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Nour Saleh
Islam and Feminism
Since feminism in Western countries mainly focusing on white women and
Western culture, it is common for white feminists to have a limited scope of the problems
women face worldwide. For example, liberal feminists focus on white women as opposed
to women of all races and ethnicities, and limiting the intersectionality of a feminist
movement also limits how many lives it can help. Thus, women of various races,
ethnicities and religions must form their own feminist movements in hopes of bringing
awareness. Islamic feminism is a movement that seeks justice for women by analyzing
the major Islamic textsthe Quran and Prophet Muhammads sayingsin order to
further understand the principles discussing the equality of the sexes. Cultural ethics in
countries where Islam is prominent are often understood to be religious ethics,
considering how religion may become embedded within a culture over time. In this paper,
I will argue that the sexism Muslim women face, regardless of where they live, is due to
the misogyny of the cultures and not due to Islam. If Muslims were to follow the religion
as opposed to the culture, Muslim women would have many more rights than they
currently do.
Culture and religion are distinctly different in that not all the aspects of a culture
branch from a religion. In a culture, certain people create social constructs, thus leading
to a bias within the society and allowing some people to be more privileged than others.
The Arabs had a very misogynistic culture prior to Islam; not only were the women only
treated as sex objects, but some girls would be buried alive because they were seen as a
shameful addition to the family. When Islam began, it was prohibited to bury girls alive

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or to use them as sex slaves. However, after the Prophets death, along with the
colonization by Western settlers, the culture began to stray away from the religion and
new cultural standards were developed. A hierarchy was built, placing men above women
in terms of their rights as wives, mothers, sisters and coworkers (Al-Qataee 307). Islamic
feminism emerged as a result, aiming to reestablish the principles Islam had originally set
regarding womens rights and how they must be treated. As a Muslim Arab female, I
have experienced misogyny due to both the Arab culture as well as the Western culture. I
have never, however, come across anything from my religion (Islam) that condoned
misogyny; and if I had, it was due to misogynistic Muslims misunderstanding the texts
and not following the religion properly.
Despite sexual assault being extremely common worldwide, very little awareness is
brought towards solving the issue. Many women, regardless of their background, have
experienced sexual assault in at least one of its varying ways, and women in the Western
world are constantly fighting for their right to be free of sexual assault and to end rape
culture. In Young Mens Likelihood Ratings to Be Sexually Aggressive as a Function,
Edwards and Vogel investigate the influence of societal norms on how young American
men perceive sexual assault, then proceeded to carry out various tests in order to analyze
how those young men reacted to certain situations and whether or not they initiate sexual
assault. Edwards and Vogels results showed that the young men who were exposed to
anti-rape talks viewed the intentions of the women around them as much less sexual,
while the men who were placed with peers encouraging sexual assault were much more
likely to commit sexual assault (88-96). Therefore, the pressures of the culture and the
society people live in play a big role on how they view sexual assault.

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Similar to Western feminists, Muslim feminists fight to end rape culture in among
the societies they live inwhether it is in the Middle East or North America. The norms
built into societies worldwide have a vast impact on the behaviour of young men and
contribute greatly to rape culture. Despite common misconception in Western countries,
there are many practices in Islam that work towards minimizing the instances of sexual
assault, and they do not specifically target one sex. The hijab, in particular, is a piece of
cloth that many Westerners are opposed to, due to the assumption that it oppresses
women and plays a role in building a sexist culture. A hijab is not only for Muslim
women; the word means to cover and it is a set of guidelines that outline how each sex
must cover their body to minimize lust. The purpose of a woman wearing a hijab is not to
place the blame on her; first and foremost, the hijab can be worn to provide comfort for
the woman, considering that not all women wish to show off their bodies and may feel
more comfortable when they cover up. Some women also wear the hijab because they
feel it contributes to their faith and may perhaps allow them to build a stronger bond with
God. Lastly, while it cannot prevent sexual assault, the hijab may be able to help
minimize the instances of sexual assault. Islam also emphasizes that men cannot gaze at
women without their consent; in the Quran, a verse translates to: Tell the believing
men to lower their gaze [from looking at women without their consent] (The Quran
An-Nur 30). It becomes clear, then, that Allah (God) did not encourage men to gaze nor
did he place the full responsibility on Muslim women to prevent rape. By reading
Edwards and Vogels study and connecting it to rape culture occurring worldwideand
not being solely limited to countries where Islam is prominentI was able to confirm
that sexual assault is mainly driven by societal norms and the culture surrounding us, as

