Islam Vs Feminism: Equity Or Equality?

Islam Vs Feminism: Equity Or Equality?

Islam’s universal declaration of women’s rights would include the following:

1. Men and women have been given dignity by their Creator, but forces of immorality and darkness attack it in many ways. A prevalent form of this attack on women is pornography. Pornography is an affront to the respect and honor of women and produces an atmosphere where other crimes against them become possible. In many countries it has become an “industry” and they are exporting this filth to all parts of the world. Newer technologies, especially the Internet have also become mediums of choice for the purveyors of filth, posing a serious threat to morality everywhere. Pornography must be condemned and all trade in porn banned universally in the same way that dangerous drugs are banned.

2. Prostitution must be recognized as a despicable act of exploitation of women. No one who condones it can be taken seriously in their claims to respect women’s rights.

3. It is the responsibility of the husband to provide for the family. Islam has freed the women from this responsibility so she can take care of the home. All efforts to snatch this freedom and economic security from the women and forcing them out of the home into the labor force must be resisted.

4. Homemaking is a very honorable job and a serious responsibility; it is the foundation on which healthy societies can be built. The societies that disrespect homemaking lose the homemakers and result in broken homes as can easily be witnessed in many parts of the world. It should be recognized that the trend to belittle the task of homemaking is anti-family and anti-society and must be curbed.

5. It is a Muslim woman’s right to dress modestly, wear hijab, and refuse to be put on display. This right must be accepted universally and any effort to restrict this right must be recognized for what it is: Religious discrimination and/or persecution.

6. There is only one legitimate form of the family, that created by the union between a man and woman as provided in all revealed religions. Any other form is not only immoral, it poses a serious threat to the humanity.

7. Families should be protected from outside intrusion, especially intrusion by governments as much as possible. This also includes intrusion in the name of help. For resolution of family disputes, Islam suggests a three phase procedure.

A) Resolve the conflict within the home.

B) Resolve it within the family be involving elders from the families of husband and wife.

C) As a last resort resolve it through courts of law.

There is great wisdom in this approach.

Sayyiduna Umar, Radi-Allahu Anhu, said in a directive to the Qadis(Judges): “Refer the family disputes to the families (so they can resolve them within the family with the help of elders), for the judge’s verdicts create hatred and malice.”
Ignoring this scheme can only hurt the families that this new plan purports to help.