GIRL POWER! IN ISLAM

[amma]

GIRL POWER!!! IN ISLAMBy Sajid Iqbal


<b>“Oppression”</b>


“They have to walk 10 steps behind their husband”


“They can’t even work”


Yeah yeah, heard it all before and probably a lot more. What is it with people thinking Islam treats women as second class citizens? Don’t tell me, you sometimes wonder that too? Well STOP THERE, because you’ll be surprised just how many rights women are given in Islam. Not Convinced ? Read on ! You will soon realise that its not the Spice Girls who introduced 'Girl Power' but it was Islam.



Next time you think Islam oppresses women, a woman is worth half a man and that Islam treats them like second class citizens then never forget this:


What does Islam give to women?


Islam elevated the status of women 1,400 years ago by declaring them equal to men, giving them the right to work, right to education to the highest level, right to vote, right to take public office, right to join the army, right to divorce (God forbid), right to inheritance, right to marry who she wishes (yippie!!) and so on and so forth, the list is endless….you got all day?



Are Muslim women allowed to work?


There is NO legal provision in either the Qur’an or the Sunnah (sayings & way of life, of the Prophet ( blessings and peace be upon him)) which prevents a woman from seeking a career or a job. Women are permitted to take up such important professions as teaching, medicine, lawyers, accountants, MP, journalist – just to name a few!



In British and other western countries women don’t even get paid equally for doing the same job as a man!(1)


The money a Muslim woman earns is her own. In the Western world, on the other hand, any property a woman possessed, belonged exclusively to her husband. WHAT? It’s true.(2)


So I hope that’s made things crystal clear!


Are Muslim women allowed to seek Education?


You bet they are! Acquiring knowledge in Islam, is a duty binding both males and females. In a hadith (saying) of the Prophet (Blessing and peace be upon him) it states: “It is a duty on both men and women to seek knowledge (religious and secular)”. (Ibn Maajah)



Yet, it was not until the beginning of the 20th Century that Western women were allowed to attend University. Shocking!(3)


So girls, get yourselves down to college/University!


STATUS OF THE MOTHER


Do you want to know something that will make you fall of your seat? Around that time the child was only recognised to have one parent – the father! In Islam, however, the status of the mother is so high, that the Prophet (Pbuh) said – “Jannah ( Paradise) is at the feet of the Mother”.(Bukhari & Muslim )



POLITICAL RIGHTS


Islam gave women political rights including voting and taking part in political activities such as sitting in parliament and becoming MPs. Lets not forget that women only got the right to vote in Britain in the beginning of the 20th century!



It took three generations for the British woman to win the most basic rights. Outrageous!Women underwent arrest, humiliation, hunger strikes, protest marches – JUST TO GET THE RIGHT TO VOTE!


Voting was secured as late as 1918. Society was very hostile towards women, regarding them as, wait for it – Deviants. Yet Islam gave women these rights 1400 years ago without them even asking for it!


What rights does a Muslim woman have over her husband?


If there’s one thing that the West believe to be true – is that a Muslim woman has to walk 10 steps behind her husband, she has no say in any matter and she’s there to cook, clean and look beautiful for her ‘Purpose in life’ (husband) to appear. YEAH RIGHT!



Just get your head around some of the rights Islam has provided for women and realise what real GIRL POWER is all about:-


Any money she earns or inherits is her own and her husband still has to provide for her....now we're talking about girl power!


On Marriage, she is entitled to receive a gift, Mahr, (which is usually in the form of money) and this is her own property.


Under Islamic Law a woman cannot be married off without her consent. She has final approval on a marriage partner and she can refuse and cancel a marriage arranged without her consent.


She is not required to change her maiden name upon marriage, as Islam recognizes her independent legal personality.


A great number of Jurists, say that the wife is not required to perform the household chores! ( Malik & Shafi – schools of thought).


Although the Prophet(saw) was such a great leader, he assisted in the house cleaning and mended his own clothes. SO HUSBANDS DO SOME HOUSEWORK PLEASE!


It is the husbands duty and full responsibility to provide expenses for: food, clothing, recreation etc, even if his wife is filthy rich!


Contrary to common belief – in the Islamic law a husband cannot, I repeat cannot, beat his wife or even mistreat his wife.


There is a saying of the Prophet ( Blessings and peace be upon him) “ ….The best of those are those that are best to their wives”. (Tirmidi)


She also has the right to initiate a separation from marriage if her rights under marriage are not being granted. SO A WOMAN DOES HAVE THE RIGHT TO DIVORCE.


Widows have the right to remarry, and they are in fact encouraged to do so.


The Customs of dowry, is a practice which has never been sanctioned by Islam.


