Kola Boof: Difference between revisions
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{{Infobox Person | {{Infobox Person | ||
| name = Kola Boof | | name = Kola Boof | ||
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| occupation = writer, poet | | occupation = writer, poet | ||
}} | }} | ||
'''Kola Boof''' (b. 1968) is an author and former model, who was born in wartime Sudan, orphaned, | '''Kola Boof''' (b. 1968) is an author and former model, who was born in wartime [[Sudan]], orphaned, | ||
and adopted by an American family.<ref name=Seattlest/><ref name=atlantapost2011-04-28/> | and adopted by an [[United States of America|American]] family.<ref name=Seattlest/><ref name=atlantapost2011-04-28/> In 2002, Boof initially denied reports by ''The Guardian'' that she was a former lover of | ||
[[Osama bin Laden]], but later offered her own account of living as an involuntary concubine to bin Laden, | |||
In 2002, Boof initially denied reports by ''The Guardian'' that she was a former lover of | for six months in 1996 in [[Marrakesh]], [[Morocco]].<ref name=Seattlest/> | ||
Osama bin Laden, but later offered her own account of living as an involuntary concubine to bin Laden, | |||
for six months | |||
==Early life== | ==Early life== | ||
Boof's father was an Egyptian Arab, her mother | Boof's father was an [[Egypt|Egyptian]] Arab, and her mother was from [[Somalia]]. But since she was born in | ||
the Sudan she considers herself Sudanese.<ref name=Seattlest/> | the Sudan, she considers herself Sudanese.<ref name=Seattlest/> | ||
Her father was politically active, and was disowned by his Egyptian family, hence his move to Sudan. | Her father was politically active, and was disowned by his Egyptian family, hence his move to Sudan. | ||
She was six years old when she was orphaned.<ref name=nytimes2002-12-02/> | She was six years old when she was orphaned.<ref name=nytimes2002-12-02/> | ||
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==Boof's account of her relationship with Osama bin Laden== | ==Boof's account of her relationship with Osama bin Laden== | ||
According to Boof she had a creepy feeling about Osama bin Laden, when she first met him | According to Boof, she had a creepy feeling about Osama bin Laden, when she first met him and | ||
congratulated herself that none of his bodyguards had followed her home, only to find that she had been followed, and that bin Laden had chosen her as a concubine.<ref name=Seattlest/><ref name=harpers2006-09/><ref name=theatlantic2011-05-25/> | congratulated herself that none of his bodyguards had followed her home, only to find that she had been followed, and that bin Laden had chosen her as a concubine.<ref name=Seattlest/><ref name=harpers2006-09/><ref name=theatlantic2011-05-25/> | ||
She describes their | She describes their first sexual encounter as a rape. But citing the example of Patty Hearst, | ||
she objects to being described as a "sex slave". She points out that Patty Hearst was | she objects to being described as a "sex slave". She points out that although Patty Hearst was | ||
raped | raped and held captive, she is never described as a "sex slave". | ||
According to Boof, Osama bin Laden was obsessed with American singer Whitney Houston | According to Boof, Osama bin Laden was obsessed with American singer [[Whitney Houston]]<ref name=Seattlest/><ref name=nationalpost2012-02-12/> and routinely smoked cannabis. | ||
Per Boof, even though conservative Muslims frown on pornography, bin Laden | |||
carried around Playboy magazines. Boof said bin Laden wanted her to wear her hair like Whitney Houston's; said that Houston | |||
carried around Playboy magazines. | looked inherently Islamic and had been brainwashed by American culture and by her husband | ||
Boof | |||
looked inherently Islamic | |||
Bobby Brown; that Houston was the only black woman he had considered marrying; that he | Bobby Brown; that Houston was the only black woman he had considered marrying; that he | ||
had considered having Bobby Brown assassinated. | had considered having Bobby Brown assassinated. | ||
Boof describes being allowed to go free when bin Laden tired of her and that they parted | |||
with substantial gifts.<ref name=Seattlest/> | with her receiving substantial gifts.<ref name=Seattlest/> | ||
She claims her account of the involuntary nature of her time with | She claims her account of the involuntary nature of her time with | ||
Bin Laden had been confirmed by Fabrizzio Ruspoli, the owner of the bed & breakfast where bin Laden held her.<ref name=atlantapost2011-04-28/> | Bin Laden had been confirmed by Fabrizzio Ruspoli, the owner of the bed & breakfast where bin Laden held her.<ref name=atlantapost2011-04-28/> | ||
==Books== | ==Books== | ||
In addition to her 2006 memoirs, ''"Diary of a lost girl"'' Boof has written several novels.<ref name=PubMarketplace/> | In addition to her 2006 memoirs, ''"Diary of a lost girl"'', Boof has written several novels.<ref name=PubMarketplace/> | ||
Boof also wrote for several American soap operas. | Boof also wrote for several American soap operas. | ||
| Line 76: | Line 72: | ||
==Dispute with Peter Bergen== | ==Dispute with Peter Bergen== | ||
