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| − | {{Feminism sidebar}}
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| − | '''Islamic feminism''' is a form of [[feminism]] concerned with the role of [[Women and Islam|women in Islam]]. It aims for the full equality of all [[Muslims]], regardless of sex or gender, in public and private life. Islamic feminists advocate [[women's rights]], [[gender equality]], and [[social justice]] grounded in an Islamic framework. Although rooted in [[Islam]], the movement's pioneers have also utilized secular and European or non-Muslim feminist discourses and recognize the role of Islamic feminism as part of an integrated global feminist movement<ref>[http://www.feminismeislamic.org/eng/index.htm II International Congress on Islamic Feminism] Retrieved January 11, 2009.</ref>. Advocates of the movement seek to highlight the deeply rooted teachings of equality in the [[Qur'an]] and encourage a questioning of the [[patriarchal]] interpretation of [[Islamic]] teaching through the Qur'an (holy book), ''[[hadith]]'' (sayings of [[Muhammad]]) and ''[[sharia]]'' (law) towards the creation of a more equal and just society.<ref>[http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2002/569/cu1.htm Al-Ahram Weekly | Culture | Islamic feminism: what's in a name?] Retrieved January 11, 2009.</ref>
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| − | [[Muslim majority countries]] have produced more than seven heads of state including [[Benazir Bhutto]] of [[Pakistan]], [[Mame Madior Boye]] of [[Senegal]], [[Tansu Çiller]] of [[Turkey]], [[Kaqusha Jashari]] of [[Kosovo]], [[Megawati Sukarnoputri]] of [[Indonesia]]. [[Bangladesh]] was the first country in the [[world]] to have a female head-of-state succeed another [[Sheikh Hasina]] was elected Prime Minister in 2008, following [[Khaleda Zia]] who held the post from 1991 to 1996, and was elected again in 2001.<ref>[http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/Features/Columns/?article=WomenWhoRule Women Who Rule] Encarta Retrieved January 11, 2009.</ref>.
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| − | ==Islamic feminism==
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| − | Islamic feminism is defined by [[Islamic scholars]] as being anchored within the [[discourse]] of Islam with the [[Qur'an]] as its central text.<ref>[http://www.wilsoncenter.org/index.cfm?topic_id=1426&fuseaction=topics.event_summary&event_id=42775 "Exploring Islamic Feminism"] by Margot Badran, Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, Georgetown University, (November 30, 2000) Retrieved January 11, 2009.</ref> and as being more radical than secular [[feminism]],<ref>[http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2002/569/cu1.htm "Islamic feminism: what's in a name?"] by Margot Badran, ''Al-Ahram'' (January 17;23, 2002) Retrieved January 11, 2009.</ref>
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| − | Islamic feminists are critical of the subordinate legal and social status afforded to women by law and custom in Islamic nations and communities, but deny that [[Islam]] itself is responsible for this state of affairs. They argue that Islam has historically been interpreted in [[patriarchy|patriarchal]] and often [[misogyny|misogynistic]] ways, that [[Sharia]] law has been misunderstood and misapplied, and that both the spirit and the letter of the Qur'an have been distorted<ref>[http://www.feminismeislamic.org/eng/index.htm Presentation on Islamic Feminism] Abdennur Prado, III International Conference on Islamic Feminism. Retrieved January 11, 2009.</ref> Sharia, the body of Islamic religious law, is derived from the Qur'an (the religious text of Islam), [[hadith]] (sayings and doings of Muhammad and his companions), [[Ijma]] (consensus), [[Qiyas]] (reasoning by [[analogy]]) and centuries of debate, interpretation and [[precedent]]. Islamic feminists challenge the patriarchal interpretation of what they call “medieval male consensus” and cite female-supportive verses of the Qur’an and sayings from the hadith to promote the [[egalitarian]] [[ethics]] of Islam. <ref> [http://www.iran-bulletin.org/women/Islamic_feminism_IB.html ISLAMIC FEMINISM AND ITS DISCONTENTS: NOTES ON A DEBATE] Val Moghadam. Retrieved January 11, 2009.</ref>
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| − | In recent decades the concept of Islamic feminism has expanded, promulgated by Islamic groups seeking support from as many components of society as possible, and by educated Muslim women striving to articulate their role in society.<ref>Humphreys, R. Stephen: "Between Memory and Desire - The Middle East in a Troubled Age," ''University of California Press'', 2005</ref> In modern Islamic countries, upper-middle-class women who have the economic security to violate widely-held beliefs have been the primary voice of the Islamic feminist movement.
