Muslim Chicks Kick Ass
This has been a good week.
First I read the news about Amina Wadud a muslim scholar that has led Friday prayers including both men and women, therefore being the first Muslim woman to do so in history. The event has caused massive condemnation in the middle east especially by goat shaped beard wearing men. But I don’t care. Just look at these pictures which I stole from the ejaaz website. Isn’t that beautiful? Those pictures makes my heart sing. It gives me hope that a better future is possible for our nation.
I can’t blame all the men with goat shaped beards that are up in arms about it. They have had their way for over 1000 years and I guess that they like it that way. But, given the state the world is today, I see this as a breath of fresh air.
Men with goat shaped beards! …. move over. Make room for the women.
Amina! you go girl!
As if that wasn’t enough to cheer me up.
Then I saw these pictures which I stole from this website.
These are fresh graduates of the Iranian police academy. I am not much into guns, police or law enforcement. But, these pictures are just so damn cool. If I was a bad guy I would be terrified of these chicks, wouldn’t you?
In arabic the word "fitnah" means two things. It means the irristable beauty and allure of a woman; it also means social disorder, caos anarchy.
And I say it is about time that we cause a bit of fitnah using our fitnah.
The winds of change are blowing and I can’t help but feel optimistic.
This has been a good week.
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First I read the news about Amina Wadud a muslim scholar that has led Friday prayers including both men and women, therefore being the first Muslim woman to do so in history. The event has caused massive condemnation in the middle east especially by goat shaped beard wearing men. But I don’t care. Just look at these pictures which I stole from the ejaaz website. Isn’t that beautiful? Those pictures makes my heart sing. It gives me hope that a better future is possible for our nation.
I can’t blame all the men with goat shaped beards that are up in arms about it. They have had their way for over 1000 years and I guess that they like it that way. But, given the state the world is today, I see this as a breath of fresh air.
Men with goat shaped beards! …. move over. Make room for the women.
Amina! you go girl!
As if that wasn’t enough to cheer me up.
Then I saw these pictures which I stole from this website.
These are fresh graduates of the Iranian police academy. I am not much into guns, police or law enforcement. But, these pictures are just so damn cool. If I was a bad guy I would be terrified of these chicks, wouldn’t you?
In arabic the word "fitnah" means two things. It means the irristable beauty and allure of a woman; it also means social disorder, caos anarchy.
And I say it is about time that we cause a bit of fitnah using our fitnah.
The winds of change are blowing and I can’t help but feel optimistic.
This has been a good week.
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There is a way between voice and presence where information flows.
In disciplined silence it opens.
With wandering talk it closes. .... Rumi
12:33 AMThis post has been removed by a blog administrator.
12:39 AM
Salaams
A cogent and tightly argued piece, and I couldn't agree more. Only last week, I shaved off my beard, and before you could say crass stereotype, my IQ had jumped 10 points and I had memorised the entire text of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.
I am 100% behind Amina, but if you think you have suddenly entered a patriarchy-free zone, just check out how many women are CEOs for top American corporations.
A woman has led one jumma, alhamdulillah, but when it comes to politics or the economy, I think you'll find that men still rule the roost.
Wasalaam
Yakoub
3:15 AM
This post has been removed by a blog administrator.
3:19 AM
Yakoub;
consider that the further the lead-up is, the more momentum you can gather; you may actually get beyond where the Western women did with less distance to make up! But there is a lurking power game behind all this that is not spoken of in PC society: the more liberated the women are, the lower the birth rate drops, and the sooner the society is irresistably pressured to import population from cultures with less enlightened attitudes.
Technology may solve this eventually à la Brave New World, with artificial wombs, or if Aubrey de Grey succeeds in his push to extend life spans and youthfulness indefinitely. But in the meantime, there's a major Baby Battle happening.
Reverting to my editor role, Ihath, I suggest sticking with the phrasing "goat shaped beard wearing men", as it leaves it quite ambiguous about whether you are referring to the beards or the men! And therefore the mental image conjures both.
Terrific! (Not to mention somewhat horrific . . . .)
;)
2:39 PM
ihath, there is every reason to feel happy! a minor correction of fact, though: dr. wadud is not "the first woman in history" to have done this. but she is the first with feminism in mind, i guess
brian h, re: "cultures with less enlightened attitudes" - although i fully understand what you meant, that almost sounded offensive to my ears...
3:23 AM
This post has been removed by a blog administrator.
3:59 AM
Salaams
I am flabbergasted by the 'less enlightened attitudes' comment!! I simply don't compare European/American culture and tricontinental cultures in that way! What is this - you think everyone in Africa is a dumb nigger?
I mean, what is culturally superior about American foreign policy? Or the mass starvation created by G8 trade policies? Or America's biggest earning cyber-export: pornography? Or the racist British National Party? Or Italian politics? Or Orientalist intellectuals?