I’ve got to stop or I’ll end up writing a book. Believe me this list is endless!


“Why do Muslim women have to cover? This is oppression surely!”


Nowadays, topless and mini skirts are OK but covering yourself is 'oppression'…. Who you trying to fool? Take a good look around, be honest – do you think women are being degraded? Yep, so do I.



Women wearing next to nothing selling cars, plastered upon bill boards, upon magazines, the internet and just about anywhere and everywhere. Blimey, if that’s not degrading, what is? Islam emphasizes on modesty. No person should be seen as a sex object. Men also have to dress modestly.


What are the benefits in covering?


When a woman puts on her hijab, dresses moderately and steps out. She’s sending out a message LOUD & CLEAR – “Deal with my mind and not my body”. What will happen:-



Men will stop flirting with you, they’ll start talking to you.


You’ll be taken seriously, because they won’t be looking elsewhere.


There will be no arm around the shoulder or waist, they’ll stand almost a yard apart.


Ask any sister who dresses Islamically, and she’ll tell you, that by behaving like a Muslimah, she attracts a GREAT AMOUNT OF RESPECT.


BLAME MEN NOT ISLAM



Not Islam, but sadly some Muslim men, do oppress women today. This is because of their cultural habits or their ignorance about Islam.


So what we find is that Islam gives women wonderful rights and has done for over 1400 years. Women are by no means seen as second class citizens in Islam....actually it looks like women have more rights in Islam than men do!


THE LARGEST GROUP OF CONVERTS TO ISLAM IS WOMEN BETWEEN THE AGES 16 AND 24!(4)


References:


www.eoc.org.uk/EOC eng/dynpages/camp_pay.asp


www.channel4.com/history/microsites/H/history/guide19/part10.html


ibid


Muslim converts Association

[Raudah]

Just a note before i start : I'm still a youth learning about islam and im sorry if my post sounds like nonsensical writings to you . I do not claim to have good english in fact english is my second language so I hope you forgive my grammar mistakes and medicore vocabulary.


That was an enlightening article . I will save the entire article into my computer for future reference. You might ask me why , is there such a need. Well there is. I belong to a youth group which belongs to a local mosque and I have a very ummm bad image of being a feminist.


This is because of a number of reasons. First of all , i tend to be get myself into arguements which actually doesnt involve me. And coincedentally , most of this arguements , Im actually defending a girl. They say my judgement have been clouded because she's the same gender as me. In one particular situation , a close friend of mine have been seriously humiliated by two guys bt them shouting criticisms at her until she cried. And yes , vulgarities was used. I was of course , very angered by this because first of all , i hate vulgarities , second of all , there wasnt any need to shout.


But noo .. they didnt see what i was so angry about. They told me , I am not listening to them. All i see is that a female is being victimized.


Which she was.


And one guy told me this . "You have to face it , women are weak ." and he mentioned that islam had stated that.


I do understand the position of men in a family , as a husband and everything. And i do know that we are in some ways weaker than a man. But do we have to be soo downgraded? Until standing up for another female is a crime? Until now , these guys have been saying what a feminist i am . Something they cannot accept , even though they're my friends.


Im really confused. Am i in the wrong?

[Muslimah]

Bismillah


as salam alykom Raudah


First off let me take this chance and welcome you to our board, or let us say little cyber family.


Well i didnt see a major crisis in your english, alhamdulelah, no need to apologize for lacking a proficient level. your post was fine to me Mash aAllah.


Now let us delve into the core of interest in your post. Is there a concept of feminism in Islam? This is what i got from the post, am I correct?


let me assume I did well understand what you wanted to say.


Islam is a comprehensive system of life, it does not segregate the community but it rather assigns roles according to each one's abilities.


If u look objectively to the concept of feminism, you will find that the main foundation is for the woman to totally gets along without the existence of man in her life. It is based on the fact that women dont need men. I remember during the peak of feminism movement in the US, women even refused the fact of marriage with the opposite sex just to prove they can do without them.


Feminism is based on victimizing the woman and establishing this fact of weakness. We are not weak, may be we dont own physical strength equal to that of men. But Allah Created both men and women in a way adequate for both to assume their given roles in life. The problem occurs when either party strives to assume a different role.


I know till now i m talking general without specific reference to the situation you brought here.


If u defend a girl, this requires that u must be fully aware of all aspects of the situation that lead to her being in a victims position. I mean, a girl might come to me and say this guy made a harsh comment on me that was really even vulgar. My first question would be, what type of interaction you established with this guy? i mean did you allow yourself to joke around and talk about any matter regardless of the gender difference? Did you allow him to joke back and may be exceed the manner limits between a man and woman under the pretext of O we are close friends or uni colleagues, or or or? did you talk to him about personal private matters giving him space more than necessary??? if u did this, then dont blame him for acting this way, but just blame yourself for not being able to put the required limits in a mixed gender relation.