Journalist Peter Bergen, | Journalist Peter Bergen, who interviewed Osama bin Laden and published a biography on him, called Boof's book ''"the worst book of the year"''.<ref name=peterbergen2006-07-05/> According to Bergen she described a sexual encounter between Osama bin Laden, Ayman al Zawahiri, Abdullah Azzam, and Sayyid Qutb. However, Bergen asserted, Qutb and Azzam were dead, in 1996, and al Zawahiri was in prison. | ||
==Views on the black identity== | ==Views on the black identity== | ||
Boof's views on media portrayals of the black identity have generated controversy.<ref name=theatlantic2011-05-25/><ref name=womenandhollywood2014-06-14/> In 2011 several music industry publications reported her criticisms of a rap video entitled "Pretty girls" by an American rapper names Wale, whose parents were from Nigeria.<ref name=XxlWaleBoof/> | Boof's views on media portrayals of the black identity have generated controversy.<ref name=theatlantic2011-05-25/><ref name=womenandhollywood2014-06-14/> In 2011, several music industry publications reported her criticisms of a rap video entitled "Pretty girls" by an American rapper names Wale, whose parents were from [[Nigeria]].<ref name=XxlWaleBoof/> Boof criticized Wale for not including any African women in his video. In 2014, she critized casting Zendaya Coleman as the lead in a biopic of Aaliyah because she thought Zendaya didn't have a sufficiently African appearance. Boof had previously criticized casting Zoe Saldana in a biopic of Nina Simone, in which filmmakers darkened Saldana's skin color, and had her wear facial prosthetics. | ||
<ref name=sheknowsKolaBoof/> | <ref name=sheknowsKolaBoof/> | ||
Latest revision as of 12:03, 26 July 2024
| Kola Boof | |
|---|---|
| Other names | Naima Bint Harith (birth name)[1] |
| Born | 1969 [1] Omdurman, Sudan[1] |
| Occupation | writer, poet |
| Known for | described being kidnapped by Osama bin Laden, and forced into a sexual relationship |
Kola Boof (b. 1968) is an author and former model, who was born in wartime Sudan, orphaned, and adopted by an American family.[2][3] In 2002, Boof initially denied reports by The Guardian that she was a former lover of Osama bin Laden, but later offered her own account of living as an involuntary concubine to bin Laden, for six months in 1996 in Marrakesh, Morocco.[2]
Early life
Boof's father was an Egyptian Arab, and her mother was from Somalia. But since she was born in the Sudan, she considers herself Sudanese.[2] Her father was politically active, and was disowned by his Egyptian family, hence his move to Sudan. She was six years old when she was orphaned.[4] She describes the family that adopted her and eight other children raising her in poverty, in Washington D.C.. As a teenager she competed in a beauty pageant and describes becoming the mistress of one of the pageant's judges. Boof became a model.
Boof's account of her relationship with Osama bin Laden
According to Boof, she had a creepy feeling about Osama bin Laden, when she first met him and congratulated herself that none of his bodyguards had followed her home, only to find that she had been followed, and that bin Laden had chosen her as a concubine.[2][5][6] She describes their first sexual encounter as a rape. But citing the example of Patty Hearst, she objects to being described as a "sex slave". She points out that although Patty Hearst was raped and held captive, she is never described as a "sex slave".
According to Boof, Osama bin Laden was obsessed with American singer Whitney Houston[2][7] and routinely smoked cannabis. Per Boof, even though conservative Muslims frown on pornography, bin Laden carried around Playboy magazines. Boof said bin Laden wanted her to wear her hair like Whitney Houston's; said that Houston looked inherently Islamic and had been brainwashed by American culture and by her husband Bobby Brown; that Houston was the only black woman he had considered marrying; that he had considered having Bobby Brown assassinated.
Boof describes being allowed to go free when bin Laden tired of her and that they parted with her receiving substantial gifts.[2] She claims her account of the involuntary nature of her time with Bin Laden had been confirmed by Fabrizzio Ruspoli, the owner of the bed & breakfast where bin Laden held her.[3]
Books
In addition to her 2006 memoirs, "Diary of a lost girl", Boof has written several novels.[1] Boof also wrote for several American soap operas.
| year | title | publisher |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | The Sexy Part of the Bible | Akashic |
| 2010 | Virgins In the Beehive | Atlantic Library |
| 2006 | Diary of a Lost Girl | |
| 2004 | Flesh and the Devil | |
| 2004 | Long Train to the Redeeming Sin | |
| 2004 | Nile River Woman |
Dispute with Peter Bergen
Journalist Peter Bergen, who interviewed Osama bin Laden and published a biography on him, called Boof's book "the worst book of the year".[8] According to Bergen she described a sexual encounter between Osama bin Laden, Ayman al Zawahiri, Abdullah Azzam, and Sayyid Qutb. However, Bergen asserted, Qutb and Azzam were dead, in 1996, and al Zawahiri was in prison.