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| − | The rise of feminism in the [[Islamic world]] has also been linked to the increase of Western influence and political and economic attempts to align with powers and markets promoting ideas such as [[universal suffrage]], [[human rights]] and access to education. Some Islamic conservatives have come to acknowledge the need for reform of laws regarding women’s rights within the context of Islam.
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| − | ===Islamic feminists, Muslim feminists and Islamists===
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| − | There are subtle yet substantial differences among the terms 'Islamic feminist,' 'Muslim feminist' and '[[Islamists|Islamist]].' Islamic feminists ground their arguments in [[Islam]] and its teachings<ref>[http://www.milligazette.com/Archives/2004/16-31Jan04-Print-Edition/1631200425.htm ‘Islamic feminism means justice to women’] ''The Milli Gazette'', Vol.5 No.02, MG96 (16-31 January, 2004) Retrieved January 11, 2009.</ref>, seek the full equality of women and men in the personal and public sphere and can include non-Muslims in the discourse and debate. Muslim feminists consider themselves Muslims and feminist but may use arguments outside Islam, for example, national [[secular]] law or international [[human rights]] agreements, to counter gender inequality. Islamists are advocates of political Islam, the notion that the [[Qur'an]] and ''[[hadith]]'' mandate an [[caliphate|Islamic government]]. Some Islamists advocate women's rights in the [[public sphere]] but do not challenge gender inequality in the personal, [[private sphere]] <ref>[http://www.iran-bulletin.org/women/Islamic_feminism_IB.html Islamic Feminism And The Politics Of Naming] Retrieved January 11, 2009.</ref>.
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| − | ==History of Islamic feminism==
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| − | ===Early reforms under Islam===
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| − | [[William Montgomery Watt]] (1909 –2006) , one of the foremost non-Muslim interpreters of [[Islam]] in the West, portrayed [[Muhammad]], in the historical context of his time, as a figure who testified on behalf of [[women’s rights]] and instituted rights of property ownership, [[inheritance]], education and [[divorce]], giving women certain basic safeguards which had previously been unavailable to them. Muhammad granted women rights and privileges in the sphere of [[Family|family life]], [[marriage]], [[education]], and economic endeavors, rights that helped to improve women's status in society."<ref>Yvonne Yazbeck Haddad, and John L. Esposito. ''Daughters of Abraham: feminist thought in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.'' Gainesville, FL: University Press of Florida. 2001. p.163 </ref>
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| − | [[Early reforms under Islam]] in the 7th century affected [[women's rights]] in [[marriage]], [[divorce]] and [[inheritance]].<ref name="Espos">Esposito, John L. ''Islam: the straight path.'' New York: Oxford University Press. 2005. ISBN 9780195182668, p. 79 </ref> Women were not accorded such legal status in other cultures, including the West, until centuries later.<ref>Lindsay Jones, Mircea Eliade, and Charles J. Adams. Encyclopedia of religion. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA. 2005. ISBN 9780028657332 p.6224</ref> The improvement of the status of [[Arab]] women included prohibition of [[female infanticide]] and recognition of the full personhood of women. <ref name="OxfordDicT">John L. Esposito, ''The Oxford history of Islam.'' New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press. 1999. ISBN 9780195107999, p. 339</ref> The [[dowry]], which had previously been treated as a bride-price paid to the father of the bride, became a nuptial gift retained by the wife as part of her personal property. <ref name="majid">Khadduri, Majid. Socialist Iraq: a study in Iraqi politics since 1968. Washington: Middle East Institute. 1978. ISBN 9780916808167</ref><ref name="Espos"/> Under Islamic law, marriage was no longer viewed as a "status" but rather as a "[[contract]]," in which the woman's consent was imperative.<ref name="majid"/><ref name="Espos"/><ref name="OxfordDicT"/> Women were given the right to inherit property in a [[patriarchal society]] that had previously restricted inheritance to male relatives. <ref name="Espos"/><ref name = "Schimmel"> [[Annemarie Schimmel]] states that "compared to the pre-Islamic position of women, Islamic legislation meant an enormous progress; the woman has the right, at least according to the letter of the law, to administer the wealth she has brought into the family or has earned by her own work." Schimmel, Annemarie. Islam: an introduction. Albany: State University of New York Press. 1992. p.65</ref>
