“If you are familiar with the jurisprudence and the religion, you can disassemble it and tell [women] it’s their choice to either follow religion or culture… Invariably they will choose religion.” – Dr. Azizah al-Hibri
On March 4, 2016, KARAMAH founder Dr. Azizah al-Hibri spoke at Regent University School of Law 2016 Symposium on Women’s Rights. The panel was entitled “Women’s Rights Abroad” and she spoke alongside Christine Venter, director of the Legal Writing Program at Notre Dame University Law School; Isaac Kfir, visiting professor of International Affairs & Law at Syracuse University College of Law; and Tiffany Barrans, former international legal director of the American Center for Law and Justice.
The panelists discussed issues such as:
– Whether or not the women’s rights movement is another form of western imperialism.
– How to advance women’s rights internationally where the law conflicts with the culture
– Strategies that should be employed to advance women’s rights in countries where women are guaranteed rights on paper but not in practice.
The panel opened with Dr. al-Hibri who addressed the reason why Western women’s rights movements are perceived to be another form of western imperialism and how to effectively advocate for Muslim women’s empowerment.
Dr. al-Hibri was part of the feminist movement, but then she grew disenchanted with it when, ironically, the movement started speaking on behalf of other women – Muslim women to be exact. This approach was also adopted by many American NGO’s that regarded Muslim women as a monolith that needed to be “rescued” and “liberated.”
Understanding the diversity of Muslim women and speaking to them from within their religious framework is key to effective advocacy on gender equity. Lacking sensitive knowledge of the dynamics of that audience is akin to being “an elephant in a crystal china room,” said Dr. al-Hibri. This is a trap many feminists and western women’s rights NGO’s fell into.
There are structural issues that need to be addressed from the roots up. Historically, the line between what is cultural and what is Islamic has been blurred and many women falsely believe that patriarchal practices are Islamic. “If you are familiar with the jurisprudence and the religion, you can disassemble it and tell them it’s their choice to either follow religion or culture…Invariably they will choose religion,” said Dr. al-Hibri.
The most flagrant violations of women’s rights today are happening at the hands of Daesh. They have killed, enslaved, and raped women ripping them off their most basic right – the right to exist with dignity.
The rise of deviant ideologies and groups such as Daesh, suggested Dr. al-Hibri, is due to an imbalance of justice – a basic Islamic principle. “Muslim communities have given free reign to patriarchal cultural inclinations, turning the Islamic system of justice upside down making people believe it’s right side up.”
Patriarchy and authoritarianism are interrelated, according to Dr. al-Hibri, and to dismantle them we need “to restore the Islamic system of justice and democracy that guarantees human rights and freedom of conscience.”
This is what we at KARAMAH have been working on since 1993. We use our expertise in Islamic jurisprudence to educate about the basics of the faith, and then “unpeel the authoritarian patriarchal onion.” Our end goal is to plant the seeds of Muslim change-makers globally who will work to restore justice and gender equity in their communities.
Our model finds echoes in other parts of the world. Ms. Barrans, mentioned examples of grassroots activism in Iraq, Senegal, Kenya, Iran, and Morocco… etc., where inspiring activists are working with local communities, community leaders and imams to educate their societies and change harmful practices and cultural norms. They are also working to enact laws guaranteeing women’s rights. The success of these endeavors is due to an understanding of the respective religious and cultural contexts.
Changing laws doesn’t change practices. Mr. Kfir underscored that there are structural problems in the private sphere that need to be addressed, because when the culture conflicts with the law, this latter tends to remain ink on paper. Mr. Kfir suggested:
– Engaging with local communities to fight inequality.
– Ending the notion of public vs. private divide.
– Talking less about equality and more about rights.
– Recognizing that it is an obligation to help those who have been victimized by cultural practices some of which are adopted through legal systems.
The event concluded with an understanding that to advance women’s rights internationally, especially where the law conflicts with the culture, the most effective strategy is one that understands the historical, cultural, religious and social dynamics of those societies. There was also an agreement on the necessity to educate women about their rights and to empower them to seek those rights. If you are looking for an organization that works within this understanding and framework, look no further than KARAMAH. Check out our Law and Leadership Program and our scholarly work on issues of justice, gender equity, and religious freedom .
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