Most religious organizations have been unequivocally dominated by men for hundreds of years. Historically, Muslim society is significantly gender based in that it makes blatant distinctions between the roles of women and men in both religious and societal aspects. Men are regarded as the caretakers and heads of their household while women are expected to be obedient wives and mothers taking domain of the family environment. More contemporary Muslims are torn between upholding the principles on which their religion was founded, and the current shift toward feminism in Western culture. The most important and much debated question is just because Muslim women aren’t treated identically to Muslim men, does this mean they are not being treated
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Limiting women’s right to free movement is seen as a great barrier for equal access to education. Muslim girls are often taught that their most important role is that of a wife and of a mother and this discourages them from seeking educational opportunities. Many Muslim girls also marry at a very young age, which prevents them from seeking education due to their obligation to be a homemaker. However, this is not true of all Islam dominated countries. According to UNICEF, in Tunisia, a country where 98% of people practice Islam, there were approximately 5% more female students enrolled in higher education than males. So the question arises is the Islamic religion responsible for the lack of education among its female population or does it have more to do with the customary practices of the countries in which Muslims …show more content…
Unspeakably cruel acts such as female genitalia mutilation and stonings are absolutely unacceptable in any culture regardless of what religion you are. But even on a less publicized scale, women should have the same rights to drive, speak to whomever they choose, dress however they feel appropriate, and get a proper education without fear of being punished or even worse, killed. In my opinion, the problem doesn’t necessary come from the Quran itself, but rather the people interpreting and enforcing it. The difficulty with most religions are that they are left up to the understanding of the reader, and therefore are subject to misinterpretation. The fact that the Quran was wrote hundreds of years ago also plays an integral part in the discriminating treatment of women. Women are viewed much differently today than they were during those times. It would be very difficult for Islamic leaders to make the cultural shift to a more feminist approach because the writings are so specific about the Muslim male and female
Limiting women’s right to free movement is seen as a great barrier for equal access to education. Muslim girls are often taught that their most important role is that of a wife and of a mother and this discourages them from seeking educational opportunities. Many Muslim girls also marry at a very young age, which prevents them from seeking education due to their obligation to be a homemaker. However, this is not true of all Islam dominated countries. According to UNICEF, in Tunisia, a country where 98% of people practice Islam, there were approximately 5% more female students enrolled in higher education than males. So the question arises is the Islamic religion responsible for the lack of education among its female population or does it have more to do with the customary practices of the countries in which Muslims …show more content…
Unspeakably cruel acts such as female genitalia mutilation and stonings are absolutely unacceptable in any culture regardless of what religion you are. But even on a less publicized scale, women should have the same rights to drive, speak to whomever they choose, dress however they feel appropriate, and get a proper education without fear of being punished or even worse, killed. In my opinion, the problem doesn’t necessary come from the Quran itself, but rather the people interpreting and enforcing it. The difficulty with most religions are that they are left up to the understanding of the reader, and therefore are subject to misinterpretation. The fact that the Quran was wrote hundreds of years ago also plays an integral part in the discriminating treatment of women. Women are viewed much differently today than they were during those times. It would be very difficult for Islamic leaders to make the cultural shift to a more feminist approach because the writings are so specific about the Muslim male and female