Views on the black identity
Boof's views on media portrayals of the black identity have generated controversy.[6][9] In 2011, several music industry publications reported her criticisms of a rap video entitled "Pretty girls" by an American rapper names Wale, whose parents were from Nigeria.[10] Boof criticized Wale for not including any African women in his video. In 2014, she critized casting Zendaya Coleman as the lead in a biopic of Aaliyah because she thought Zendaya didn't have a sufficiently African appearance. Boof had previously criticized casting Zoe Saldana in a biopic of Nina Simone, in which filmmakers darkened Saldana's skin color, and had her wear facial prosthetics.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Writer: Kola BOof, Publishers Marketplace. Retrieved on 2021-07-17. “Award winning novelist Kola Boof was born Naima Bint Harith circa 1969 in Omdurman, Sudan to Arab Egyptian archeologist Harith Bin Farouk and his wife Jiddi, a charcoal black Gisi-Waaq Oromo. Kola’s birth parents were murdered in her presence in 1978 for speaking out against slavery and other atrocities by the Sudanese government.”
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 "Stay Black and Live" : Kola Boof Talks to Seattle, The Seattlest, 2011-08-21. Retrieved on 2011-08-23. “At the age of six, she witnessed both of her parents being killed. While she hoped to go live with her “Auntie,”, a lesbian who was accused of witchcraft (“we’re very superstitious in Africa”, she quipped) and jailed. Boof ended up an orphan and was adopted through UNICEF, her adoptive parents raised her among eight other children in what she calls “the ghetto of D.C..””
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Kola Boof. Being Hitler’s Girlfriend: Bin Laden’s Mistress Sets The Record Straight, Atlanta Post, 2011-04-28. Retrieved on 2011-08-23. “Luckily, I had very good witnesses to my experience with Bin Laden. The Italian born Prince Fabrizzio Ruspoli (owner of La Maison Arabe, at that time a bed and breakfast in Morocco’s Medina where Osama kept me) and Ruspoli’s lover Phillipe were the ones who saved me and my children from being deported by telling the U.S. State Department the truth—that I had appeared to be unhappy living with Bin Laden and that I clearly wasn’t free to leave the estate without Somi’s guards.”
- ↑ Julie Salamon. Fatwa Victim or a Fraud?; Mystery Enshrouds Kola Boof, Writer and Internet Persona, The New York Times, 2002-12-02. Retrieved on 2021-07-17.
- ↑ Kola Boof. His prerogative, Harper's magazine, September 2006. Retrieved on 2021-07-17.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 John Hudson. Twitter's Odd Pairings: Bin Laden's Reputed Ex-Lover Feuds with a Rapper, Atlantic magazine, 2011-05-25. Retrieved on 2021-07-17. “Kola Boof is an Egyptian/Sudanese-American author who wrote about her abusive relationship with bin Laden in her 2006 autobiography Diary of a Lost Girl.”
- ↑ Whitney Houston: 1963-2012, National Post, 2012-02-12. Retrieved on 2021-07-17. “The al-Qaeda leader mused about making her one of his wives and said he would like to have Mr. Brown killed, according the author, Kola Boof.”
- ↑ Peter Bergen. The worst book of the year, Peter Bergen's website, 2006-07-05. Retrieved on 2021-07-17. “Boof says this happened in Morocco in 1996. However, in 1996 bin Laden was living in Sudan, Ayman al Zawahiri was imprisoned in Dagestan, Azzam had been assassinated in Pakistan thirteen years earlier, and Qutb had been lying in his grave for three decades. Boof should stick to poetry.”
- ↑ Do Colorism Issues Threaten to Stain the Aaliyah Biopic, Women and Hollywood, 2014-06-14. Retrieved on 2021-07-17. “And Boof is right that blackface is offensive — always (Lifetime, please don’t do it!).”
- ↑ Osama Bin Laden’s Alleged Mistress Calls Wale a Racist, XXL. Retrieved on 2021-07-17. ““I don't like @wale because he's another Colorstruck Black Man who's videos are pretty much White Supremacist images," she wrote on the social media site. "The fact that @wale is Nigerian makes it all the worse, because he's setting the wrong example globally for our race.”
- ↑ Former Days of our Lives Writer Kola Boof Publishes The Sexy Part Of The Bible, Soaps she knows. Retrieved on 2021-07-17.