The Impact of Muhammad's Actions & Teachings on Women Today

My previous blog (Link to Blog) illustrates that Qur’anic verses & Hadith accounts that concern Muhammad’s views on women and his teachings on how they should be treated.  Suffice to say, they are not flattering.  The impact of these teachings on the Islamic world can be seen everywhere in the Islamic world.  Human rights for women in Islamic nations is almost non-existent.  Women are told to be fully veiled in the Qur’an, they are considered unclean & inferior (Surah 33:59 & 4:43) Their testimony is worth half that of a man and women are the majority in hell (Bukhari Volume 1, Book 2, Number 28).  Mark Gabriel, a former Imam & Professor at Al-Azhar University has always disagreed with how women are treated in Islamic society.  Nevertheless, he conceded in his writings that upon examining the Qur’an and Hadith accounts, he came to the unpleasant realization that many of the restrictions and abuses that women face in Islamic society today come directly from Muhammad’s teachings and actions toward women.

Under Islamic Law, wives must be completely subordinate to their husbands.  Husbands have authority to beat their wives if they displease him (Surah 4:34).  90% of Pakistani women are reported to have been beaten for a variety of reasons (cooking an unsatisfactory meal or giving birth to a daughter).  The nation of Chad tried to outlaw wife beating, and Islamic clerics deemed the bill to be un-Islamic.  Muhammad's blunt words on marriage and the role of women are what they are. In her lifetime, a Muslim woman is never to be without the guardianship of a man, from her father to her husband to the male members of her family.  On top of this, he forbade women from traveling alone or to be alone with a non-relative male. Anni Cyrus testified that when she got into the front seat of a taxi cab in Iran with a male driver, she was arrested and flogged 25 times.  Women like Malala Yousafzai who refuse to accept their inferior status under Islamic Law find their lives in grave danger.

Women throughout the Islamic world are often forced into abusive marriages against their will.  At times, they are even sold into marriage, like a piece of livestock.  Anni Cyrus of Iran was such a case.  Anni’s Father was paid $50 by the man who wished to marry her.  Anni, who was 14 at the time, went to the police for help, the police arrested her for being out without her Father’s permission.  Her husband (age 32) beat her so badly that most of her bones were broken.  Anni was continually raped by her husband (Surah 2:223).  When Anni went to an Iranian Court Judge for help, the Judge simply pointed to Surah 4:34 and said these beatings were justified then sent her home.  In the end, her only way out was to flee Iran altogether, a feat that is very difficult and dangerous.

Children in Islamic nations live in constant fear of being married off against their will.  Mohammad was 49 when he married his second wife, 6-year-old Aisha, and consummated the marriage three years later.  Muslim men who view Mohammad as the role model for society feel obligated to follow his example and marry children, often against their will.  Nujood Ali is one famous example.  Forced into a marriage at the age of 9 to a man in his 30’s, little Nujood suddenly went from playing “hide and seek” with other children to being raped and beaten by a man she never agreed to marry.  She managed to obtain a divorce, but so many other children in the world were not that lucky.  Wafa Sultan, a former Muslim from Syria, testified how her niece who was 10 was forced to marry her cousin, who was in his 40’s.  Her niece continually begged her father to save her, but he refused, saying it was shameful to disobey her husband and her obedience would be rewarded in Paradise.  At the age 25, Wafa Sultan’s niece committed suicide by setting herself on fire.  In both of these horrific cases, the father’s of the family who forced their daughters into a marriage they never wanted, justified doing so by Muhammad’s teachings, and actions.  

The tragic reality is that many women cannot leave their husbands, but their husbands can discard them at will.  The ease for which Muslim men can divorce their wives likewise comes directly from Muhammad’s teaching.  Divorce is part of Islamic culture, a man need only say “I divorce you” three times (Muslim Book 009, Number 3493.)  However, a woman cannot initiate a divorce or prevent her husband from doing so.  This is still done in Iran, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Sudan.  When Mark Gabriel questioned this at Al-Azhar, he was assured by his fellow Imam's that this was indeed permissible under Sharia and it was good because it gives men the freedom to have as many wives as they please. 

Many women are trapped, and they cannot escape.  Honor killings, floggings and even the mutilation of female genitalia are employed in the Muslim world to keep women in their place.  A member of the U.S. military who served in Afghanistan informed me that when he asked an elder what he preferred (Russian control, U.S. control, or the Taliban) the elder said “The Taliban.  At least when they were in control there was order and the women knew their place.”  Even those who manage to flee, are often forced to leave their children behind, and this heart-breaking reality is the reason why many will not flee, even when granted the opportunity to do so.  Even if they could take their children, Islamic Law limits women to few career opportunities, depriving them of the ability to support themselves.  In nations like Iran, divorced and widowed women have few, if any means to support themselves.  Many are forced to marry abusive men just to stay alive.  Otherwise, they're often forced into prostitution.  

Today, many contemporary Muslims realize that traditional Islamic practice is painfully out of step with modern views.  Some have ensued very imaginative efforts to reinterpret the long-held traditions of their religion, exaggerating both the negative treatment of Arab women prior to Muhammad and the reforms that he is said to have brought about.  However, Surah 4:65 states that nobody can be a true Muslims unless they completely submit to all of Muhammad's decrees.  As a result, there is a very strong push-back by Islamic fundamentalists against demand for women equality this all over the world, even here in the United States.  In 2017, an imam in South Carolina stated that the man is the "owner" and "ruler" of the woman, who must obey him as his "prisoner."  

Simply put, Islamic teachings and equal rights for women are not compatible, because Muhammad’s teachings and actions make it emphatically clear that men and women cannot be equal.

Sources

The Holy Qur'an

Hadith of Sahih Bukhari

Hadith of Sahih Muslim

Gabriel, Bridget.  Because They Hate: A Survivor of Islamic Terror Warns America.  New York: St. Martin’s Griffin, 2006.

Gabriel, Bridget.  They Must be Stopped: Why We Must Defeat Radical Islam & How We Can Do It.  New York: St. Martin's Griffin, 2009.

Gabriel, Mark.  Jesus and Muhammad: Profound Differences and Surprising Similarities.  Lake Mary, FL: FrontLine, 2004.

King, Jeff.  Islam Uncensored.  2011.

Rostampour, Maryam & Marziyeh Amirizadeh.  Captive in Iran.  Atlanta: Tyndale Momentum, 2013.

The Glazov Gang.  "Sharia Hunting the Survivor to the West."  Filmed [Nov. 2017].  YouTube Video, 33:27.  Posted [Nov. 2017].  https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=42&v=Ufv0lym6peE.

The Glazov Gang.  "The Unknown: Islam's 25 Scars on my Body."  Filmed [April 2016].  YouTube Video, 4:31.  Posted [April 2016].  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmrmtp5Z8qM.

“What Does Islam Teach About a Woman’s Place.”  The Religion of Peace.  2018.  Accessed from https://www.thereligionofpeace.com/pages/quran/men-in-charge-of-women.aspx.

“What Does Islam Teach About a Woman’s Worth.”  The Religion of Peace.  2018.  Accessed from https://www.thereligionofpeace.com/pages/quran/women-worth-less.aspx.