And for every up side you can name in the 'West', there is a downside. Take technology and medicine, which cultural bigots like yourself always love to brag about. Ever heard of global warming? As for medicine, if half the resources spent on health in Europe and the USA were put into making sure people stopped eating/drinking/smoking/stressing themselves to death, you'd have a cure for cancer tomorrow!
And in considering the political and cultural problems in some of the POORER parts of the world, I suggest you take a good look in an encyclopaedia of European history - start with 'C' for colonialism and 'I' for Imperialism. Gives you a slightly different take on things, I think you'll find.
The world is too complex for the kind of polarised, chauvanistic statements which put one set of cultures above another!
Wasalaam
Yakoub
9:39 PM
Yeowtch!!
I omitted the words "about women" on the assumption they were rundundant and would be understood by any reader. But I guess if E. is not your 1st language some things aren't so obvious, so I apologize -- sort of. The tone of the comment was clearly also somewhat hyperbolic (exaggerated) and jocular (humorous), and was intended to be a bit outrageous in a teasing way. Obviously it succeeded too well!!
;-D
BUT **** There is absolutely no question that many ME, Asian, African, and (e.g.) Latin cultures have a very narrow baby-machine role laid out for women. There is a very, very, high CAUSAL connection between that and underdevelopment, as proven by the fact that when women are given access to education and breeding choice the living conditions and economic performance of their country soars.
Facts are not chauvinism, sorry.
6:56 PM
The blogosphere, at least those portions where I graze, is full of articles discussing Amina Wadud, and a somewhat smaller number mentioning the newest Iranian police graduates. I even saw the video of the police graduates, and was favored with an English translation of the audio.
This blog, unlike the others I devoured, contains not even the slightest hint of an argument. Observation is all, selective as any view necessarily is, but revealing nonetheless, especially for me as I stroked the invisible but persistent goat shaped beard on my chin. Goats will eat anything and everything, don’t you know.
Absent from this blog was any reference to motivations, either on the part of Dr. Wadud or the Iranian government. The focus was not upon the endless debate of where the wind came from or why it was blowing, but upon the freshness of the air, like new life itself, joy, wonderment and hope. A solitary request. Move over, please, make room for women. Well, perhaps not quite as formal or polite, but close, and if one can understand the reaction of those who have had their say carry the day every day for 1000 years, surely one can understand the reaction of those who have not, not ever, apart from the blessing of the former.
These other blogs, by contrast, are really marvels of ingenuity. Insofar as the term enlightenment is meant to describe the triumph of reason over traditional socioreligious (I made it up) perception/revelation as a basis for divining truth, these other blogs are illuminating. Some say straight up that what Dr. Wadud did was wrong, that the place of women is not there, and proceed to argue with cogent reasoning exactly why that is so. Others, deceptively more nimble and adroit, start with the exclamation that women standing there is perhaps ok, but begin the painstaking task of assembling reasons which compel fine distinctions, some of which are do’s, and others of which are dont’s. My personal favorite is a gentleman whose analysis clearly and convincingly established his credentials as a great thinker, not to mention writer, but came to the conclusion that what Dr. Wadud did was wrong. Why? Because she did what she did for the wrong reasons, at best for political attention, at worst for political disruption, but definitely not for religious worship. Although I was impressed with his knowledge and reasoning, I was left with the question of why it was necessary to go where he did, especially given the difficulty I have experienced in accurately determining the motivation and intentions of others.
My family attended church today. So did a lot of people. The church is usually half empty, but today, it was packed full. We were ushered to our seats by a woman. One of the readings of the Word was by a woman, and one of the prayers was lead by a woman. Women have on more than one occasion made up more than 50 percent of the Consistory, the elected governing body, and we have been preached to by ordained women from the pulpit. Normally, I do not notice this, but having read this blog and the comments, I could not help but notice, and to ponder.
No, I didn’t slap myself silly with congratulatory back slaps thinking how superior we were to all those others. How tolerant, how enlightened, how simply modern we were, or how we had struck the perfect balance between men and women. Rather, I looked at it empirically, even a little critically. The choir director, also a woman, was waiving her arms in the air in front of the choir. She had long blonde hair, that seemed to dance with the singing. As I looked across the congregation, I saw lots and lots of beautiful, long hair, lovely faces smooth and fresh, a veritable smorgasbord of distraction, even “fitnah”. I just hadn’t viewed them as distracting before, anymore than flickering candles, or coughs, or other movements and sounds that briefly intrude upon worship.
I am sorry, but I am to blame for the distraction, not those women. I let the goat get the best of me. So have those, at least in my opinion, who would endeavor to sour the sweet voice of optimism with constant reminders that the journey has never been finished or done right by anyone.
12:01 PM
Oh boy. You know where this is going to lead.