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| − | ===Medieval period===
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| − | {{see also|Women in Islam|Women in Iraq}}
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| − | During the pre-modern period a number of important figures argued for improving women's rights and autonomy, ranging from the medieval mystic and philosopher [[Ibn Arabi]], who argued that women could achieve a high spiritual level equal to that of men<ref name=Hakim-2002>{{citation|title=Ibn 'Arabî's Twofold Perception of Woman: Woman as Human Being and Cosmic Principle|first=Souad|last=Hakim|journal=Journal of the Muhyiddin Ibn 'Arabi Society|volume=31|date=2002|pages=1–29}}</ref> to [[Nana Asma’u]], daughter of eighteenth-century reformer [[Usman Dan Fodio]], who promoted literacy and the education of Muslim women.<ref name=Mack-2000>{{citation|title=One Woman's Jihad: Nana Asma'u, Scholar and Scribe|first=Beverly B.|last=Mack|coauthors=Jean Boyd|location=USA|publisher=Indiana University Press|date=2000}}</ref>
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| − | Women such as [[Fatima al-Fihri]], who founded the [[University of Al Karaouine]] in 859, played an important role in the establishment of many [[Madrasah|Islamic educational institutions]]. During the [[Ayyubid dynasty]] in the 12th and 13th centuries, 26 of the 160 [[mosque]]s and madrasahs established in [[Damascus]] were funded by women through the [[Waqf]] ([[charitable trust]] or [[trust law]]) system. Half of all the royal [[Patronage|patrons]] for these institutions were also women.<ref name="Lindsay">{{citation|title=Daily Life in the Medieval Islamic World|first=James E.|last=Lindsay|publisher=[[Greenwood Publishing Group]]|year=2005|isbn=0313322708|}} p. 197</ref>
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| − | The 12th century [[Sunni]] scholar [[Ibn Asakir]] wrote that women could study, earn ''[[ijazah]]s'' ([[academic degree]]s), and qualify as [[Ulema|scholars]] and [[teacher]]s, indicating that there were opportunities for [[female education]] in the [[Islamic Golden Age|medieval Islamic world]]. This was especially the case for learned and scholarly families, who wanted to ensure the highest possible education for both their sons and daughters.<ref>{{citation|title=Daily Life in the Medieval Islamic World|first=James E.|last=Lindsay|publisher=[[Greenwood Publishing Group]]|year=2005|isbn=0313322708|}}pp. 196 & 198</ref> Ibn Asakir had himself studied under 80 different female teachers in his time. Female education in the Islamic world was inspired by [[Muhammad's wives]]: [[Khadijah]], a successful businesswoman, and [[Aisha]], a renowned [[Muhaddith|hadith scholar]] and [[Battle of Bassorah|military leader]]. According to a [[hadith]] attributed to [[Muhammad]], he praised the women of [[Medina]] because of their desire for religious knowledge:<ref>{{citation|title=Daily Life in the Medieval Islamic World|first=James E.|last=Lindsay|publisher=[[Greenwood Publishing Group]]|year=2005|isbn=0313322708|pages=196}}p. 196</ref>
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| − | {{quote|"How splendid were the women of the ''[[Ansar (Islam)|ansar]]''; shame did not prevent them from becoming learned in the faith."}}
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| − | There were no legal restrictions on female education. It was not common for women to enroll as students in formal [[Class (education)|classes]], but women attended informal [[lecture]]s and study sessions at mosques, madrasahs and other public places. Some men did not approve of this practice, such as Muhammad ibn al-Hajj (d. 1336) who was appalled at the behavior of some women who informally [[audit]]ed lectures in his time:<ref name=Lindsay>{{citation|title=Daily Life in the Medieval Islamic World|first=James E.|last=Lindsay|publisher=[[Greenwood Publishing Group]]|year=2005|isbn=0313322708|page=198}}</ref>
