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- to expose an incredible
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- the Talibans actions against Malala are, for the most part,
condemned by the people of Pakistan
- Malalas contributions w
for an International Childr
Peace Prize for the blog s
Rebellion______
Authors Name:___Emmeline Pankhurst____________
_____October 17, 1912_____
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the male-dominated me
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- pass on the responsibility of garnering womens rights to the - taken from a compilatio
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the government is in th
political movements an
they are wrong
As the authors of Half the Sky describe the factors behind Ushas successes, The first
step towards greater justice is to transform that culture of female docility and subservience so
that women themselves become more assertive and demanding. Without the proper education
of women, this step is almost completely unachievable. The difference this educated woman
made despite the economic and cultural factors working actively to her detriment is astounding
(Kristof, Learning to Speak Up).
A more recent and publicized instance of male obstruction of female education which
was overcome by an educated and empowered young woman is that of Malala Yousafzai, the
now seventeen year old Nobel Peace Prize recipient from Mingora, Pakistan. Already an activist
for her own rights at the age of thirteen, Malala was shot in the head by the Taliban for simply
attending school and documenting her life as a girl under a Taliban-dominated culture. Her
activism included not only her frequent blog updates on what she experienced on her
educational path but also her blatant insistence on furthering her knowledge and attending
school, which contradicted Taliban beliefs. For this, she was specifically threatened and
targeted. Rather than succumbing to their extremist fear mongering, Malala rose up from this
tragedy to be an even fiercer advocate for womens rights and the importance of education for
women. She now had the ability to extend this to a global scale, as her story quickly gained
international attention. The foundation of Malalas beliefs and opportunities all stemmed from
her and her familys faith in education as a conduit for change (Teaching Girls
Empowerment).
Many Western womens rights activists hold what they call oppressive Islamic beliefs
and practices at fault for these occurrences. However, a closer look at religious history reveals:
When Mohammed introduced Islam in the 7th Century, it was a step forward for
women. Islamic law banned the previously common practice of female infanticide
and it limited polygamy to four wives, who were supposed to be treated equally.
Muslim women routinely owned property with rights protected by the law, while
women in European countries often did not have the equivalent property rights.
All in all, Mohammed comes across in the Koran and the traditions associated
with him as much more respectful of women than early Christian leaders (Kristof,
Is Islam Misogynistic?).
While this proves that Islam is not inherently misogynistic, of course there are instances
in which cultures have interpreted it to be oppressive towards women. For example, in Kabul,
Afghanistan, women are forbidden to see male doctors under any circumstances, yet are also
forbidden to receive the education they need to become doctors themselves. This leaves all sick
and injured women to die without any medical care provided to them. This detrimental practice is
not explicitly condoned by the Koran or even supported by basic common sense, and thus
reflects more of a cultural bias rather than religious restrictions.
This can be most easily remedied through the education of both the men and women of
these cultures, as it is their localized interpretations of the overarching religion of Islam that is
driving the majority of the oppression. An additional factor in places with these oppressive
interpretations is the misconception that Western womens activism and equality cannot
coincide with the traditions held in such high esteem by both men and women. When this factor
is present, education of women is obviously crucial. However, in male-dominated cultures so
saturated in inequality that women cannot visit a doctor, it is just as important for men to be
educated on the necessity for womens rights as well as the means through which these rights
can be applied in the context of their religion (Young).
Ultimately, misogyny is no more intrinsic to Islam than it is to any religion practiced
worldwide, despite Western depiction of Islam as oppressive to women. Western culture still
contributes to the obstruction of womens equality, so it is almost hypocritical to pass judgement
on these Muslim-populated countries when were perpetuating similar problems. In fact, the
same religion we hold at fault for violent atrocities committed and misogynistic restrictions
upheld has paradoxically elected women for leadership positions in government, scientific fields,
and other prominent sectors, something we are still attempting to accomplish ourselves as a
Western culture. Such women include President Megawati Sukarnoputri of Indonesia (Muslim
population of 88%), Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto of Pakistan (Muslim population of 96%), and
President Roza Otunbayeva of Kyrgyzstan (Muslim population of 86%), all of whom have been
elected by predominantly Muslim populations into positions still coveted by Western women
(Muslim Female Political Leaders).
Thus, the demonization of the Islamic faith almost seems to be a redirection of a more
profound issue we depict Muslim women as not having any freedom or rights when in some
cases theyve achieved more than many Western women. This is where education comes so
much into play across drastically diverse cultures, as all womens equality movements deserve
acknowledgement and credibility no matter where they originate from. With knowledge of these
other movements, we can make strides towards equality together internationally rather than
working in isolation towards similar goals. Part of education is to recognize equality within the
context of all cultures and religions, and it is through achieving this recognition that we can best
bring about womens equality worldwide.