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opposed to our personal religious beliefs. Islam does not declare the woman fully
responsible for the actions of the volatile men around her; rather, the two sexes share an
equal responsibility.
While it is common for Westerners to discuss sex with their children and teach it at
schools, there are limitations provided within the culture. In Western media, women are
often represented as sexual objects, which, in turn, encourages men to overlook womens
consent and sexual desires. In Arabic culture, however, sex talk is often seen as a sign of
bad manners. I grew up thinking that women having knowledge about sex was a bad
thing; everyone would say it was prohibited in Islam to discuss such matters. In the
Arabic culture, a woman was only considered a virgin if she bled when she first had sex,
but only recently did I learn that this is not necessarily the case if the woman has pleasure
during sex. Therefore, I always assumed that Islam was narrow when it came to such
personal mattersand I realized I was wrong. While there are not many verses in the
Quran mentioning sex, the Prophet Muhammad talks extensively about it in his Hadiths.
Not only does he discuss the matter openly, but he also emphasizes the importance of
pleasuring the woman during sexual intercourse. Yet over time, Arabs began to push
aside the Hadiths in order to focus on males pleasures during sex; they would only quote
the Hadiths when they wanted their wives to pleasure them, but would ignore the Hadiths
that urged men to pleasure their wives thoroughly. Hence, it becomes apparent that Islam
had originally set rights for women during intercourse, but the culture erased it over time.
Consent and foreplay are the most highlighted topics in the Hadiths. In one of the
Hadiths, the Prophet narrates: Do not engage in sexual intercourse with your wife like
hens; rather, first engage in foreplay with your wife, flirt with her, and then make love to

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her. He also says: When any man wishes to sleep with his wife, he must not rush her
for indeed, women have needs as well (Donner 214-215). Thus, it is very important that
a womans sexual needs are also met during intercourse. Considering it may be harder for
women to feel the pleasure, the men are expected to put more work into making sure they
are meeting her needs. Sexual intercourse is very important for maintaining a healthy
relationship, and thus it must be taken seriously and must be an action of love as opposed
to an action of humiliation or abuse. Violent sex is not permitted, unless it has its limits
and is within the womans consent. Humiliating the wife for refusing sex is also not
permitted in Islam. There are many arguments stating that rape and sexual assault are
actually related to sex, but to power. Therefore, if men were to understand that sex is not
to be used as a position in which they can empower women, sex would not be such a
tender subject for some people. Since sexual intercourse is meant to provide a healthy
relationship, rape is highly forbidden because it can make someone despise sex due to the
abuse (Abdo 410). As I read the Hadiths concerning sex, I was surprised that we had been
provided this much information and advice from our Prophet, all of which promoted
healthy sexual relations. It became obvious to me, then, that Islam had never promoted
sexual abuse of women or denying them their rights in bed. Instead, it was the patriarchy
within the cultures that had developed to lead towards such levels of ignorance.
The patriarchy also works towards creating a hierarchy within parenthood, aiming
to make fathers superior to mothers. Once a woman becomes a mother, she is expected to
bear full responsibility for her household. In her book Bad Mother, Waldman discusses
what traits are seen to make the perfect mother, and states that "the single defining
characteristic of iconic Good Motherhood is self-abnegation (10). Among many of the

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aspects that are considered to make a woman a good mother, self-abnegation seems to be
the most valued one. It is expected of a woman to give her family everything without
expecting to receive any appreciation in return, or else she would be considered selfish.
This is not an issue that has been overcome yet; while mothers have more rights in the
modern era, they are still to be freed from the expectation of being selfless. Housewives
make no moneydespite working twenty-four hours a day for every day of the year
simply because it seen as a part of a womans nature. Due to growing up within a culture
that normalizes such treatment of mothers, many children will lack appreciation for all
the work their mothers have put into their lives and will treat their mothers in an ill
manner if she demands some of her rights. Unfortunately, this issue is not limited to one
culture, but is present within many cultures around the world. In the religion of Islam,
however, it is emphasized that in order to enter Heaven, a Muslim must respect and
appreciate their mother. While it is important to respect both parents, Islam highlights
motherhood and the pain mothers go through. As narrated by Nasai, Prophet Muhammad
said that your Heaven lies under the feet of your mother (Donner 132). The Hadith
(saying) indicates that a mother is seen to be above Heaven, and in that there is a
necessity to respect her in order to be able to enter Heaven. Another Hadith reads:
A man came to the Prophet and said, Oh Messenger of God! Who among the people
is the most worthy of my good companionship? The Prophet said: Your mother. The
man said, Then who?' The Prophet said: Then your mother. The man further asked,
Then who?' The Prophet said: Then your mother. The man asked again, Then who?'
The Prophet said: Then your father. (Donner 134)
Upon reading the sayings, it becomes clear to see how valued a mother is in Islam. In