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| − | {{quote|"[Consider] what some women do when people gather with a [[Sheikh|shaykh]] to hear [the recitation of] books. At that point women come, too, to hear the readings; the men sit in one place, the women facing them. It even happens at such times that some of the women are carried away by the situation; one will stand up, and sit down, and shout in a loud voice. [Moreover,] her ''[[Awrah|'awra]]'' will appear; in her house, their exposure would be forbidden—how can it be allowed in a mosque, in the presence of men?"}}
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| − | During the 12th century, women accounted for no more than one percent of Islamic scholars. There appears to have been a significant increase in the number of female scholars by the 15th century, when [[Al-Sakhawi]] devoted an entire volume of his 12-volume [[biographical dictionary]] ''Daw al-lami'' to female scholars, giving information on 1,075 of them.<ref>{{citation|title=Women in Iran from the Rise of Islam to 1800|last=Guity Nashat|first=Lois Beck|publisher=[[University of Illinois Press]]|year=2003|isbn=0252071212|page=69}}</ref>
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| − | Men and women of various [[ethnic]] and [[religious]] backgrounds were involved in diverse [[List of occupations|occupations]] and [[Islamic economics in the world|economic activities]] in Islamic [[caliphate]]s.<ref>Maya Shatzmiller (1994), ''Labour in the Medieval Islamic World'', [[Brill Publishers]], ISBN 9004098968, pp. 6–7.</ref> Women were employed in a wide range of commercial activities and occupations<ref name=Maya-400-1>Maya Shatzmiller (1994), pp. 400–1</ref> in the primary sector (as [[farmer]]s for example), secondary sector (as [[construction worker]]s, [[dye]]rs, [[Spinning (textiles)|spinners]], etc.) and tertiary sector (as [[investor]]s, [[Physician|doctors]], [[nurse]]s, [[president]]s of [[guild]]s, [[broker]]s, [[peddler]]s, [[lender]]s, [[scholar]]s, etc.).<ref>Maya Shatzmiller, pp. 350–62.</ref> Muslim women also held a [[monopoly]] over certain branches of the [[textile industry]],<ref name=Maya-400-1/> the largest and most specialized and market-oriented industry at the time, in occupations such as [[spinning]], [[dying]], and [[embroidery]]. In comparison, [[Women's rights|female]] [[property rights]] and [[wage labor]] were relatively uncommon in [[Europe]] until the [[Industrial Revolution]] in the 18th and 19th centuries.<ref>Maya Shatzmiller (1997), "Women and Wage Labour in the Medieval Islamic West: Legal Issues in an Economic Context," ''Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient'' '''40''' (2), pp. 174–206 [175–7].</ref>
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| − | The famous 12th century [[Early Islamic philosophy|Islamic philosopher]] and [[qadi]] (judge) [[Averroes|Ibn Rushd]], known to the West as ''Averroes,'' declared that women were equal to men in all respects and possessed equal capacities to excel [[Peace In Islamic Thought|in peace]] and [[Islamic military jurisprudence|in war]], citing examples of female warriors among the [[Arab]]s, [[Greeks]] and [[Africa]]ns to support his case.<ref name=Ahmad>{{citation|last=Ahmad|first=Jamil|year=1994|date=September 1994|title=Ibn Rushd|journal=[[Al-Mawrid|Monthly Renaissance]]|volume=4|issue=9|url=http://www.monthly-renaissance.com/issue/content.aspx?id=744|accessdate=January 11, 2009}}</ref> Notable female Muslims who fought as soldiers or generals during the [[Muslim conquests]] and [[Fitna (word)|Fitna]] (civil wars) of early [[Muslim history]] included [[Nusaybah Bint k’ab Al Maziniyyah]],<ref>[http://www.realnews247.com/girl_power.htm Girl Power], Leela Jacinto, ''[[ABC News]]'' (July 11, 2003) Retrieved January 11, 2009.</ref> [[Aisha]],<ref name="Baghdad">Edwin Black, ''Banking on Baghdad: Inside Iraq's 7,000 Year History of War, Profit, and Conflict,''John Wiley and Sons. 2004. isbn 047170895X, p. 34</ref> [[Kahula]] and Wafeira,<ref>{{cite book | title=Woman's Record: Or, Sketches of All Distinguished Women, from "The Beginning Till A.D. 1850, Arranged in Four Eras, with Selections from Female Writers of Every Age| author=Hale, Sarah Josepha Buell |publisher=Harper Brothers|year=1853|page=120}}</ref> and Um Umarah.