Malaikah-e-Charli: Kalashnikovs of Remembrance
A film by Kairostami
12:10 PM
Oh boy. You just know where this is going to lead.
Malaikah-e-Charli: Kalashnikovs of Remembrance
A film by Kairostami
3:28 PM
AGA;
great comment, loved it! But are you a goat-shaped man? ;)
Ihath;
Evidently you're back; the "on vacation" notice is still up, tho'.
11:03 AM
Just to be clear, I do not believe that my attitudes toward women, or my culture's (whatever that means) attitudes toward women, are more enlightened. In fact, there are times when I feel like trekking to Walden Pond or some other quiet spot between the Amish farms and Ted Kaczynski's cabin.
2:58 PM
women in islamic societies are property, just like a camel or dog. If that women hadn't been in america, she would have been stoned to death or had her head cut off. i admire muslims so much for their closed-minded idiocy and savage use of relgion to justify their violence on the world.
5:22 PM
I strongly support feminist movements that focus on issues in Muslim countries, because I believe there's a lot to be fixed. (In which respect, I have to admit that "Western" nations in general are currently more "enlightened" than others in some matters). But to this arrogant fool named Anonymous above, I say: stop being so arrogant, because you don't know what you're talking about. I will fight for the liberty of Muslim women, but if you're telling me that America is heaven for women, sorry, but you're fooling yourself. Let's not forget that at least 3 Muslim countries (Bangladesh, Pakistan and Turkey) have had female heads of state, decades before we can even picture that in the U.S.
6:21 PM
AngloGermanicAmerican:
I second Brian - great comment! I too was impressed with the lack of "the slightest hint of an argument" in Ihath's post.
One point to note about the gentleman you mentioned: I believe he was writing from a purely religious (specifically, Islamic) point of view (putting aside for the time his other post-modernist tendencies and such). I'm not sure if you are familiar with the typical setting for Muslim prayers, but there was a strong discordance that led him to conclude what he did. Also important to note is that when he refers to "organizers of the event", he does not mean Dr. Wadud herself but a number of groups, including primarily MuslimWakeup (A lot of people have agreed on the separability of the two). And so he won't agree with the statement "what Dr. Wadud did was wrong", and would instead replace "Dr. Wadud" with "the organizers." (Case in mind: the organizers pre-invited hundreds of journalists to event; Dr. Wadud on the other hand immediately left the scene after prayers).
Also, I think the gentleman in question would fully agree it's difficult to accurately determine the intentions of others, but that is different from determining the purpose of an event in which one participates. A person "intends," but an event "happens."
Anyways, sorry for blabbering on so much! Gentleman has too much time on a Friday afternoon.
1:47 PM
Arafat, your blabbering was solid food for thought which I enjoyed and appreciated very much. Perhaps we are just blabberers who enjoy each other’s blabbering.
You are absolutely correct in pointing out my mischaracterization of the learned blogger’s analysis and the distinction between Dr. Wadud and the organizers. However, in my small mind as I perceive things, the event was Dr. Wadud doing what she did. I wondered to myself about all the fuss over the “real” purpose of the event. Suppose I support what I have described as the “event”, and suppose further that I happen to be a beer chugging, McDonald’s loving, war mongering, bigoted evangelical hypocrite. Would singling me out of the crowd of supporters for scrutiny by the commentators serve to further Dr. Wadud’s “event” or would it tend to detract from the “event?”. I am wondering aloud merely to explain my thoughts in the previous post, and not suggesting motivation on the part of any particular commentator.
You know, the problem with babbling is that it is impossible, at least for me, to stop. I said that I did not view my views toward women, or those of my “culture” as more “enlightened”. The sentence which followed is probably illuminating only to me, and maybe it is the best that I can do, but after reading it again along with your comments, I feel a need to try to do better.
I think that open minds, a willingness to consider lessons other than those that have been taught since the beginning of recorded time, is a good thing. However, just because open minds in fact choose change does not make those newly adopted attitudes more enlightened than those of persons which who did not change or which changed back.
My wife, as did many young women her age, had a copy of Our Bodies Ourselves which had been given to her by an older, enlightened feminist, who is now my sister-in-law. Interesting reading for a young buck such as I, you know, eager to please and all. Anyway, along with books were ideas, compelling ideas which filled all young minds of our day. Ever heard of the phrase, “independent woman?” Well, that is exactly what my wife wanted to be in 1980. That was the epitome, the end game, what it’s all about. How I or we fit into that endgame was left unexplained.
It is really humorous, at least for me, to think back to those times. I remember wondering before we were married whether she would insist upon a hyphenated last name. Dutch names are by themselves ridiculous, but if you add a hyphen and combine them, it is pure silliness, even insanity. Fortunately, she chose to preserve my “manhood” and chose to take my last name as hers, without me even having to make a peep about it.
