Women's Liberation Movement: A Critical Look - I

05/12/2013| IslamWeb

The call for women's liberation differs in its implicit sense from its outward form. On the surface, it is characterized by magnanimity and freedom of opinion; however, it intrinsically entails spreading corruption and vice. The calls of the people who want to westernize our societies keep changing constantly, their premises differ, their methods renew, and they insist on contradicting the Shari'ah (Islamic legislation). They mix the truth with falsehood, but their slogans deceive only those who do not have discerning insight and a wise mind. Their slogans are sometimes under the title of women's liberation, at other times in the name of making use of women's capabilities, and at other times under the name of 'justice for women'.

These are various calls with different titles, but they embody only one aim, which is taking women away from the path of Islam, making her subject to contempt and humiliation. Woe to the people who think that Islam subjugates women and does not liberate them! If Islam did not give the woman her rights and was not just with her, then what is the criterion of judging women? Is it my mind, your mind, or the mind of some engineer, teacher, thinker? These minds will surely disagree, but Allah The Almighty is the one who created all these minds, and He, The Almighty, is the one who ordered women to wear the Hijab (Islamic covering), and legislated the rules that give them their rights in marriage, inheritance and as witnesses. So why do they challenge the rules of Allah The Almighty? What liberation do they claim? Do they want to liberate the woman from the rules of Islam? Or do they want to liberate her honor? Or exploit her in advertising or for other purposes?

In order to see how Islam honors women, let us take a look at the status of women in the pre-Islamic ages. In the times of Romans, the husband had the right to sentence his wife to death whenever he wanted. For the Greeks, the woman had no value and for the Jews, the woman was a despised and dirty creature. In the early days of Christianity, its followers were confused whether the woman has a spirit or she is just a body without spirit. In the Arab Period of Ignorance, women were regarded with extreme pessimism, to the extent that baby girls were buried alive.

Islam came to esteem woman and put her in her appropriate place. Islam forbids directing any insult to women and gazing at them, in order to preserve their dignity. Islam made gold, silver and silk lawful to women, in order to look beautiful, taking into consideration that women like beautification. Spending on her is an obligation either on her husband, or, if she is unmarried, her father. She has a share in inheritance of which she was deprived in the laws of the previous nations.

Moreover, the Companions of the Prophet asked him, "O Messenger of Allah, the Jews keep away from wives during menstruation,' whereupon he said: "Do everything with them except having sexual intercourse." The Prophet was the best example of honoring women. Once, he raced with `Aaishah, may Allah be pleased with her, who outran him. Afterwards, he raced with her again and outran her. He then smiled and said to her: "You won once and I won once." He also said: "Take good care of women."

To summarize, Islam came, raised women from rock bottom, to a secure life, making her strong and honored after she was despised and humiliated by many others.

Despite all this, there are still some people who have joined the ranks of the West; who speak their language and adopt their ideas, under the claim of liberating women. They want Western women to be role models for Muslims. This is because their view originates either from a narrow viewpoint or from emotions that overcome reasoning. The following statistics about Western women are an index of the disasters threatening human life in major cities in the West: in the U.S., the Ministry of Justice mentioned that 1900 women are raped everyday. In Austria, it was discovered that four children out of every ten are illegitimate.

Ask those who join their voices with that of the West, about the ill effects of the breakdown of families that are living through now, about the fate of boys and girls after they reach the age of fifteen, and about the dangers that threaten young women. Ask them about the misery of elderly women, whose husbands enter into relationships with their mistresses, whose sons and daughters are busy with their own partners, and ask them why nursing homes are overcrowded with the elderly.

(To be continued)