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| − | Under [[Sharia|Islamic law]], women generally had fewer legal restrictions than they did under certain Western legal systems until the 20th century. For example, under traditional interpretations of sharia, women had the right to keep their surnames upon marriage; inherit and bestow inheritance; independently manage their financial affairs; and contract marriages and divorce. In contrast, restrictions on the legal capacity of married women under [[French law]] were not removed until 1965.<ref>Gamal M. Badr, "Islamic Criminal Justice," ''The American Journal of Comparative Law'' Vol. 32 - 1 (Winter 1984) pp. 167–169</ref> Noah Feldman, a law professor at [[Harvard University]], notes:
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| − | {{quote|As for [[sexism]], the [[common law]] long denied married women any property rights or indeed legal personality apart from their husbands. When the British applied their law to Muslims in place of Shariah, as they did in some colonies, the result was to strip married women of the property that Islamic law had always granted them—hardly progress toward equality of the sexes.<ref name=Feldman>{{cite web|author=Noah Feldman|title=Why Shariah?|publisher=[[New York Times]]|date=March 16, 2008|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/16/magazine/16Shariah-t.html?ei=5070&em=&en=5c1b8de536ce606f&ex=1205812800&pagewanted=all|accessdate= January 11, 2009}}</ref>}}
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| − | In contrast to the [[Western world]] where [[divorce]] was relatively uncommon until modern times, and in contrast to the low rates of divorce in the modern [[Middle East]], divorce was a common occurrence in the pre-modern [[Muslim world]], where it was known as ''[[Talaq (Nikah)|talaq]]''. In the medieval Islamic world and the [[Ottoman Empire]], the rate of divorce was higher than it is today in the modern Middle East.<ref name=Rapoport>{{citation|title=Marriage, Money and Divorce in Medieval Islamic Society|first=Yossef|last=Rapoport|publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]|year=2005|isbn=052184715X|}} p. 2</ref> In 15th century [[Egypt]], [[Al-Sakhawi]] recorded the marital history of 500 women, the largest [[Sampling (statistics)|sample]] on marriage in the [[Middle Ages]], and found that at least a third of all women in the [[Mamluk|Mamluk Sultanate]] of Egypt and [[Syria]] married more than once, with many marrying three or more times.<ref>{{citation|title=Marriage, Money and Divorce in Medieval Islamic Society|first=Yossef|last=Rapoport|publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]|year=2005|isbn=052184715X|}}pp. 5-6</ref>
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| − | ===Nineteenth century===
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| − | The modern movement of Islamic feminism began in the late nineteenth century. Egyptian jurist [[Qasim Amin]], the author of the 1899 pioneering book ''Women's Liberation'' (''Tahrir al-Mar'a''), is often described as the father of the Egyptian feminist movement. In his work, Amin criticized some of the practices prevalent in his society at the time, such as [[Polygyny in Islam|polygyny]], [[Islam and clothing|the veil]], and ''[[purdah]]'' ( [[sex segregation in Islam]]). He condemned them as un-Islamic and contradictory to the true spirit of Islam. His work had an enormous influence on women's political movements throughout the Islamic and [[Arab world]], and is read and cited today.
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| − | Less known, however, are the women who preceded Amin in their feminist critique of their societies. The women's press in Egypt started voicing such concerns in its very first issues in 1892. Egyptian, Turkish, Iranian, Syrian and Lebanese women and men had been reading European feminist magazines even a decade earlier, and discussed their relevance to the [[Middle East]] in the general press.<ref>see "Great Ancestors: Women Asserting Rights in Muslim Contexts," by Farida Shaheed with Aisha L.F. Shaheed (London/Lahore: WLUML/Shirkat Gah, 2005) </ref>
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| − | ===Twentieth century===
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| − | [[Aisha Abd al-Rahman]], writing under her pen name ''Bint al-Shati'' ("Daughter of the Riverbank"), was the first modern woman to undertake [[Qur'an]]ic [[exegesis]], and though she did not considered herself to be a [[Feminism|feminist]], her works reflect feminist themes. She began producing her popular books in 1959, the same year that [[Naguib Mahfouz]] published his allegorical and feminist version of the life of [[Muhammad]].<ref>{{citation|first=Ruth|last=Roded|title=Bint al-Shati’s Wives of the Prophet: Feminist or Feminine?|journal=British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies|date=May 2006|volume=33|issue=1|pages=51–66}}</ref> She wrote biographies of early [[women in Islam]], including the [[Aminah bint Wahb|mother]], [[Muhammad's wives|wives]] and [[Family tree of Muhammad|daughters]] of the [[Prophets of Islam|Prophet]] Muhammad, as well as [[literary criticism]].<ref name="zeidan">Arab Women Novelists: The Formative Years and Beyond by Joseph T. Zeidan, State University of New York Press, 1995</ref>
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| − | ==Muslim feminist activism in the West==
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| − | Another aspect of modern Islamic feminism is the activism of Muslim women born and brought up within Western societies, who have often faced [[racism]] from their host community and [[sexism]] within their own communities. Young Muslim women in France created [[Ni Putes Ni Soumises]] (usually translated "Neither Whores Nor Submissives") to address issues ranging from endemic [[sexual violence]] to the forced wearing of the [[hijab]]. This movement has spread to other countries.
