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Saturday, March 24, 2012

Choosing Islam: Women in the West

Introduction
In the wake of 9/11, Islam has been under much scrutiny in the west, especially in America. The media, the government, and the general public are now more aware of this “eastern” or, rather, “middle eastern” religion than there were prior to the Twin Towers and the Pentagon attacks. Many people in the west have come to fear this religion, especially fundamentalist Christians, because of the terrorist acts of Al-Qaeda. Despite this general fear and distrust of Islam in the west, many western women have been accepting Islam as their new religion. What seems most shocking about this phenomenon is the idea that many people have about how Islam treats women; they believe that Islam is oppressive to women. So the obvious question asked is: Why are western women choosing Islam?

Historically, Islam has actually been present in America since at least the days of slavery. It is estimated that ten to twenty-five percent of the Africans that were enslaved and brought to American in seventeenth to nineteenth centuries were Muslim. There is actually a well-known book (and TV series) that shows how Islam did exist in America via African slaves: “Roots”. Although Islam may have been present in American via slavery, the practice of Islam by the slaves was washed away by the demands of their “masters”, who required them to follow their own religion, typically Christianity. The Islamic names were also washed away by the taking on of the masters’ names.  (Simmons) This loss of practice and knowledge is one reason why Islam seems so new in America to many of her public.

Click to see a short video about Roots and Islam
African Americans play a big part in the surge of women accepting Islam in America. Part of this phenomenon is in reaction or response to the slave days. In some ways, African Americans that descended from slaves felt that they could take back their ancestors’ identities by embracing Islam. Islam also gave them a voice. Islam gave them a way to belong and a way to organize against oppression in the USA and fight for their civil liberties. Islam for many African Americans may have been more of a political choice than religious at first, but ultimately became religious. (Simmons)

Islam did not enter America only once with slavery. Carol Anway, in her book titled, Daughters of another Path, mentions a booklet called A Century of Islam in America, by Yvonne Haddad, in which three waves of Muslim immigration is mentioned: the first in 1875, a second in the 1930s that is stopped by World War II, and a third in the 1950s and 60s. These waves were part of the growth of Islam in America, a growth that brought this “other” religion to cities and Universities across America, where it started to become more likely that Americans would get to know Islam from friends, fellow students, neighbors, and co-workers. (Anway) As women in the west began learning about Islam, some began to accept Islam as their own religion, converting sometimes from Christianity, other religions, or from an atheistic or secular position. There has not been a lot of research into why women in the west are accepting Islam more and more, but some factors have been identified.

Marriage
One of the reasons women convert to Islam is through marriage to a Muslim man. One might think that she is obligated to covert for the sake of the marriage, as is often the case in Catholicism and Judaism, but this is not the case. Muslim men are allowed to marry a woman who is Muslim, Christian, or Jewish. As long as she is one of “the people of the book”, the marriage is halal, or lawful. It is only men that are obligated to convert for the sake of marriage, as a Muslim woman is to marry only a Muslim man.

Even though women are not obligated to convert for the sake of the marriage, they often do. There are a few reasons this occurs. Sometimes a woman will fall in love with a Muslim man and will convert to his religion to become more attractive to him as a potential wife. If she converts after marriage, it might be in an effort to be more accepted by her husband and his family, or by the community to which he belongs. (Allievi) As much as they might be expected to be, these are not always the reasons a woman who marries a Muslim man will convert to Islam herself.

Often times, it is the introduction to Islam via her love interest, or husband that brings her to the acceptance of Islam. It is not always for social reasons, but also, and many times, is because she finds something fulfilling about Islam itself. Perhaps she had never really known about Islam before she met her love interest and in the process of getting to know him, she gets to know Islam, and then ultimately accepts it for herself. (Anway)
 
Acquaintance
Similar to learning about Islam through a significant other, or husband, many women first learn about Islam through a friend, co-worker, fellow student, or colleague. She may find their new Muslim friend to be unusual and will be inquisitive about their religion, maybe even attempt to convert them to her own religion. The best way to prepare for a debate is to know your opponent, and so evangelical Christians looking to convert their new Muslim friend to Christianity start studying the Qur’an in an attempt to become familiar with this other religion and to build arguments against it. What they find occurs during their studies, though, is that they are drawn to Islam and find themselves understanding and even agreeing with what they find in the Qur’an. They find themselves wanting to learn more about Islam and then accept Islam instead of converting their friend. (Nieuwkerk)

