On Islamic Feminism and Women’s Rights: Lecture by Dr Amina Wadud : Aquila Style : Sya Taha.

Islamic feminism and Muslim feminists

I leave the discussion of Islamic feminism for last, because the term “feminism” next to “Islam” tends to raise certain preconceptions. This is especially because there are also many definitions for Islamic feminism. According to Dr Amina, Islamic feminism simply says that “Islam belongs to all of us.” Islam is not the exclusive field of scholars, priests, or policymakers, but Islam is what every sincere, believing and educated Muslim lives every day of her life.

Dr Amina confesses that she did not identify as a Muslim feminist for a long time, but that recently the term seems to best describe her work on social justice. While for medieval jurists, guardianship of women was a form of justice for their time, justice today must consist of “reciprocity” between human beings (we can exchange services with each other without either one losing anything), which is only possible with “a profound understanding of tauhid”. She leaves us to ponder if our ideas of family today reflect this justice.

Finally, I experience firsthand Dr Amina’s wit and humour in dealing with the gravity of her work in the face of harsh opposition. When a member of the audience pointed out to her that she had been criticised for “reading equality in the Qur’an”, she simply responded with what seemed to be the obvious response:

“If it’s okay to read patriarchy in the Qur’an, then damn straight I can read equality in it.”