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| − | ==Muslim Personal Law and Islamic feminism==
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| − | {{see also|Sharia}}
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| − | One of the major areas of scholarship and activism for Islamic feminists is Muslim Personal Law (also known as Muslim Family Law). MPL includes three main areas of law: marriage, divorce, and testation.
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| − | Muslim countries that have promulgated some form of MPL include [[Saudi Arabia]], [[Afghanistan]], [[Pakistan]], [[Libya]], [[Sudan]], [[Senegal]], [[Tunisia]], [[Egypt]], [[Indonesia]], and [[Bangladesh]]. Nations with Muslim minorities that have operating MPL regimes or are considering passing legislation on aspects of MPL include [[India]] and [[South Africa]].
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| − | In many of these countries, Islamic feminists have objected to the MPL legislation on the grounds that this type of legislation discriminates against women. Some Islamic feminists believe that a reformed MPL based on the [[Qur'an]] and [[Sunnah]], which includes substantial input from Muslim women and which does not discriminate against women, is possible, and have been working on developing forms of MPL that acknowledge the rights of women. Other Islamic feminists, particularly some in Muslim minority contexts which are democratic states, argue that MPL should be rejected rather than reformed, and that Muslim women should seek redress, instead, under the civil laws of those states.
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| − | Islamic feminists challenge the way in which MPL regulates [[polygyny]], divorce, custody of children, maintenance and marital property, as well the underlying assumptions of such legislation, such as the assumption that the man is head of the household.
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| − | ==Dress codes and social expectations==
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| − | {{See also|Sartorial hijab|Islam and clothing}}
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| − | One issue concerning Islamic feminists is the dress codes imposed on women by Islamic law and culture. In some countries such as [[Afghanistan]] and [[Saudi Arabia]] women are expected and even required to wear an all-covering ''[[burqa]]'' or ''[[abaya]]''; in others, such as [[Tunisia]], [[Turkey]] and France, they are forbidden to wear even the [[headscarf]] (often known as the ''[[hijab]]'') in public buildings. Islamic feminists feel that style of dress should be a personal choice based on an individual’s understanding and belief, not a legal requirement. In countries where the wearing of a veil is required, some feminists have chosen to regard it as a vehicle for being active in society rather than remaining at home in seclusion. Others have minimized and diversified the compulsory hijab and dress code into fashionable styles. <ref>[http://www.iran-bulletin.org/women/Islamic_feminism_IB.html ISLAMIC FEMINISM AND ITS DISCONTENTS: NOTES ON A DEBATE] Val Moghadam </ref>
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| − | Another concern is the social control imposed on women by traditional cultural expectations that women should remain inside the home, associate only with males that are relatives, and follow strict moral precepts.
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| − | ==Notable people in Islamic feminism==
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| − | *[[Leila Ahmed]] - Egyptian-American professor of women's studies
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| − | *[[Qasim Amin]] - an early advocate of women's rights in Islamic society
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| − | *[[Elvia Ardalani]] - a Mexican writer and author of ''De cruz y media luna/ From Cross and Crescent Moon''
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| − | *[[Begum Rokeya|Begum Rokeya Sakhawat Hussain]] - A [[Bangladeshi]] gender equality activist, founder of the first Muslim girls' school in [[Bengal]], authored ''[[Sultana's Dream]]'', ''[[Begum Rokeya#Works|The Woman in Captivity]]'' (Bengali: অবরোধবাসিনী), ''Essence of the lotus'' (Bengali: পদ্মরাগ) and several other feminism based publications.
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| − | *Margot Badran - feminist historian and women's studies scholar
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| − | *[[Alya Baffoun]] - Psycho-sociologist, lecturer at the University of Tunis in Social Sciences. Author of various publications on the situation of Arab women, Founding member of AAWORD/AFARD Senegal 1977.
