Tag: Women

Muslim Women Gain Higher Profile in U.S. – NYTimes.com. These women have achieved a level of success and visibility unmatched elsewhere. They say they are molded by the freedoms of the United States — indeed, many unabashedly sing its praises — and by the intellectual ferment stirred when American-born and immigrant Muslims mix. I have the great privilege of knowing many of the people interviewed for this article. I have a brief interview on The Takeaway about it as well.

Nura Sediqe has a great article up on Muslim women. Read it. Ironically, the same religion that is demonized for oppressing women is the one that has historically produced great examples of women who have been empowered by Islam to serve as role models for communities globally, from Betty Shabazz to contemporary leaders such as Dr. Ingrid Mattson, president of ISNA, the largest Muslim organization in North America. Or my own personal role model, my mother, Salmenna Sediqe, who was recently elected President of the Islamic community in Toledo, Ohio. She is a survivor of war who managed not only…

Fatemeh F. drops some science: These wars actively undermined the work of feminist and women’s organizations within war-torn countries; in a time of conflict, everyone’s first priority is survival and winning, rather than concern about “women’s issues.” The Revolutionary Association of Women of Afghanistan was founded for the societal and political advancement of Afghan women in 1977, well before the United States aimed to “liberate” them in 2001. Yet few feminist organizations recognized that RAWA, or any other group led by Afghan women, was fighting its own battle against the Taliban.