Raudah, Islam does not prevent a man/woman interaction, but it rather regulates in a manner that preserves the dignity of a woman, as well as the moral of a man.


I dont want to prolong the post so that u may read at pace and then may be we can resume our conversation. :)

[amma]

Salam


Welcome to the forum


hey dont worry there nothing wrong with your english.


Dont mind me asking but how old r u.


I totally agree with sis muslimah you have to look at the situation and everything concerning it to make any kind of judgement.


One thing i know is that women should not be degraded, but then again they themselves shouldnt create a situation for this to occur. Sticking up for sumone isnt wrong either but u got to know, if they done nething to provoke anything.


I hope i havent confused you even more. please do tell us here.

[Raudah]

Bismillah ,


Thanks for the replies , it really clears up all my doubts. Alhamdulilah. I really wasnt sure of whether the concept of feminism really do exist in Islam. But now , I think ive got the whole grasp of it.


By the way I just turned 16. =D


Nope amma , you didnt confuse me , I understand what you mean. It was actually a silly little thing but the situation got a bit dramatic. Trivial teenage stuff where girl likes guy , guy doesnt like girl back . Guy turn nasty to girl. It seriously wasnt neccessary because the girl herself told me she didnt expect anything back.


High school drama.


Speaking of which , i do have another question.


I live in a country where islam is the 2nd most dominant. This is a good and a bad thing of course. The good thing , we dont face any form of discrimination because there are quite a number of us. The bad thing is , like i said , we're 2nd most dominant. Which means there are other races and religions as well. And my country is very small and really emphasizes on the importance of racial harmony. This of course makes my country a very peaceful country with no riots or wars. However , since we all mingle freely with people from other cultures and religions , it had given a negative impact on the muslims in my country.


Now , its common to see a muslim guy and a muslim girl to hold hands in public ,even though they're not married. In fact i actually thought this was the case for the rest of the world but yesterday i read a thread which touched this topic. Because here , we can see muslim teenagers doing more than just hold hands in public. Same goes for the adults. This is because , they're easily influenced by people from other religions who does the same thing that they think its okay for them to do it as well.


May Allah protect me from being influenced as well.


I blame all this on our education system. I go to a mix school with people from different races and religion. And here boys and girls mix with alarming freedom. If we have a school camp , there's the couple dance where we are required to hold hands . During sports lesson ,its almost impossible that there would be no contact from the boys and girls. Because its become a daily thing , its also , now a normal thing for girls and boys to mix without any restrictions.


Also , there's the uniform.My uniform is a white blouse with short sleeve and a blue short skirt. Needless to say , I dont like my uniform.


My question is .. Is it alright , according to our religion. The adults say its okay because , education is a priority in Islam. And this is the only way we can obtain an education here in my country. And that we dont have a choice.But , I still have my doubts.


And my other concern is how freely the boys and girls mix. I'm confused as to how to handle it in an islamic way.For example, if a guy gives me a valentines day present , should i decline it? Because muslims are not allowed to celebrate it. If a guy calls my phone (which they do all the time) , should i not answer it ? Because im a typical teenage girl exposed to the media and society , its almost impossible to not get influenced. Almost every one of my friends have a boyfriend . Its a normal thing here. And there is no such thing as a boyfriend where he doesnt want to have a physical reliationship with you at all. It scares me that nobody ever cares that its sinful anymore.


Again , i hope that i make sense. Because what my english teacher told me about my english still haunts me till today.

[Muslimah]

Bismillah


as salam alykom Raudah


:) :) :) high school drama, :D :ph34r: at least now u have an idea when you must talk and when to not interfer. U might as well rather than defending your friend without hearing the other side, advice her not to get involved with guys and just maintain her self respect as a Muslim woman.


i m sure amma will come back with more specially she is also a young Muslim woman living in a non muslim country.


but let me ask u, regarding your uniform and schooling, is there any possibility to join an Islamic school? or in case u cannt, can u apply a special request to the adminstration to allow u just to make a longer sleeve blouse and a longer skirt in preparation for complying with the Islamic dress code? this might be a good idea.


As for male /female interaction, what is happening around u of course is incorrect. I live in a Muslim country, yet boys and girls still fall into the same problem due to being exposed to foreign media and thought. Raudah, it is not easy anywhere, temptation is every where, or else what shaytan is doing around earth?


Well, u need to be firm with guys and make sure they dont call your phone for no reason other than a necessity of learning or things like that. Of course u r not allowed to hold hands or take part in dancing events. U might try and skip them some how....


well let me wait for amma, i m sure she will come in with more ideas.

