Women’s Rights

Westerners tend to be very hard on the Muslim world for its lack of recognizing women’s rights. However, I want to point out that a century ago the women’s rights movement was at the forefront of the Western world. Many Westerners were appalled at the idea of women having the same rights as men. They felt that women should not be allowed to vote, hold a job, or travel on their own because they are less intelligent than men. The adage was, “The hand that rocks the cradle, rules the world.” In other words, women should stay at home. Even today, there are still struggles in the West over women’s rights.
The fight for women’s rights has reached the Muslim world. Two and a half years ago, Nasrin Sotoudeh, an Iranian mother of two, was imprisoned on charges of sending out propaganda, violating the hijab, and “acting against national security.” While serving her six-year sentence, she went on a 49-day hunger strike to protest that her daughter was not allowed to travel internationally. Her hunger strike ended December 5, when authorities gave her daughter permission to travel.
Women’s rights in the Muslim will be one of the major struggles for this century, but there are many victories to report on. A few years ago in Yemen, Nujood Ali became the first child bride to be granted a divorce. She was only ten years old. Human rights agencies have assured that she will have the resources to attend school and eventually college, so that she can follow her dream of becoming a lawyer for women’s rights. In large cities in the Middle East, such as Basra, Beirut, Amman, and Cairo, many women are going to college or holding full-time jobs. Nasrin Sotoudeh’s hard-won victory is to be cheered by all who are concerned about women’s rights.
I am not a “feminist” in the traditional sense of the word. Women and men are different. Men tend to be physically stronger, while women tend to be more nurturing (by tend, I mean that most are this way, not all). However, we all have equal capacities for intelligence and the ability to contribute to society. Women and men should have equal rights, and respect for each other’s differences.

About the author

I grew up in conservative Christian circles in the American South, and majored in theology at an Alabama Southern Baptist college. Without really understanding why, I believed that Muslims were to be avoided at all costs, and we have to unilaterally support Israel. Like many young adults, after college I wasn't sure at all of what I wanted to do with my life, so I traveled to the Middle East for a year and a half. Most of the people I met were descendants of the Palestinian refugees forced out of their homeland in 1948, when Israel was recreated. I fell in love with Arab culture, and realized that on the world scene, Arabs have no voice. Living in the Middle East gave me fresh new eyes to read the Bible, and interacting with Arab Christians, especially Palestinian Christians who live in Jordan, caused me to question all the dogmas regarding Israel with which I had grown up.

Living in the Middle East also gave me the courage I needed to pursue my lifelong dream of being an author. My first book, A Theology of Chaos, will come out this next spring. I plan to use the profits from it to support organizations in the Middle East that are fighting for justice. I have written some short stories as well, which you can find on smashwords.com under my full name, Margaret Elysia McColley.

I now live in New York City, where emergency procedures for a potential terrorist attack are constantly updated, and where the sharp divide between Christians, Muslims, and Jews can be clearly seen on posters in the subways. My goal in life is simple: to end terrorism in my lifetime, by giving a voice to social injustices that compel terrorists to violence.

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