Aminah Assilmi converted to
Islam while trying to evangelize
the Muslims in her college drama class.
Even if evangelism is not a motive in learning about Islam, many people who have made a Muslim acquaintance find themselves wanting to learn more. Sometimes it is a pious nature of their Muslim friend that intrigues the non-Muslims. Most times they are surprised by the natures of their new friend – they are nothing like the terrorists of 9/11! When they realize their own ignorance of the religion, they want to learn more in an attempt to understand their friend, co-worker, or colleague better. Again, it is during this exploration that they find something within what they learn that draws them in to an acceptance of Islam. (Haddad)

Quest for Answers
Sometimes, as in the way of acquaintance, converts originally stumbled upon Islam; sometimes it is a quest of knowledge or a quest for answers to what doesn’t make sense that leads converts to Islam. Perhaps it is dissatisfaction for the explanations of certain aspects of the religion they were raised with that leads them on such a quest. These people are naturally inquisitive and don’t rest with an answer that doesn’t make sense to them. They may seek answers in many different religions before settling on Islam. The common report with these converts is that they found that what they read in the Qur’an not only made sense to them logically, but also answered those questions that had long plagued them and that no one else, not even their clergy could answer. (Haddad)

Often the intellectual pursuits come from Christianity. When the trinity or the idea of Jesus as the son of God or as God incarnate don’t make sense, or when bible contradictions are frustrating and the lack of adequate answers even more so, converts find solace in the logic and clearness of the Qur’an. Questions that they felt they would never have answers to, suddenly make sense. Science agrees with religion. Religion agrees with logic. (Anway)
Camilla Leyland, 32, pictured in Western and Muslim dress,
converted to Islam in her mid-20s for 'intellectual and feminist reasons'
Anti-Feminism
Some women in the west are frustrated with the expectations thrust upon them and they see Islam as a way to be a woman and be comfortable in traditional gender roles without feeling like they have let other women down in the quest for equality among men in society. With feminism, often women are expected not only to be women in a traditional sense, or traditional feminine role, but are also now expected to compete with men. In some ways, women are expected to be both men and women, whereas men are only expected to be men. This can be very exhausting and frustrating for women that are perfectly happy to be a mom and a wife or who are tired of expecting to be super-woman all of the time. There is a common idea, a misconception that Islam is anti-feminist. Islam calls for equity between men and women, but does recognize gender differences. It is the fact that Islam allows for these gender differences that sometimes is a draw for women.

Women are cherished in Islam. There is a misconception in the west that Muslim women are oppressed, often because of the Islamic coverings – abaya, hijab, and/or niqab – that many Muslim women wear. Women are revered for being mothers. Women are protected, cared for, and provided for by men in Islam. This can be a very strong draw for women that are tired of being subjected to the common abuses they face in western society. In Islam it is OK to be a stay at home mother who focuses on raising her children properly. She is not looked down upon for not competing with man in the workforce, rather she is protected and provided for because of the important job she has in raising the children to be successful adults. 

Feminism
Although it seems contradictory to the idea many people have - that Islam is anti-feminist, Islam frequently gives women a voice in what is often a man’s world. The Qur’an is specific about the equity between men and women, and was written long before women’s suffrage in America. Women often refer to the fact that being Muslim and wearing hijab and/or abaya makes them more equal with men. The coverings force others to look at them for their minds and abilities rather than their looks. They feel safer and free-er from objectification.

Shaikha Shakina Reinhertz
A particular “brand” of Islam, Sufism, is especially appealing to many feminist types. Sufism gives not only importance to women, but even allows women to be religious leaders. Sufism is mystical, more spiritual and less confined by the “rules” of Sunni or Shi’a Islam. Feminists often like the freedom of expression and teachings that Sufism offers them. (Jawad)

Problem Solving
Some who have studied conversion in the west have suggested that perhaps the conversion to Islam is sometimes a subconscious reaction to societal or personal problems the convert perceives. (Wohlrab-Sahr) Islam gives these converts a way to correct the problems they either have experienced or perceive as problems in society. (Jawad) And converts often embrace Islam because dissatisfaction with western cultural norms as a motivating factor. (Zebiri) For African Americans, Islam is a way to reclaim their identity and to raise political clout. (Simmons) For women who are tired of feminism, it is a way to find peace in the fact that they are OK with traditional gender roles. For women that are tired of the way women are sexualized and objectified in the west, Islam gives them a way to correct what they see as immorality and/or a way to no longer be subjected to objectification and over-sexualization. (Nieuwkerk) For women that have had a hard time feeling like they fit in anywhere, conversion gives them a new start to belong to something and with others.