Works Cited
Kristof, Nicholas D., and Sheryl WuDunn. "Chapter 3: Learning to Speak Up." Half the Sky:
Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide. New York: Alfred A.
Knopf,
2009. N. pag. Print.
Kristof, Nicholas D., and Sheryl WuDunn. "Chapter 9: Is Islam Misogynistic?" Half the Sky:
Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide. New York: Alfred A.
Knopf,
2009. N. pag. Print.
"Muslim Female Political Leaders." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 04 Jan. 2015.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muslim_female_political_leaders>.
Pankhurst, Emmeline. "I Incite This Meeting to Rebellion." History Is a Weapon. N.p., n.d. Web.
04 Jan. 2015. <http://www.historyisaweapon.com/defcon1/pankhurstincitetorebel.html>.
"Teaching Girls' Empowerment in the Developing World." PBS Newshour Extra. PBS, n.d. Web.
04 Jan. 2015. <http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/2014/09/top-resources-teaching-girlsempowerment-developing-world/>.
Young, Cathy. "NewsObserver.com." Don't Equate East and West Misogyny. Newsobserver, n.d.
Web. 06 Jan. 2015. <http://www.newsobserver.com/2014/04/02/3752969_dont-equateeast-and-west-misogny.html?rh=1>.
Oli Sakadinsky
Honors Humanities 11
will be studying how Western progression of the womens equality movement has impacted
Middle Eastern cultures. I chose this topic because the development of womens equality is still
ongoing, and as a girl living in the United States Im interested to see the steps my country has
taken and to investigate how those steps have affected other countries.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION:
Is education a key to bringing about womens equality in the world?
RESEARCH QUESTIONS:
What motivated the actions of the Womens Suffrage movement and how is that paralleled in
modern day situations?
Can education alone bring about womens equality?
How do other factors, such as technology, economic development, and religious freedom
impact the education, and thus, the change?
What can we do to obtain the goals of laws already put in place regarding womens equality?
How do gender norms vary between America and the Middle East in both culture and religion?
What problems still exist in the United States with gender norms and should we impose our
ideals onto the rest of the world in light of those problems?
My topic relates to the essential questions were covering in class by focusing on the
mechanisms that bring about justice in society. By studying the effects of rhetoric, religion, and
culture on the womens rights movement, I am simply applying the factors that contribute to
overall political change to a more specific subject. As far as the approaches to justice, I am
concentrating on the equality aspect and bringing to light changes which have already taken
place as well as changes that have yet to come to fruition.
READING LIST:
A Call to Action: Women, Religion, Violence, and Power by Jimmy Carter
This book follows former president Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn as their
foundation travels the world investigating the status of women in various countries. They study
the effects of religion, violence, and warfare on the conditions women are forced to live under.
The book concludes that the state of womens equality is not improving, but in fact, deteriorating.
Oli Sakadinsky
The research question Ill focus on for my project is: What problems still exist in the
United States with gender norms and should we impose our ideals onto the rest of the world in
light of those problems? My thesis is that striving for equality and adhering to religious beliefs
shouldnt be mutually exclusive, so by forcing ideal western equality onto middle eastern women
we would be doing more harm than good. When we are no longer focused on trying to fix
problems that are no longer present in the middle east, we can evaluate ourselves and assess
similar problems present in the United States.
To express this thesis, my project will take the form of an interactive awareness
campaign. I will include a picture of a typical western woman alongside a picture of a typical
middle eastern woman and have a survey pulled up on my computer (or already completed) for
people to say which woman they think is more overtly oppressed by her culture and why. As the
exhibition progresses, Ill hopefully have compiled substantial evidence of the stereotypes
surrounding middle eastern gender equality movements. I will ensure that my project clearly
conveys my thesis by showing actual statistics (like amount of women in leadership) to show
that by dispelling those harmful stereotypes we bring to light our own equality issues as a
country. This will serve as an example of education and the power it has to invalidate
misconceptions of equality in different cultures.
My perspective on this topic is unique because as a United States citizen, Im very
familiar with how middle eastern women are portrayed in western culture. However, having
extensively researched and listened to women of other cultures, Ive also developed a grasp of
the other side of this issue, which I think is unique to someone of my age and background.
I plan to integrate quotes from Half the Sky into the pictures/art pieces, as well as
statistics Ive collected on the articles on the backsides of them. Also, I want to feature the
comparison of the Bible and the Koran to serve as evidence of the seeds of inequality planted
by religious texts and how they might not have been equally harmful to the women of their
respective cultures.
For this project to look polished, I think I will refine it by testing out the survey portion to
determine whether it would be better to have it already prepared or to have it be an interactive
experience at exhibition. If I do prepare it ahead of time, I would could further refine it by
collecting results from a second survey, taken after its participants were more informed. This
would showcase the difference between a mindset uneducated about the situation and one well
educated about it.