Deborah Rodriguez (writer)

In 2001, Deborah Rodriguez went to Afghanistan as part of a group offering aid after the fall of the Taliban. Soon after arriving, she became involved in the set up of a beauty school training program to certify Afghan women to work in and set up their own beauty parlors to give them a chance at financial independence. She later opened a coffee shop in Kabul.[1]

Rodriguez wrote two bestselling books based on her experiences in Afghanistan, The Little Coffee Shop of Kabul and Kabul Beauty School.[2][3][4] At one point, Kabul Beauty School was slated to become a movie, with Sandra Bullock playing the lead.[4] Some controversy followed the publishing of Kabul Beauty School. In the book, Rodriguez portrays herself as the founder and main force behind the success of the beauty school. However, other women who were also involved at the founding of the Kabul Beauty School say the book is filled with inaccuracies and inconsistencies, that events did not unfold the way Rodriguez depicts them, and that she exaggerated her role in the formation of the school. They say that she moved the school from the Ministry of Women's Affairs to the house she shared with her Afghan husband, and that she took over the school for personal gain.[5] Some of the women who worked at the beauty school said that, because of the publication of the book and the details it revealed about them, their lives had been put in danger. Some also claimed that Rodriguez had not made good on promises for financial support and other help.[4] However, Rodriguez claims that she was careful to protect the identities of the women mentioned in the book, and that they were all enthusiastic about telling their stories knowing that was the case.[6]

In 2002, Rodriguez married an Afghan, Samer (Sam) Mohammad Abdul Khan, who works for Afghan warlord Abdul Rashid Dostum. She had known Khan for 20 days before the marriage, though they do not speak the same language, and he had a wife in Saudi Arabia with whom he retained a romantic relationship; his first wife became pregnant with his eighth child while he was married to Rodriguez. The marriage with Rodriguez was reported as a happy one as late as April 2007,[7] but soon after, she had to flee Afghanistan.[4]

As of 2014, Rodriguez lives in Mazatlán, Mexico, where she is the owner of Tippy Toes Salon and Marrakesh Spa,[8] and where she has established Project Mariposa, providing funding for young women to attend beauty school, with the goal of helping them become independent and self-supporting.[8] Margarita Wednesdays (The House on Carnaval Street), a new book detailing her journey to remake her life after being forced to leave Afghanistan, was released in June 2014.[8] Her latest book, Return to the Little Coffee Shop of Kabul, was released in March 2016.[9]

• Abdul Rashid Dostum
• Greg Mortenson
• Sarah Chayes
• Economic development
• International development
• Ministry of Women's Affairs (Afghanistan)
• Women in Afghanistan

Official website