Thought provoking article on the issue of women's rights in the Muslim world and the silence with which western feminists have accepted the mistreatment of their Muslim sisters.

Writer Kay Hymowitz explains the silence of 'gender feminists, who she says are "Too busy celebrating their own virtue and contemplating their own victimhood, gender feminists cannot address the suffering of their Muslim sisters realistically, as light years worse than their own petulant grievances."

Kay Hymovitz goes on to write:
"The second variety of feminism, seemingly more sophisticated and especially prevalent on college campuses, is multiculturalism and its twin, postcolonialism. The postcolonial feminist has even more reason to shy away from the predicament of women under radical Islam than her maternally thinking sister. She believes that the Western world is so sullied by its legacy of imperialism that no Westerner, man or woman, can utter a word of judgment against former colonial peoples. Worse, she is not so sure that radical Islam isn’t an authentic, indigenous—and therefore appropriate—expression of Arab and Middle Eastern identity."

I wonder where one should place the NDP female caucus in Ottawa. Marilyn Churley may have made a difference, but she lost. Will Olivia Chow and Peggy Nash speak out where Alexa McDonough and other veterans didn't? I hope so, though I am not very optimistic.

Tarek
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Winter 2006

Why Feminism is AWOL on Islam

By Kay S. Hymowitz
City Journal: Why Feminism is AWOL on Islam

[ 01 February 2006: Message edited by: Tarek Fatah ]

The City Journal is Published by the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research whose motto is:

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The Manhattan Institute is a think tank whose mission is to develop and disseminate news ideas that foster greater economic choice and individual responsibility.

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In January 2006, MI hosted VP Dick Cheney who "delivered a major policy address on Iraq and the War on Terror".

Many contributors to MI are from the National Review. I think I've said enough.

Manhattan Institute website. And they're a .org!

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Writer Kay Hymowitz explains the silence of 'gender feminists, who she says are "Too busy celebrating their own virtue and contemplating their own victimhood, gender feminists cannot address the suffering of their Muslim sisters realistically, as light years worse than their own petulant grievances."

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That is incredibly offensive.

Are feminists supportive of Muslim women? How do feminists show their support?

Tarek, I am not going to finish reading a piece of right-wing trash that chants mindlessly and repeatedly "You didn't hear much from feminists when ..." What the hell does that mean, anyway? What YOU heard depended on who YOU were, and for a lot of people around here, it also depended on what they were saying and writing and doing. Ok?

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Originally posted by a citizen of winnipeg:
Are feminists supportive of Muslim women? How do feminists show their support?

Interesting subject.

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Hm, yes it is. I would reframe, given the context, as "Are white feminists supportive of Muslim women?" or "Are feminists in the West supportive of Muslim women?". My answer is yes, sometimes. Given the active movement in feminist Muslim communities, there are certainly times when white feminists/Western feminists are supportive of Muslim feminists.

Article "Muslim Feminism quietly flourishes"

"Islamic Feminism: compromise or challenge to feminism?" by Mehrdad Darvishpour, Stockholm University I haven't read all of this,and at first look I disagree with her too-simplified conclusion, but it covers a lot of the issues, centering on women in Iran.

Summary of the book "Muslim Feminism and Feminist Movements: Africa" Not quite relevant to the Western feminist discussion, but it's a huge 2-volume set and a great google find so I had to post it.

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The second variety of feminism, seemingly more sophisticated and especially prevalent on college campuses, is multiculturalism and its twin, postcolonialism.

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So, multiculturalism and postcolonialism are a variety of feminism? Either the writer doesn't know shit about feminism, or she is using nouns when she should be using adjectives(ie. she should say "multiculturalist" instead of "multiculturalism"). Either way, doesn't exactly tempt me to read the rest.

[ 01 February 2006: Message edited by: voice of the damned ]

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Yet even in the most patriarchal of Muslim nations, feminism quietly thrives.
"Every country has women's rights groups," said Mahnaz Afkhami, author of "Faith and Freedom: Women's Human Rights in the Muslim World."
The common view of repressed, cowed women incapable of standing up for themselves is a distortion, say feminists such as Minnoo Moallem, chairwoman of women's studies at San Francisco State University.

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Article

I realize now that my "this is offensive" comment could be taken to mean I agree with the article. I didn't read the article, my comment refers to the tone of the quote which seems determined to alienate and polarize.

Edited to fix link.

[ 01 February 2006: Message edited by: a citizen of winnipeg ]

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Didn't read the article, but I want to ask this question: why should we in the capital letter West (as it's Western feminists that I assume Hymowitz is addressing) be taking on the role of denouncing other cultures? I will certainly support Muslim feminists that do, but it is their right to set the discourse, not mine. -Kurichina

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So reflective of my view that I have taken the liberty of "borrowing" the quote for MY reaction. (Thanks Kurichina!)

The Manhattan Institute, Tarek? Did you exhaust all progressive corners?

[ 01 February 2006: Message edited by: sidra ]

I see feminists are SO powerful we're at the root of dam'near every problem the right wing has. Well, good for us!! Hey Skdadl, just when we were starting to wonder if the past thirty or forty years of dedicated struggle had missed the mark we find out we're on the very brink of bringing'em down!! I'd hae me a wee drammy to celebrate but I'm a non-drinker so maybe your fine self could have two, one for you and one for me.

Yesterday I went to Campbell River with my daughter-in-law and two and a half month old Ellen, known to her sisters as Ellenbaby. Had to get a bone density test and get my eyes tested. I think the entire trip is going to wind up a chapter in a novel! Came in over the Tahsis Freeway at ten at night behind a snowplow. We were very glad the snowplow driver was on the job and I hope he gets double overtime. Might buy him a wee drammy, too!!

BUT, all Canadian feminists on the verge of destroying the right wing can give a cheer...WE GOT THE BIKES. Emily will be four on Feb 8, Joan will be five on Valentines Day, we're having a "both girls party" when they'll see their bikes for the first time. I'm hoping the two older kids (Charlie is fourteen, Christina is ten) will use their Xmas present digital cameras to get shots of the girls' faces when they see their bright spanking new bikes, if it works I'll try to post the snaps. One bike is purple with white daisies painted on it, the other is a most gorgeous deep blue. Tried but couldn't get two exactly the same.

So THAT is what this feminist did yesterday!

And today the artificial hip is having a tantrum to protest all those hours cramped in a car.

I hope this helps explain where at least some of the Canadian feminists have gone.