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| − | *[[Asma Barlas]] - Pakistani-American professor at [[Ithaca College]], and author of ''"Believing Women" in Islam: Unreading Patriarchal Interpretations of the Qur'an''
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| − | *[[Mukhtaran Bibi]] - Pakistani advocate for rape prevention and women's rights
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| − | *[[Shirin Ebadi]] - Iranian lawyer and human rights activist who founded the Association for Support of Children's Rights. Also, a [[Nobel Peace Prize]] winner in 2003 for her efforts in promoting democracy and human rights especially for women and children.
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| − | *[[Farid Esack]] - male supporter and scholar
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| − | *[[Soumya Naâmane Guessous]] - Moroccan sociologist and campaigner on inheriting citizenship
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| − | *[[Zaib-un-Nissa Hamidullah]] - Pakistan's first woman columnist and editor, first woman to speak at [[Al-Azhar University]], and author of ''The Bull and the She Devil''
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| − | *[[Riffat Hassan]] - Pakistani-American theologian and scholar of the Qur'an
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| − | *[[Roquia Sakhawat Hussain]] - 1880-1932, Bengali author of [[Sultana's dream|The Sultana's Dream]], an early work of [[feminist science fiction]]; founder of schools for girls
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| − | *[[Hamida Javanshir]] - Azerbaijani philanthropist, co-founder in 1910 of the Muslim Women's Caucasian Benevolent Society
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| − | *[[Na'eem Jeenah]] - South African scholar and activist
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| − | *[[Shamsunnahar Mahmud]] - Bengali writer, educationalist, politician and activist.
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| − | *[[Irshad Manji]] - Canadian journalist, author of ''[[The Trouble with Islam Today]]''
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| − | *[[Fatema Mernissi]] - Moroccan writer
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| − | *[[Ebrahim Moosa]] - South African scholar on Islamic law, based at [[Duke University]]
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| − | *[[Shirin Neshat]] - Iranian-born American artist
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| − | *[[Asra Nomani]] - Indian-American journalist, author of ''[[Standing Alone in Mecca|Standing Alone in Mecca: An American Woman's Struggle for the Soul of Islam]]''
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| − | *[[Nawal El Saadawi]] - Egyptian author
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| − | *[[Hoda Shaarawi]] - early advocate of Egyptian women's rights
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| − | *[[Shamima Shaikh]] - South African
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| − | *[[Zilla Huma Usman]] - Pakistani politician and activist, assassinated Feb 2007
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| − | *[[Amina Wadud]] - African American professor and author
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| − | *[[Benazir Bhutto]]-Prime Minister of Pakistan, assassinated December 27, 2007
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| − | ==See also==
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| − | *[[Golden Needle Sewing School]]
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| − | *[[Women in Islam]]
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| − | *[[Women in Quran]]
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| − | *[[Sisters in Islam]]
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| − | *[[Role of women in religion]]
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| − | *[[History of feminism]]
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| − | *[[Sharia]]
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| − | *[[Taliban treatment of women]]
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| − |
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| − | ==Notes==
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| − | {{Reflist}}
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| − | ==References==
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| − | *Ahmed, Leila. ''Women and Gender in Islam: Historical Roots of a modern Debate'', Yale University Press, 1992. ISBN 0-300-049420
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| − | *Black, Edwin. Banking on Baghdad: inside Iraq's 7,000-year history of war, profit and conflict. Hoboken, N.J.: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2004. ISBN 9780471671862
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| − | *Esposito, John L. ''Islam: the straight path.'' New York: Oxford University Press. 2005. ISBN 9780195182668
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| − | *Esposito, John L. ''The Oxford history of Islam.'' New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press. 1999. ISBN 9780195107999
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| − | *Haddad, Yvonne Yazbeck, and John L. Esposito. ''Daughters of Abraham: feminist thought in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.'' Gainesville, FL: University Press of Florida. 2001. ISBN 9780813021034
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| − | *Humphreys, R. Stephen: ''Between Memory and Desire - The Middle East in a Troubled Age'', University of California Press, 2005. ISBN 9780520214118
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| − | *Jones, Lindsay, Mircea Eliade, and Charles J. Adams. ''Encyclopedia of religion.'' Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA. 2005. ISBN 9780028657332
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| − | *Khadduri, Majid. ''Socialist Iraq: a study in Iraqi politics since 1968''. Washington: Middle East Institute. 1978. ISBN 9780916808167
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| − | *Lindsay, James E. ''Daily life in the medieval Islamic world.'' Greenwood Press "Daily life through history" series. Westport, Conn: Greenwood Press. 2005. ISBN 9780313322709
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| − | *Mack, Beverly B., and Jean Boyd. ''One woman's Jihad: Nana Asma'u, scholar and scribe.'' Bloomington: Indiana University Press. 2000. ISBN 9780253213983
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| − | *Moghadam, Valentine M. ''Identity politics and women: cultural reassertions and feminisms in international perspective.'' Boulder: Westview Press. 1994. ISBN 9780813386911
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| − | *Nashat, Guity, and Lois Beck. ''Women in Iran from the rise of Islam to 1800.'' Urbana: University of Illinois Press. 2003. ISBN 9780252028397
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| − | *Shaheed, Farida, and Aisha L. F. Shaheed. ''Great ancestors: women asserting rights in Muslim contexts : information & training kit.'' Lahore, Pakistan: Shirkat Gah. 2004.
