why she and many others are holding on to their colorful culture a bit tighter as the country and people overseas push back against the new regime. Ani Zonneveld is the founder of Muslims for Progressive Values. She shared that modest coverings for women originally started with social classes.

“The Quran mandate to cover your bosom was to level the classes or to do away with the classes slightly and so what happened over the centuries was that the religious leaders started reinterpreting in the Quran to say that, ‘Well, no. The real Muslim attire is for Muslim women to cover themselves up completely,’” Zonneveld said.

It was from then on that the various forms of coverings were created to the most extreme covering women in Afghanistan are facing today.

“These are all designed basically in very vague, unappealing beige colors so that you become a uniform. It displaces your individual identity,” Zonneveld said.

Delawari says it’s about women having the choice to choose what they want or don’t want to wear, to work, to have an education and to have the freedoms they had for the last 20 years.

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“For me, all of this is about preserving our culture and our freedom and our vibrancy and reminding the world how diverse we are,” Delawari said.

While the humanitarian and culture crisis continues, Delawari and others are standing up for the culture they love.

Delawari created the "We Came Home" documentary that depicts the culture, music and people of Afghanistan. The documentary is available for viewing on iTunes.

To donate, support or volunteer to assist Afghan refugees, visit afgdiasporahub.com