Islam: Gender Prejudice & Discrimination (Edexcel GCSE Religious Studies B)

Muslim Teachings about Gender Prejudice & Discrimination

• Gender prejudice is believing that one gender is less important than another

• Gender discrimination is treating people more or less fairly because of their gender

Muslim Teachings Against Gender Prejudice & Discrimination

• Islam teaches that men and women were both created from one soul and that both have a role together in procreation

• Men and women are spiritually equal and are judged in the same way by Allah after death

•  Men and women have the same rights and no discrimination is allowed in matters such as marriage and inheritance

• Muslims would use all of these teachings to support the view that all gender prejudice and discrimination is wrong

Islam & Divergent Attitudes to Gender Differences

Gender Equality in Islam Today

• Society has become less patriarchal over the time since the time of the Prophet and the changing nature of the opportunities offered to women has meant that there is less division in the roles that men and women play today

• Many women have risen to positions of great power and significance

• In the political field, examples of women who have achieved great power in Muslim majority countries include 

  • Benazir Bhutto in Pakistan

  • Megawati Sukarnoputri in Indonesia

  • Khaleda Zia in Bangladesh

• In the field of education, Malala Yousafzai is an activist who stood up to the Taliban to try to achieve educational equality

• In the fields of culture and sport, there are many inspirational Muslim women who set an example to others by what they achieve. Examples include

  • Nadiya Hussain who won ‘The Great British Bake Off’ and is a renowned author, TV presenter, and chef

  • Ibtihaj Muhammad, a fencer who was the first Muslim American woman to wear a hijab when competing in the Olympic games and later became an sports ambassador

• Within the Islamic faith, women are becoming more prominent within mosque management

  • Although it is still not traditional for women to lead mixed prayer, there are examples of this, such as the scholar Amina Wadud who led mixed prayer at the invitation of the Muslim Educational Centre of Oxford in 2008

• Several Islamic movements work to empower women and ensure equality, including

  • Sisters in Islam which works to empower women. The organisation challenges mistreatment and gender discrimination and seeks to change any laws that seem to make women inferior, for example polygamy, child marriage, and violence against women

  • The Inclusive Mosque Initiative which campaigns for greater equality between men and women when praying in mosques

Muslim Responses to Divergent Attitudes to Gender Differences

• Some would say that in practice, women do not have equality in Islam today and do still face discrimination

• Traditionally, only men can be imams and lead mixed prayers

• The prophets and khalifahs have always been men

• Many would agree that this is not inequality or discrimination

• They would say that women have a different, but equally important part to play within the faith, particularly in raising children who are the next generation of Islam and in contributing to the ummah

• In practice, many women today do balance their commitments to raising a family with the pursuit of a career as well

• Most Muslims would feel that gender prejudice and discrimination are wrong and against the teachings of the Qur’an and the Hadith. 

• They would say that they ought to follow the example of the Prophet Muhammad and uphold the status and importance of women as he did