[amma]

salam


sorry i took my time to reply.


Well Raudah i also live in UK and here Islam isnt the first dominant religion. U know it is totally wrong for gurs and girls to hold hands let alone anything else. Yes it is very easy to be temtped to do the wrong thing just because everyone else is doing it around u.


I went to an all girls school an alhamdulillah we were allowed to cover ourselfs properly e.g wear salwar kameez or the long jilbab but it just had to be the right colour, we also were able to wear a scraf to cover our hair. When i was in college we were also allowed to wear wot we wanted in terms of covering ourself.


My piont here being try to find a high school just for girls. The uniform u have specified according to Islam you are commiting a sin cause you are exposing you body and not covering urself properly. If you can not change your high school. Then make an effort to change the uniform. Here in the UK there have been many cases were young muslim girls have made the effort to fight to cover themselfs at schools. Talk to ur head teacher and explain the matter. But you have to be strong to do this. Pray to Allah make dua he will help you to do this. Also make you muslim sisters aware of this issue. Tell them that its wrong to wear such clothes and that its up to u to make a difference.


As it comes to guys and girls communicating. I know it can be very hard but very easy to come across difficult situations. You said that its like the normal thing for there to be boyfriend girlfriend relationships. This is haram in Islam. Ok its understandable that you go to a mix school. You can chat to guys yes when in class or work related. But wen it comes to socialising then remember one thing can lead to another. So its up to you to make sure you dont create situations that the shaytaan will provoke you to go another step.


As sis muslimah has said guys callin you on your fone. If its neccesary then answer. Remember and girl and a guy should not be left alone there should always be a third person there, because if there aint then the third person will always be the shaytaan.


I know in sociaties such as these, where there is so much sinning go on is hard to live in. Trust me i have been there and been in bad situations myself thats why i can relate to you. But remember if you remember the basic concepts of Islam, the interaction between men and women etc, then you will have a better understading of it urself.


You can very easily be influenced by wot is happening around you, remember to remind your friends of what they are doing wrong. Yes they might ignore you but speak to them nicely, dont have a go at them cause no1 will listen. Tell them time and time again inshallah with Allah will they will realise the sins they are commiting.


Remember in such cases as ur saying. If no1 speaks up then its up to you to take the first step.


Oh yeh wot u said abot valentines day. Its haram to celebrate it in Islam. so yes if someone gives you anything on valentines day then dont accept it just make it clear to them that you dont celebrate it.


Inshallah der are various different topics around the forum relating to what you have said, i will find them and post them here so its easier for you to follow the link and read them.


One thing to remember no1 is perfect and that theres many tests in life, but sometimes it does take time to over come problems you just got to have faith in urself and Allah


lol your english is fine, i havnt seen anything wrong with it so dont worri lol


ur english teacher just picky cause ur writing in essays or sumthing for ur lesson so he just wants you grammer, vocab etc to be perfect but here your english is fine, so dont worri.


i hope i have helped you, im just at uni again lol so inshallah i will try to find some hadiths and ayats from the quran that relate to all this.

[amma]

This is sum information on Valentines day


http://www.islamsms.com/bb//index.php?showtopic=3256


this is more in detail


http://63.175.194.25/topics/hobb/Valentines_eng.html


if your confused about nething here just let us know ok :D

[amma]

salam Raudah i was wondering how u r doing.


Is everything ok??????

[amma]

Bismillah


here are just some ayat from the Quran hadith realted to this topic.


"Tell believers to lower their gaze, and tell the believing women to lower their gaze. (24:30,31)


"The fornication of the two eyes is an evil glance. The fornication of the two ears is the obscene talk. The fornication of the tongue and hand is the touch and grasp. And the fornication of the two feet is the steps taken towards evil. The heart desires and longs and the private parts abide with or does contrary to it". (Mishkat ul Masabih, Abu Dawood)


When two people (illegally) are together alone then the third is shaitaan" (Bukhari).


Prophet of Allah has said "one of the seven people who will be under the protection of the shade of the throne of Allah on the day of judgment when there will be no shade will be the young man (or woman) who was approached by a respectable beautiful woman but he replied `I fear Allah`. (Bukhari)


Prophet of Allah has said "The greatest sin after polytheism (shirk) is the man who commits fornication with a woman who is not his legal wife" (Ibn Kathir, Mishkat).


The Prophet of Allah said "Faith comes out of a person whilst he commits fornication" (Mishkat).


It has also been stated in another hadith related by Imam Tirmidhi, Abu Dawood and Baihaqi that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said “When a servant in Allah engages in fornication, his faith leaves him, for it is like a piece of cloth covering his head (and is removed), and when he finishes his sin, his faith returns”.