Does islam oppress women?
No; Islam gave women rights fourteen centuries ago, and surveys of Muslim women show they do not see their faith or the hijab as oppression.
Islam does not oppress women. Fourteen hundred years ago it gave women rights that their European contemporaries could not have imagined, and the Quran promises men and women the same reward for the same righteous deeds. The belief that Islam oppresses women rests mostly on the visible symbol of the headscarf, yet the women who wear it describe it as a right, not a burden. When a Gallup poll asked women across eight Muslim-majority countries what they resented, they named disunity, extremism, and corruption; the hijab was not even mentioned, and majorities said women should vote, work in any job they are qualified for, and hold office. Where real oppression exists, Muslim writers attribute it to backward local customs and politics, not to the religion. The article “Does Islam Oppress Women?” presents the evidence and the survey findings in full.
Evidence
Whoever does righteousness, whether male or female, while he is a believer - We will surely cause him to live a good life, and We will surely give them their reward [in the Hereafter] according to the best of what they used to do.
Quran 16:97Fourteen hundred years ago Islam gave women rights; rights that could not have been imagined by European counterparts. Bold words! Words that have been spoken repeatedly, especially in the last two or three decades by Muslim converts, and Islamic writers, academics and educators across the globe. Women's rights, responsibilities, and choices have been the subjectFrom Does Islam Oppress Women? — IslamHouse.com. Reproduced with attribution.
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