Islamic Feminism: A movement to stop oppression and reclaim women’s right’s
Tariq Ramadan 26^th January 2006  

Introduction: How to tackle the issue on women’s oppression? 

• Education
• Family participation
• Political participation
• Relationship of Islamic feminism with global feminism

The Concept
Today we have many “feminisms”. Why? Many Muslim countries that experienced colonisation reclaimed women’s rights in different cultural ways. What do we mean by feminism here? The struggle through history and present time to gain women’s rights and not to accept oppression by all people. Why speak of Islamic feminism? There is a gap between the teachings of Islam and the way women have been treated in the West. This gap is unacceptable and we need to be introspective and ask why this is happening. Some people are of the view that Islam per se is against women’s rights. We should say that we are for women’s rights in the name of Islam and challenge the present discrimination within our communities. You cannot take one verse and make and opinion whilst disregarding the rest, which may throw light on the issue. 

Cultural and Literal Interpretations  In the name of Islam we need to reject the cultural readings of women. The problem here is the way in which the texts are understood in the cultural dress of countries such as Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. Is this cultural or textual discrimination? This is why we need Islamic feminism to challenge these readings and ask; what is the true reading? We should take a sincere and faithful approach towards the scriptures. We also need to take a critical reading of literalist interpretations. Our approaches to this should join in the global struggle for rights and justice with some specificities.  

Why engage in such a struggle? The widening gap between Islam and the west and the questions which are being posed to us from all sides.  

·        Tabari: Tafseer is discriminatory towards women. There is much confusion as to the tafseer he was writing in his particular time and interpreting it literally for our time today. We need here a dialectical process of text, which has even been found in the tradition of the Prophet, who talked of a renewer who would come to help the sources and give a new understanding in a different time. The Prophet did not treat women in the way that Tabari has described in his tafseer.  

·        Islamic literature through history has been mainly written by men. They describe the function of women as a child, wife and a mother. A man can compile such literature but the discourse on it needs to be worked on by women. They miss the fundamental function of woman as a being of God, their spiritual function. There is no discourse about the oppression of fashion and being liberated from the dictates and pressures of secular liberalism. What about freeing your soul and heart from impurities? Is it just about practical rights? We need to resist any kind of oppression for both men and women, we need to constantly ask, what do we want to be? What do we aspire to be like? Spiritual resistance of oppressive culture and entertainment. Women need to speak for themselves on this issue, write on resistance to contemporary and cultural trends of oppression towards women.  

·        Usool Ul Fiqh (Islamic Law) Maqasid al shari’ah are the objectives of the Shari’a. These were laid down by Shatibi. These are to protect and give rights to one’s life, offspring, property…A reform is needed here, we should be able to add objectives like protecting the dignity of women’s being and not only ‘what are her duties?’ 

Education:
Instruction and shaping behaviour Refuse the standard that women should not be educated in muslim societies, emanating from the cultures of their origin and male domination. Use Islam to reform these areas, be self critical towards your own culture. 

Family:

Relationship between men and women: Discourse on how to build the family, this is a jihad in today’s world. The Prophet had a comprehensive approach, he changed the world by having a presence at home, he educated his wife to become a scholar. Communication is about sharing thought’s and idea’s and learning from each other, not just carrying out one’s rights and duties. This was the relationship between the Prophet and Aisha. 

New Leadership:
Promotion of free choice: It is against Islam to impose the headscarf to wear it and to take it off (France). All women here should join in the movement for “free choice” and work together.  

Conditions
The biggest change will come by: Self confidence in speaking out within the communities against oppression when you see it, challenge the literal and cultural interpretations and be self critical.    

Working Example of Islamic Feminism Movement“
Muwadawannah” - Morrocco: Intra Community Discussion organised A project created to reform the Muslim majority society. Opened a debate on challenging discrimination coming from within their own society. They refused imposition from the elites. Tariq Ramadan’s view: They are challenging mentalities here, which is a good direction to take but not enough, we need to do much more on a global scale movement for big changes.   

End of Lecture