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| − | *Schimmel, Annemarie. ''Islam: an introduction.'' Albany: State University of New York Press. 1992. ISBN 9780791413272
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| − | *Zeidan, Joseph T. ''Arab women novelists: the formative years and beyond.'' SUNY series in Middle Eastern studies. Albany, NY: State Univ. of New York Press. ISBN 9780791421710
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| − |
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| − | ==External links==
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| − | All links retrieved January 11, 2009.
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| − | *[http://globalwebpost.com/farooqm/writings/islamic/bloom.html Women Scholars of Islam: They Must Bloom Again] by Dr. Mohammad Omar Farooq
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| − | *[http://www.islamicfeminism.org/ IslamicFeminism.org]
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| − | *[http://www.jannah.org/sisters/feminism.html "Islamic Traditions and the Feminist Movement: Confrontation or Cooperation?"] by Dr. Lois Lamya' al Faruqi.
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| − | *[http://shams.za.org/articles.htm Articles by a South African Islamic feminist] by Shamima Shaikh
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| − | *[http://naeemjeenah.shams.za.org/IslamicFeministhHerm.pdf "Towards an Islamic Feminist Hermeneutic"] by Na'eem Jeenah, ''Journal for Islamic Studies'', Vol. 21, 2001, 36-70.
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| − | *[http://naeemjeenah.shams.za.org/IslcFemsinSA.pdf "The National Liberation Struggle and Islamic Feminisms in South Africa"] by Na'eem Jeenah, ''Women's Studies International Forum 29'', January 2006, 27-41.
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| − | *[http://www.milligazette.com/Archives/2004/16-31Jan04-Print-Edition/1631200425.htm "Islamic feminism means justice to women"] interview with Prof Margot Badran, ''The Milli Gazette'', January 16–31, 2004
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| − | *[http://www.islam101.com/women/jameelah.htm "Feminism and Islam"] analysis of Feminism from a traditional Islamic perspective, ''Maryam Jameelah'', July 13th, 2005
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| − | *[http://www.ntpi.org/html/liberationofwomen.html "The Liberation of Women in the Middle East"] by Azam Kamguian, undated
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| − | *Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran. [http://www.iran-e-azad.org/english/book_on_women.html ''Women, Islam, and Equality''], an ebook
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| − |
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| − | * "[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/04/AR2005110402306.html A Gender Jihad For Islam's Future]" by [[Asra Nomani]], in the ''[[Washington Post]]'', November 6, 2005
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| − | *Sutherland, John. [http://www.guardian.co.uk/women/story/0,,1746156,00.html "The ideas interview: Phyllis Chesler"], ''The Guardian'', April 4, 2006
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| − | *[http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/12/01/news/islam6.php Muslim women take charge of their faith]'', International Herald Tribune, December 4, 2005
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| − | {{Spoken Wikipedia|Wikipedia_-_Islamic_feminism.ogg|2008-03-31}}
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| − | {{islam topics}}
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| − | {{feminism}}
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| − | [[Category:Women's rights in religious movements]]
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| − | [[Category:Feminist theology]]
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| − | [[Category:Feminist theory]]
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| − | [[Category:Islam and women]]
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| − | [[Category:Islam-related controversies]]
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| − | [[Category:Islamic feminists| ]]
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| − | [[Category:Feminism and spirituality]]
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| − | [[Category:Multicultural feminism]]
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| − | {{credits|Islamic_feminism|261387572|Khaleda_Zia|262242655|Sheikh_Hasina|263329432|Sharia|263419859| William_Montgomery_Watt|263063221|}}
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