Women’s History Month

The month of March is Women’s History Month. It is a common notion that women constitute half the society, and that the society should not neglect them, leave them unused, disrespect them or take away their rights. This is all true. It may as well be argued that although
women constitute half of the population, their influence exceeds their number,
since women have the power to change this world.

Attitude, honesty, dedication and perseverance are non-gender specific. Success and career development are directly related to education which plays a significant role in improvement of
an individual. Seeking knowledge is a sacred duty in all religions and Islam is
no different.

When it comes to Islam, social status of Muslim women and their rights to education are commonly debated topics and hence, many misconceptions have been generated in our society, such as, Islam prescribes women to be deprived of justice and freedom. But, unlike common
belief, Islam gives women a status equal to that of men. The Holy Qur’an
states, “…Men shall have the share of what they have earned, and women will
have the share of what they have earned. And ask God of His bounty. Surely, God
has perfect knowledge of all the things” (4:33). The truth is that Islam
prescribes specific roles and responsibilities for every single member of the
society regardless of gender.

Islam also emphasizes that Muslim women stand on the same level with Muslim men and that they can both attain the same spiritual rank. Being raised in a Muslim country, I have personally witnessed that Muslim girls are always encouraged to pursue education. As a matter of
fact, girls outnumber boys in several universities and colleges. As we celebrate Women’s History Month, let us acknowledge all the women who fought for our rights. They are the ones who push us to be stronger. We have nothing to fear now for we are not just women, we are the leaders of today and tomorrow.