In many ways, the problem solving that Islam provides is in the form of a new identity for the convert. This can come in the form of a new outer appearance, such as donning the hijab (typically referring to the head covering), or even niqab (face veil). Sometimes the new identity is as extreme as a legal name change to that of a more Islamic name. (Allievi) Even being part of a new community, or Ummah, can be a part of the new identity building process. In some ways, the new identity is a way for the convert to distance herself from something that she considered to be a problem in her previous “life” as a non-Muslim.

So, who are these women that are accepting Islam? Are they poor, uneducated, battered and abused women that are seeking a new identity in a foreign religion? The answers seem to be surprising to popular media and to some researchers. While compiling research for her book, Daughters of Another path, Carol Anway found that over 50% of her respondents held a Bachelor’s degree or higher. During her fieldwork for Women Embracing Islam, Karin van Nieuwkerk found that, “most converts appear to be of middle-class background” and that they have their first experience with Islam in the university setting. It is perhaps the natural inquisitive tendencies that ultimately lead many higher educated women (who are more likely from middle to upper level financial demographics to have had the opportunity to have a higher education in the first place) to find a home in Islam. Conversion to Islam is not exactly an easy process in the west, however. 

Costs / Consequences
The stumbling blocks that many converts run into don’t necessarily make the choice to accept Islam a difficult one, but instead provide for some costs, or consequences in their family and social lives. Due to misconceptions, many times the newly converted woman is confronted with opposition from the people she loves most, her family. (Anway) The misconceptions about Islam that many people in the west hold come mostly from a lack of knowledge about the religion, some from bad examples (e.g. Al-Qaeda), and others from a confusion between culture and religion. Sometimes the family hoped that their daughter/sister/niece was just acting out, trying on a new religion like she was trying on clothes, and hope that like when she was a teenager, it was a “phase” that she would grow out of.

Especially in the wake of 9/11, the families and friends may be concerned that their loved one has gotten involved in terrorism, or worry about how their’ daughter’s choice will reflect on them in the community which they belong. They don’t necessarily see her choice to convert as her own, but that of the family at large. If the new convert chooses to don the hijab or other traditionally Islamic clothing, it can be even harder for others to accept. It is one thing if she changes something inwardly, but wholly another when she makes it obvious to all. One tale of how a parent reacted is given in Carol Anway’s Daughters of Another Path: “They were very upset at first but now they reluctantly accept it. My father got very angry and twisted my arm and told me about my hijab, to ‘take that thing off because I don’t want to be seen with you in public.’”

Sometimes the parents of a convert see her choice as a personal insult, especially if they are particularly religious in the previous faith. They see their daughter’s choice as a slap in the face or an overt rejection. (Jawad) Over time, if the family ties are strong and the convert and the family and friends give each other a chance to see how things will be, they learn that this is a decision that she made – for herself and not “to” anyone. Most times, but not always, a new understanding is found and the relationships continue on in a positive direction.

Relationships with family and friends or within a home community are not the only stumbling blocks that converts come across. They also frequently have to deal with the stigma of being a convert and not a born-Muslim. Sometimes, when they enter the Muslim community, they are not looked upon as serious Muslims by their sisters-in-faith that were born and raised Muslim. Converts can feel scrutinized in the Mosques by the older generation immigrant women and in extreme cases, ostracized. (Haddad) They may struggle to not only be outcast by the society that they came from, but also the one that they were originally so happily joining.

Another way in which converts sometimes struggle with their Ummah, or Muslim community, is that often new converts are akin to born-again Christians. They are very excited about their new found faith and overzealous in not only their adaption of it in their own lives but will critique and correct those around them.  It may be annoying to some born Muslims, who like most people, don’t like to be corrected when they are not following the “rules”. Some of the Ummah, however, may actually be relieved and revived by the spirit of their new sisters. Often new converts have researched Islam more than those that have grown up learning about Islam and can be a source of knowledge about the separation between religion and culture. It can be an avenue of healthy dialogues and the foundation of lasting friendships.

