Category: Gender & Society

Dalia Mogahed, Opinion Contributor USA Today The latest iteration of the so-called “Muslim ban” was upheld by the Supreme Court (on July 26th) in a 5-4 ruling, leading many critics to call the decision a triumph of legal technicalities over principle. In this third version of the Trump administration’s attempt to ban citizens of several Muslim-majority countries from entering […]

On March 3rd, Alwaleed Philanthropies and several partners held the 2nd Women’s Empowerment and Integration Forum in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Princess Lamia Bint Majid AlSaud, the secretary general of the Alwaleed Philanthropies, discussed the role of women in the kingdom and their capacity to shape the country’s future. She stated that “we know that women’s empowerment and […]

What are the marriage trends among American Muslims? Marriage is a constant topic in American Muslim circles. Islamic texts encourage marriage. But, given that a majority of American Muslims are first-, second-, or third-generation immigrants, the concept of marriage can take on heightened significance as the community continues to establish itself in the US while […]

Filmmakers Julia Meltzer and Laura Nix profiled Houda al-Kabash and her Qur’an school for women and girls in Damascus, Syria, for the New York Times. Houda al-Habash, a conservative Muslim preacher, founded the Qur’an school 30 years ago. Every summer, her female students immerse themselves in a rigorous study of Islam. A surprising cultural shift […]

A general lack of knowledge about how some Muslim girls and women dress sometimes leads to instances of anti-Islam rhetoric, harmful stereotypes and social barriers. This is not a black-and-white issue as women's attire everywhere is influenced by family, culture and national norms, religious beliefs, personal preference, fashion trends, political views and so much more. [...]

In 2012, Pakistani schoolgirl Malala Yousafzai was 15 and an outspoken advocate for children's and girls' access to education when she was shot by fundamentalist Taliban fighters opposed to her public stance and to gender equality. She fought for her life and subsequently resumed her work which eventually earned her a Nobel Peace prize in [...]

Arab and Muslim women are the subjects of many erroneous stereotypes and delegitimizing generalizations. You may be familiar with some of the common tropes: women are subservient, forced to marry young, take care of the home and many children, and cover themselves in oppressive garments. Women who contradict these assumptions and defy dictators and religious [...]

Two years and a day after being shot by Taliban gunmen for defying their proscription of girls' education in the Swat Valley of northern Pakistan, 16-year old Malala Yousafzai has been awarded the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize for her advocacy of educational access for all, regardless of gender or religion. She shares the award with [...]

Many people hold a rather bleak view of girls' and women's lives in the Middle East and Muslim world; constrictive stereotypes and judgments about social practices create a one dimensional depiction of women that doesn't reflect their true depth and variety. Some common refrains might refer to the freedom, or lack thereof, of dress; to [...]

The Islamic world is wide and various, its points of view almost as numerous as its people. And Islam in China, with its long tradition of women-only mosques, provides a good illustration of the unique traditions that are practiced in the world's 2nd most practiced religion. In the middle of the plain of the Yellow [...]