We were married and continued our graduate studies followed by graduation and jobs and living together as married couples here often do. Along came 1990, and “we”, as the most sensitive of us like to say, became pregnant. You might think that the big question was how we were to manage the immeasurable responsibility that comes with the care for and raising of new life. That was there, to be sure, but ahead of that was, “What is going to happen to me, will I just dry up [intellectually]?” You don’t have to choose now, I said, take your maternity leave, and then decide whether you will “give it all up” for the sake of the baby. Male reasoning, as if there was any other, seemed to make sense to her, calming her down, allowing her to feel comfortable with present circumstance. The baby, a big un, just like his pappy, was born. Six weeks later, my wife was incredulous that anyone, absent genuine necessity, could give up the opportunity to stay home and raise this new vulnerable and impressionable life. My sister-in-law did not approve, and I am still wondering why it was any of her business.
Fast forward to 10 or so years later, when the youngest of our brood was within shouting distance of going off to kindergarten. I, being ever so practical, even materialistic, asked her whether now might be a good time to become the “career woman” of old, maybe lay the groundwork for engaging in a little part time work while the chillins were all away at school. She looked at me like the big stupid idiot I was and said, “*****, I’m never going back to work!” “Are you kidding me???”
Enlightenment, you see, is beyond both my comprehension and experience as I sit here reflecting naked below the waist. Sure, Ihath, Muslim women kick ass, but they will also wear your pants if you let them.
Do you have time for one or two more? Do you think that this babbling fool really has the capacity to care? While a woman in law school once, long ago, suggested that in her view, I returned from summer break resembling a “Greek god,” I am now a pot bellied, bald, early 40’s anglogermanicamerican. Pitiful, really. Well, this “culture” of mine is full of surprises. I was at a party recently, where alcoholic beverages were being served, but no one at least in my opinion had had too much. I went stag, since my wife abhors these events and I felt obligated since it was work related. One would think that, in an enlightened society such as mine purports to be, a man in the shape I am presently in, would be fully protected, even revered. Such is not the case.
A woman came up to me. Not just any woman, she was a woman who cared about appearances and health. She exercised regularly, and her body reflected her dedication. Anywho, she propositioned me, as absurd as that truly is. Not just your typical tete a tete, mono a mono, but you know, everyman’s fantasy. I was, to use the words of one of the prior commentators, flabbergasted. She calmly explained her “circumstance” and that of her female friend, and I, well, I listened, dumbfounded. To be honest, a part of me thought that this must be the greatest country on earth, only in America, I thought to myself, a place where long discarded fantasies could become reality.
I, of course, politely declined her invitation. Fantasies, as opposed to dreams, are really ugly when they appear ready to come true. But I did think it odd that she would have the “balls” to approach me for gratuitous activity that I had in no way solicited nor welcomed. I am of the opinion, sometimes, that our “western” society is going to Hell in a hand basket.
Last one. I omitted from my earlier, but shorter post, two facts. One of the bloggers had a discussion going in the comments to his post regarding Dr. Wadud. The blogger supported the “event” while the commentator did not. After a brief exchange, at least as I recall it, the commentator baited the blogger by asking whether the blogger would approve of women leading prayers in mini skirts or bikinis, or something along those lines. The answer of course, is “No’, and the blogger asked why it was that people like the commentator always brought up mini skirts and bikinis. “We’re not talking about that,” he said.
Well, after exiting the sanctuary at church last Easter Sunday, do you know what I saw standing in the hallway? Yep. A drop dead gorgeous young lady standing in a mini skirt and little else. Beautiful, shapely gams, exquisite and perfect. The goat didn’t bat an eye, and I said a quick prayer of thanksgiving and praise for God’s creation.
9:12 AM
ROFL!!
those iranian police officers look too funny... specially the ones rappelling down the side of the building
the meaning of "fitnah" seems kinda ironic but true once you think about it. I mean, just think about all the fitnah caused by women just by showing off their fitnah in religiously represive cultures (both western and non-western)...
even funnier how the US is looking more and more like Iran these last few years
-javier
6:58 PM
Dear god! you lot are a bunch of fucktards!
9:31 AM
i hate them any way
8:37 AM
There is a reason why woman can't lead both men and women. They can lead women since it happens everywhere in the world, including China. There are mosques specifically for women in
China. It has nothing to do with equality. But, it all has to do with respect and modesty. It is for the benefit of a woman not to lead men. I am not sure if the last Prophet has approved it or God has approved it. But, I heard this happened somewhere in the US as well. Anyway, its all about shaytan distracting when you're praying and personally when a woman is in front of you you might get distracted. The devil will always be there to mess you up. So, I think personally, women really shouldn't lead men (this is out of respect), and you may not even know if the prayers are accepted or not.
Thanks for reading my comments, Assalamu ALlaikum
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