Converts to Islam, especially women converts, play an important role in their Ummah and in their society at large. Converts may or may not be keenly aware of this new role – that of a mediator. The convert is the tie between the west and the “other”. She is one that can help explain the two halves to each other and mediate the conflicts that may or may not erroneously arrive. She may teach her family, friends, and home community about their misconceptions of Islam. She may correct their misunderstandings and foster a new perception about this “foreign” religion. That which is known is far less scary than that which is unknown. She may also be able to help foster a new relationship between the Muslim community and non-Muslims via opportunities for mixing and meeting each other.

Sometimes this new role is realized and not always wanted. It can be scary for the convert to be an example to others. What if she is not a good example? She doesn’t want to give non-Muslims the wrong idea about the faith and she doesn’t want to be scrutinized by her new Muslim community in the same way. She is often times still learning and adapting to her new found faith. Conversion is rarely a phenomenon that lasts only a moment. Converts often convert to Islam slowly and may change their attitudes and adopt different parts or degrees of Islam over time. Sometimes she starts out zealous and then cools down; sometimes she starts out slow and becomes more enraptured over time.

Lastly, a hurdle in the west for the new convert is that of discrimination. In Islam, many women feel that wearing the traditional Islamic coverings like the hijab, abaya, and/or niqab makes them more equal to men as they are judged on their minds and abilities rather than their looks. In the Middle East, this may very well be the case. In America, especially since 9/11 and in the smaller, less urbanized areas, women in traditional dress are more likely to be discriminated against in the workplace than Muslim women that look “like everyone else”. For women that have already been fighting in a man’s world – and maybe have won – to face this new challenge can be extremely difficult. They may be tempted to doff the traditional dress, even if they believe they should wear it, just so they will not be discriminated against. 

Conclusion
Many women in the west have been accepting Islam more and more over the years. The tragedy of 9/11 didn’t seem to slow down this phenomenon, but instead made more people aware of and curious about Islam. The inquisitive individuals who may have had a life filled with questions about their religion or had never found adequate answers or felt a void in their life are attracted to Islam for its logic and simple nature.

Many female converts meet their first Muslim friend at University and sometimes as a significant other. Even if her future husband is her motivation for learning about Islam, it is not by force or coercion that brings her to the faith. Many times, she is the one that brings him back to practicing the faith regularly and with more conviction.

New converts find peace in their decision on one hand, but a struggle on the other. They have to face telling their family and friends about their choice and risk rejection or opposition. They struggle with acceptance within their new Ummah and proving themselves to born-Muslims. They find themselves as an instant mediator between Islam and the west – often working hard to correct misconceptions and spread awareness about True Islam versus the faith of the extremist groups.

These women are not oppressed and come from some of the free-est societies in the world. Sometimes their choice to accept Islam is in a backlash against feminism that has made things more difficult on women – they see how women and mothers are venerated in Islam and they wish for equity but to also be able to live out the gender roles that feel more natural to them. For them, Islam is not only a logical faith that has answered their questions, but allows them to live the identity that they feel most comfortable with.

Bibliography

Allievi, Stefano. "The Shifting Significance fo the Halal/Haram Frontier." Women Embracing Islam: Gender and Conversion in the West. Ed. Karin van Nieukerk. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006. 120-149.
Anway, Carol L. Daughters of Another Path. Yawna Publications, 1995.
Haddad, Yvonne Yazbeck. "The Quest for Peace in Submission." Women Embracing Islam: Gender and Conversion in the WEst. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006. 19-47.
Jawad, Haifaa. "Female Conversion to Islam." Women Embracing Islam: Gender and Conversion in the West. Ed. Karin van Nieuwkerk. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006. 153-171.
Nieuwkerk, Karin van. "Gender, Conversion, and Islam." Women Embracing Islam: Gender and Conversion in the West. Ed. Karin van Nieuwkerk. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006. 95-119.
Simmons, Gwendolyn Zoharah. "African American Islam as an Expression of Converts' Religious Faith and Nationalist Dreams and Ambitions." Women Embracing Islam: Gender and Conversion in the West. Ed. Karin van Niewkerk. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006. 172 - 191.
Wohlrab-Sahr, Monkika. "Symbolizing Distance." Women Embracing Islam: Gender and Conversion in the West. Ed. Karin van Nieuwkerk. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2006. 71-92.
Zebiri, Kate. British Muslim Converts: Choosing Alternative Lives. Oxford: OneWorld Press, 2008.

Originally written for my Islam class in the spring of 2011

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