PinkyGul Heroines
Sabeen Mahmud was a progressive Pakistani human rights activist and social worker who founded the Karachi-based cafe The Second Floor. She also presided over the Karachi branch of TiE.
But to simply define her by material accomplishments would be inappropriate. One has to deliberately shun clichés like “multi-talented” and “multi-faceted” – because that would box her in.
Mahmud wanted to challenge injustice and discrimination, and to encourage critical thinking; she told Dawn that her biggest dream was to “change the world for the better through the Internet.” She founded PeaceNiche, an organisation that provides a “social platform” for public good. In 2006, she founded The Second Floor (T2F), a cafe that hosted public forum discussions, film screenings, poetry writing, stand-up comedy and live theatre. In 2013, Sabeen co-hosted Pakistan’s first civic hackathon, held at T2F in Karachi, which was designed to bring together people from different disciplines to brainstorm ways to solve civic problems. Mahmud hosted public figures, including Ayesha Siddiqa who authored a controversial book on military financing, leading to the Inter-Services Intelligence contacting The Second Floor.
Sabeen Mahmud gave up a life of Tetris, Mac doodling and professional cricket (after three knee injuries) to start a NGO that promotes the arts, culture, science, technology, activism and advocacy. Eleven years later, T2F has to its credit national and international press coverage, countless donations and the kind of cult following typically reserved for rock bands.
On 24th April 2015, Sabeen Mahmud hosted a seminar at T2F entitled ‘Unsilencing Balochistan’; the very same seminar was planned at LUMS weeks before, but was cancelled due to government pressure. Shortly after leaving the cafe with her mother, she was shot by armed motorcyclists. Her murder shows us that as much progress has been made in dismantling systemic oppression in Pakistan, there is still a long way ahead of us.
PinkyGul Heroines
Sabeen Mahmud was a progressive Pakistani human rights activist and social worker who founded the Karachi-based cafe The Second Floor. She also presided over the Karachi branch of TiE.
But to simply define her by material accomplishments would be inappropriate. One has to deliberately shun clichés like “multi-talented” and “multi-faceted” – because that would box her in.
Mahmud wanted to challenge injustice and discrimination, and to encourage critical thinking; she told Dawn that her biggest dream was to “change the world for the better through the Internet.” She founded PeaceNiche, an organisation that provides a “social platform” for public good. In 2006, she founded The Second Floor (T2F), a cafe that hosted public forum discussions, film screenings, poetry writing, stand-up comedy and live theatre. In 2013, Sabeen co-hosted Pakistan’s first civic hackathon, held at T2F in Karachi, which was designed to bring together people from different disciplines to brainstorm ways to solve civic problems. Mahmud hosted public figures, including Ayesha Siddiqa who authored a controversial book on military financing, leading to the Inter-Services Intelligence contacting The Second Floor.
Sabeen Mahmud gave up a life of Tetris, Mac doodling and professional cricket (after three knee injuries) to start a NGO that promotes the arts, culture, science, technology, activism and advocacy. Eleven years later, T2F has to its credit national and international press coverage, countless donations and the kind of cult following typically reserved for rock bands.
On 24th April 2015, Sabeen Mahmud hosted a seminar at T2F entitled ‘Unsilencing Balochistan’; the very same seminar was planned at LUMS weeks before, but was cancelled due to government pressure. Shortly after leaving the cafe with her mother, she was shot by armed motorcyclists. Her murder shows us that as much progress has been made in dismantling systemic oppression in Pakistan, there is still a long way ahead of us.