Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

altmuslim

Home
Muslim
Does Mona Eltahawy’s Radicalism Advance Arab Women’s Rights?

Does Mona Eltahawy’s Radicalism Advance Arab Women’s Rights?

Last updated on: May 1, 2012 at 9:08 pm by Guest Contributor

Does Mona Eltahawy’s Radicalism Advance Arab Women’s Rights? 2012-05-01T21:08:31-04:00 Guest Contributor

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

By Sahar Aziz

Last week, Mona Eltahawy triggered a polemic firestorm with her blanket assertion that Arab men’s hatred of women explains the abysmal gender inequities found in the Middle East. Many Arab women are perturbed that her article “Why Do They Hate Us?” in Foreign Policy has receive so much attention while millions of women leaders throughout the Middle East are reduced to a footnote by Western media.
These women are the unsung heroes in the trenches struggling to shed the yoke of patriarchy infiltrating the crevices of their lives.

But because they do not adopt the direct and radical approach in Mona’s piece, they are often overlooked. Their empowered lives do not satisfy our craving to fulfill the stereotypes of the oppressed and subjugated Arab woman in need of saving by the West.

By failing to cover the courageous efforts of the millions of women leaders who incrementally chip away at patriarchy, as opposed to bulldozing it with a sledge hammer, Western media exacerbates the underlying problem – the objectification and infantilization of Arab and Muslim women.

And so when a bold voice that “pokes the painful places” is published alongside a sensually naked woman painted in all black but for her seductive eyes, we perk up in admiration for her willingness to break the silence.

The silence is due to our deafness not the absence of voices.

Arab women, both Christian and Muslim, have been struggling for equality for over a century. Despite strong resistance from some men and women, every new generation treads new ground. Whether it is the right to vote,
the right to serve as judges, or the right to run for political office, Arab women have made much headway. But there is still much work to be done on multiple fronts. From disparate literacy rates, unequal wages, flawed personal rights laws and underrepresentation in government, gender equality in the East (and the West) remains an aspiration rather than a reality.

The past few decades have witnessed setbacks as the diverse nations arbitrarily grouped as the Middle East have experienced political upheaval, religious revivals, or foreign occupation. Just like men, women’s status is affected by their society’s plight. Thus, when a country is invaded by the United States, is permanently occupied, or undergoes a religious revolution, women’s rights are quickly subsumed into a larger nationalist fervor. And those who dare demand that women’s rights take precedence are quickly decried as trouble makers, agents of foreign powers, or traitors.

Thus it should come as no surprise that political realities force most women, both in the East and the West, to adopt incrementalist approaches to eradicating deeply rooted, and sometimes subconscious, gender biases. These incrementalists are coined the “good” feminists who are then pitted against the “bad” feminists whose time table for attaining equality is more accelerated and whose demands for change are more radical. This phenomenon, however, is not unique to the Middle East.

Indeed, the same occurs in American Muslim communities with regard to gender rights. Since the September 11th attack, Muslim communities across the country have been under siege. The government has infiltrated their mosques, student groups, and charities. Their religious leaders and vulnerable young men have been selectively prosecuted and imprisoned as part of an aggressive counterterrorism campaign. Meanwhile, Muslims are subjected to discrimination in the work place, schools, and public places. Muslim women wearing head scarves are attacked in public, fired from their jobs, bullied, and suspected of complicity in terrorist plots. All the while American feminists groups disregard these women’s civil rights as they obsess about patriarchy in Arab countries.

Despite the primarily male leaderships’ good faith efforts to protect their constituency, gender rights are simply not on the agenda. Muslim women continue to be inadequately represented in mosque and community groups’ leadership. Women who vocally challenge allegedly patriarchal practices are often labeled as trouble makers, agents of Islamophobes, or self-promoters. Often times, character assassination becomes a substitute for much needed discussions on the merits of the concerns.

Which puts Muslim and Arab women in the United States in a similar position as those in the Middle East. Should they push their families, communities, and governments to prioritize women’s rights despite other macro challenges or should they wait for better timing? Should they continue to attend mosques with inferior spaces and amenities for women or should they demand community funds be spent on making mosque facilities more equitable? Should they continue to support organizations founded and run by men, with a few token women on the board referenced to counter allegations of patriarchy, or should they vociferously campaign for meaningful representation?

History has shown that it is never the right time to fight for women’s rights. And that is precisely why the incrementalists need the radicals to “poke the painful places.” Without the latter, the millions of Arab and Muslim feminists who are the real heroes will not have the political space to permanently heal those painful places.

Sahar Aziz is an Associate Professor of Law at Texas Wesleyan University School of Law, where she teaches national security and civil rights. She is the author of From the Oppressed to the Terrorist: American Muslim Women Caught in the Crosshairs of Intersectionality*. Ms. Aziz is also a fellow at the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding. Photo courtesy of Foreign Policy magazine.*

Previous Post

April 27, 2012

Taking the Gloves Off - The 'War on Women' in the Middle East and Beyond

Next Post

May 7, 2012 Muslims on Wall Street: Pragmatic over Dogmatic

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category 2012 Elections 30 Dayd 30 Writers (2017) 30 Days 30 Writers 30 Days 30 Writers (2015) 30 Days 30 Writers (2016) 30 Days 30 Writers (2018) 30 Days 30 Writers 2017 Ali Asadullah Ali Eteraz Alper Bilgili Arthur Richards Asides Asma Uddin Black History Month Briefings Charles Turner Commentary Cyrus McGoldrick Eman H Aly Fatimah Popal Hajj Hajj and Dhul Hijjah Hesham Hassaballa Hisham Hellyer Ibrahim Abusharif Inas Younis Irfan Yusuf Jalal Baig Junaid Afeef Laila Alawa Laila Alwala Mas'ood Cajee Muqtedar Khan Nakia Jackson Newsmakers Parvez Ahmed Podcasts Rabia Chaudry Rafia Zakaria Ramadan Reviews Safiyyah Ally Saud Inam Shahed Amanullah Svend White The Opinionated Oncologist Visions Wajahat Ali Zahed Amanullah Zahir Janmohamed Zainab Khan

Select a Month November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 October 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 March 2005 February 2005 January 2005 December 2004 November 2004 October 2004 September 2004 August 2004 July 2004 June 2004 May 2004 April 2004 March 2004 February 2004 January 2004 December 2003 November 2003 October 2003 September 2003 August 2003 July 2003 June 2003 May 2003 April 2003 March 2003 February 2003 January 2003 December 2002 November 2002 October 2002 September 2002 August 2002 July 2002 June 2002 May 2002 April 2002 March 2002

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who anointed Jesus with expensive perfume?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Salome Martha Mary Peter