Women in Islam: Status and Challenges

Running head: WOMEN IN ISLAM
WOMEN IN ISLAM
Name of the student
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WOMEN IN ISLAM
Women in Islam
Introduction
Islam is the second largest religion in the world after Christianity and the number has
increased in the past few decades with more than 2 billion followers all over the world. Despite
these amazing figures, Islam has often been marred because of the dogmas associated with it.
Particular mention could be made about the women in Islam who are believed to exercise limited
powers in the society. They are made to stay within some boundaries set by the holy text of
Islam – Quran. One example of this is the wearing the ‘hijab’ or the ‘burqa’. However, the
experiences might vary between societies, between the two sects – Shi’a and Sunni – and
between different eras. The current paper aims to highlight the women in Islam in the present
era and argue whether their status has changed. The main argument however is to state that
women in Islam are yet to experience complete freedom.
Discussion
Muslim women are more progressive than women in other religion are but religious laws
restrict them. In an article published in Forbes, author Mohd Muslimin (2019) states that Muslim
women, especially the Southeast Asian Muslim women are “more cosmopolitan and global yet
more religiously observant”. The study finds that there has been a visible shift in the outlook of
these women in the Southeast Asian region. The study included around 1000 Asian women
mostly belonging to Malaysia and Indonesia amongst which, one third of women expressed that
Islam is vital to them. They also expressed that as opposed to the past, women in Islam now have
more opportunities. However, many women in the survey stated that more freedom should be

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WOMEN IN ISLAM
given to women not only in their communities but also in local and national spheres. Badran
(2016) however argues that Muslim women have still a long way to go to make their progressive
ideas or thinking being acknowledge by the community and the larger society. The authors cite
examples of the recent revolutions that have taken place in many Islamic countries including
Egypt. According to the authors, “a revolution in Egypt capable of realizing a truly democratic
state and society must include a full-fledged feminist revolution in order to dismantle patriarchal
structures and practices inimical to the creation of an egalitarian state and society”. In simpler
terms, the women in Islam have started to realize their potential and the world has started to
appreciate their progressive attitude but the religious shackles are still hard to break.
Muslim women now have a better platform to express their opinions than they had in the
past. Beta (2014), talks about the modern Indonesian Muslims and their realization of a “more
personal Islam that they consider rational and pluralistic”. The author further talks about the
popularity of the cyber world amongst the Islamic youngsters especially the women. Urban
Muslim women in Indonesia have an online platform known as ‘Hijabers’ where the veiled
women are allowed to express their colorful and fun taken on Islam. This change vouches for the
argument that women in Islam now have a better platform to express and portray their true self.
Waltorp (2015) on the other hand, focuses on the use of smart phones and social media platforms
by young Muslim women that allow them to lead a free life. the author provides the real example
of a Muslim women residing in Copenhagen who formed a relationship online with an Iranian
Muslim man over Facebook. The woman sends pictures without veil to her boyfriend with the
fear that he might judge her as being ‘not cool’ if she sent pictures wearing the veil despite living
in a European country. Nonetheless, the Muslim woman controls the relationship in the virtual
world without having to be compliant with religious norms that require women to veil and stay in