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cultural norms, both for the Western and Eastern world, a mother is often seen as inferior
to the father. For example, when a woman is pregnant, many men will argue that the life
of her fetus is more important than hers, taking away her bodily integrity. The role of
mothers is understood to solely be for raising the fathers children. In Islam, however,
that is not the case; the work a mother puts forth into building her family is not seen as
something that makes her inferior to the father, but rather superior. Whether she is a
housewife or works outside the house does not change the fact that she is a mother who
spends a lot of her time and energy in order to keep her household upright, and that is
something that must be appreciated and greatly respected. Of course, there are Muslims
who do not respect their mothers, and that is because they assume the cultural motifs are
actually Islamic when they are, in fact, not Islamic.
Saudi Arabia is often seen to be the epitome of Islam, especially by the Western
world, although it is not. For example, the Saudi government bans women from driving
because they believe that a woman should not step outside the house without a man. Arab
women have a lower chance of getting married if they have a job, because it is seen as a
shameful thing in the cultureand thought to be derived from Islam. Yet, during the
Prophets lifetime, women would go to war and fight alongside men. They would work
among a variety of jobs, including nurses, teachers and warriors. Islam encouraged
women getting educated in order to be able to read the Quran and teach it to others, and
over time, a Muslim woman built the first hospital and university in the Muslim
communities. Thus, people claiming that Islam prevents women from being independent
and having their own jobs are actually following the culture, not the religion. Many
women of other religions experience the same barriers as Muslim women in the Middle

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East, further proving that culture had developed over time to set misogynistic standards.
Muslim women also had the right to keep their money for themselves, whether it was
their income or they had inherited it. However, during the same time period, the money
of Western women would go to their fathers, husbands or sons and they would have no
right to claim it (Rinaldo 841).
Prior to researching further into my religion, I had fallen into the lies that were told
in its name. However, once I got interested in the topic I was inspired to research further
into it, and as I learned more truths, my view on culture changed. It became clear to me
that my religion did not condone the sexism and misogyny women in the Middle Eastern
culture experienced in the name of Islam. Whenever I state that I am a Muslim
feminist, others laugh; this has happened on social media as well as in real life. It is
believed that Islam is a very misogynistic religion, and so they find it obscure that a
Muslim person could be a feminist. Most of the Muslim scholars, even if they are males,
are actually feminist given that they follow the religion closely and understand it well. It
may take a long time, but I hope to educate as many people as I can about the differences
between a culture and a religion as well as allow them to see that Islam is not sexist.
Islam works on a balance between the two sexes; both are expected to refrain from
certain actions while being encouraged to do others. While some of the actions may be
thought of as oppressive (such as wearing the hijab), I personally agree with the logic
stating that both sexes have to work together to minimize misogyny.
Works Cited
Abdo, Diya M. "My Qarina, My Self: The Homoerotic as Islamic Feminism in Alifa
Rifaat's My World of the Unknown." Journal of Lesbian Studies 16.4 (2012): 398-

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415. Web. 26 Jan. 2015.

Al-Qataee, Abdullah. "The Effect of Exposure to Western Cultures on the Sex-role

Identity of Saudi Arabians." Contemporary Educational Psychology 9.3 (1984): 303312. Web. 5 Mar. 2015.

Donner, Fred. Narratives of Islamic Origins. Drawin Press, Inc. 1998. Print.

Edwards, Sarah R., and David L. Vogel. "Young Mens Likelihood Ratings to Be
Sexually Aggressive as a Function of Norms and Perceived Sexual Interest."
Psychology of Men & Masculinity (2013): 88-96. Web. 18 Feb. 2015.

Rinaldo, Rachel. "Pious And Critical: Muslim Women Activists And The Question Of
Agency." Gender & Society 28.6 (2014): 824-846. Web. 3 Feb. 2015

The Quran. Trans. M.A.S. Abdel Haleem. New York: Oxford UP, 2005. Print.

Waldman, Ayelet. Bad Mother: A Chronicle of Maternal Crimes, Minor Calamities, and
Occasional Moments of Grace. Random House Inc., 2009. Print.