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| Islam and Sexism Hisham Zoubier "As salaam allaykum. Peace be upon you. For those of you not familiar with that Islamic greeting, it is said
between all Muslims and Arabic speaking peoples around the world; white,
black, man or woman. I have invited you here today because it has become
increasingly apparent to me that the image of women in Islam is one of
sexism and degradation. One of inferiority, and one of disgrace. One of
inequality, and one of male domination. In fact, nothing could be further
from orthodox Islamic teachings. Many of you will look at me with
disbelief, and with skepticism and I fully expect it. However, everything
I tell you here today will have it's justification by historical fact and
by Quranic quotation. The Quran is the basis of all Islam and
history shows that the application of it has not always been one of
contradiction. Now, in Islam there are very specific rules relating to the
equality of men and women. They are both looked upon as being equal in
soul and in mind, and in spiritual responsibilities. Of course, they are
not looked upon as the same; but merely different. You cannot say that the role of the mother
is the same as the role of the father, or vice versa; because they are
different. But you cannot say that one is inferior to the other. The
mother cares for the newborn baby a lot more than the father does and this
sort of motherly love is held in the highest regard in Islam. The Prophet
Mohammed, peace be upon him, was asked by a follower one day whom he
should treat with more affection. The prophet answered, "Your
mother." The man asked who was next in line, and again the prophet
replied, "Your mother." He asked again and the response the
same; it was not until the fourth time that the prophet said, "Your
father." The prophet also said," Paradise lies at the feet of
mothers." In the West, female assault (ie, assault on women) is very common. Statistics show that 25% of all reported crime in the UK are violent assaults on women. The question of violence towards women in Islam is very clear. IT IS NOT ALLOWED. The honour of women is of extreme merit, and no man may dare to infringe upon it. Islam does not permit any sort of abuse to women; verbal or otherwise. Wife beaters were declared by the prophet not be Muslims and it has been reported that the prophet never hit any child or any woman. In fact, rape or any assault on women is a very serious crime in Islam. Here, there has been much talk about "date rape". I've been told that rapists can get off with a year or less in jail here. And this is justice; this is the law, in the civilised world. A man can violate a woman's honour and put her under all sorts of duress and harm, and scar her emotionally for life.... and a few months later, he can walk out of jail, free to continue his life with barely a thought to what he has done to that woman. In some countries in the Middle East, rape can be punishable with life imprisonment or lengthy prison sentences; although, I am sure that many would prefer to simply remove the problem from down below and get it over with. That sort of safety in those countries, which is alien in the West, is why my sister can walk the streets at any hour of the night on her own and feel completely safe; secure in the knowledge that no man will trouble her or molest her, because he knows that as soon he crosses that line, he will be held accountable for his actions. How many of you would walk the streets alone at night in the West's towns and cities? Spiritual Equality
in Islam: Education and Social Status of Women
in Islam: In providing for her family, the woman has
a special privilege. The husband is supposed to provide for his family; in
fact, sacrifice his worldly goods and himself to do so. The wife, on the
other hand, does not have this compulsory duty. Although in many Muslim
families the woman gives much of her own wealth to provide for the family;
in fact, I have a Sudani cousin whose parents split up and he lives with
his mother, and she provides, through working, for him. But the obligation
of the wife sacrificing her assets, or her wealth, is not in Islam. She is
permitted, under Islamic law, to spend her money as she chooses. In education, the woman also has the paramount duty to learn. The man is not allowed, under Islamic law, to prohibit or restrict her quest to do so. The woman is ordered by God, as much as the man is, to learn, to read, to seek truth, to educate themselves. "The search for knowledge is a duty for every Muslim, male or female." And since her primary duty of caring for the children diminishes as time goes by, she has a lot of time with which to do that. In fact, a matter of history, Islam was far and away the first social system that gave women equality. Hundreds of years ago, more than a millennium before the rest of the world caught up, Islam gave women the right to own property. And as far as running businesses are concerned; the Prophet Muhammed, peace be upon him, was employed by his own wife Khadiga, may Allah be pleased with her. Women were eminently active in their societies in the time of the Prophet. In fact, it is on record that a woman debated with the prophet; something barely any man would dare to do! And it is also recorded that there was a debate between a man and a woman and the woman was declared correct and accurate, by the prophet. Marriage In
the Quran we are told that the believing men and believing women should,
and I quote: The history regarding women in Islam is also astounding, considering what Muslim women are thought of today. If you look at the historical account of women is Islam, then you will find there as well that women were not devalued. Before Islam came, the people of the world disgraced women. They treated them as cattle, as dishonourable things. In fact, many families would kill a newly born baby simply because it was a girl. Can you imagine that? It is dire indeed; the prophet thought so, because one the many things that he put a stop to was that. But before Islam came, women were not allowed to marry who they chose, or own property, or businesses; in essence, their role was to be pretty, stay in the home for all their lives and be breeding stock. And then, in the Islamic world, over 1400 hundred years ago, that all changed. Women were given the right to own; in fact as I said before, if their husbands were incapable of handling their businesses or assets properly, wives were permitted to take over from them! The wife of the prophet, may God be pleased with her, was not only his wife. She was also his employer; he worked for her! Oh, and by the way, he did not ask her to marry him; she asked him to marry her. And because of her righteousness, because of her decency, she is regarded to be one of the most reliable sources of information regarding the prophet's life. If she were inferior, why would the prophet have accepted her proposal? If she were inferior, why would he have worked for her? If she were inferior, why would male Muslim scholars today still accept her observations regarding the prophet? History shows that in the beginning, Islam was the true emancipator of women. I quote now from Fatima Mernissi's book, the Veil and the Male Elite; a Muslim lecturer in Morocco who is a devout Muslim and a devout feminist. "Women fled by the thousands to enter Medina, the Prophet's city in the seventh century,, because Islam promised equality and dignity for all, for men and women, masters and servants. Every woman who came to Medina when the Prophet was the political leader of Muslims could gain access to full citizenship, the status of sahabi, Companion of the Prophet. Muslims can take pride that in their language they have the feminine of that word, sahabiyat, women who enjoyed the right to enter into the councils of the Muslim umma, to speak freely to its Prophet-leader, to dispute with the men, to fight for their happiness, and to be involved in the management of military and political affairs. The evidence is there is the works of religious history, in the biographical details of sahbiyat, by the thousands who built Muslim society side by side with their male counterparts." And all this, more than 1400 years ago. The sign that the majority of people, who
convert to Islam each year, are women further shows that Islam is not
sexist. The first adherent to Islam was a woman; If Islam was sexist, then
why would they do such a thing? What Western woman of common sense would
convert to a religion that would degrade her? They are not forced into it;
if you do not believe that Islam is fundamentally against forceful
conversion, then believe the laws of the Western governments, where they
live! Islam is not a sexist religion. I know that you have heard various
things, seen various things; but believe me, you have been misinformed.
The application of religion, no matter what school of thought, is not
always representative of the actual teachings; be it Christianity, Judaism
or Islam. Before I leave, I have one last thing to say. "For Muslim men and women, for
believing men and women, for devout men and women, for true men and women,
for men and women who are patient and constant, for men and women who
humble themselves, for men and women who give in charity, for men and
women who fast and deny themselves, for men and women who guard their
chastity, for men and women who engage in Allah's praise, for them has
Allah prepared forgiveness and a great reward." Salaam wa allykum.
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