The distorted image of Muslim women

Since the height of the feminist movement in the late 70's there has
been a magnifying glass placed over the status of Muslim women.
Unfortunately, the magnifying glass that has been used is an unusual
one.
Unusual in the sense that it is very selective about which items it
will magnify; other items it will distort to such a degree that they
will no longer look familiar. I remember once reading an "in depth"
article about the lives of Muslim women. This article "explained" that
at any time a man can divorce his wife by simply stating "I divorce
you, I divorce you, I divorce you".
This article can lead anyone ignorant of the Islamic ruling regarding
divorce to believe that in less than five seconds the woman is left
with no husband and is left to care for herself )and possibly
children( by any means necessary.
The question that immediately popped up in my mind was, "Did the
author innocently write that out of sincere ignorance or was it
another of the many attempts to degrade the religion of Islam and its
followers )Muslims(?" It may be out of paranoia, but I tend to believe
it was the latter of the two.
The truth of the matter is that Islam has the most humane and most
just system of divorce that exists. Firstly, many options are taken
and tried before coming to the decision of divorce. If the man and
woman decide that they can no longer live together successfully as a
husband and wife, the husband )in most cases, not always( pronounces
the divorce by saying "I divorce you". At this point the waiting
period begins.
The waiting period lasts for three menstrual cycles to assure the
woman is not pregnant. This period allows the couple time to think
about what they are doing and if this is what they really want to do.
There are no lawyers involved to antagonize an already delicate
situation.
In the case that it is realized, that the woman is pregnant, the
waiting period lasts the entire time she is pregnant. During the
waiting period )whether the woman is pregnant or not( the man is
obligated to provide food, clothing and shelter to the woman as he did
before the divorce pronouncement.
If the couple carries the divorce through to the birth of the child
and the woman suckles the baby, the man is obligated to feed and
clothe both his ex-wife for the time the woman suckles )the maximum
being two years(. After his weaning, the child will be provided for by
the father until he/she is no longer in need of support.
It is quite ironic that in such an "advanced society" as America,
there are divorce cases in which women are being forced to pay alimony
to their ex-husbands. Can this and many other things we know about the
American system of divorce compare to the Islamic system of divorce?
I have also read stories wherein it is stated that women are forced to
marry men without their consent. This in no way resembles the marriage
system in Islam. In Islam the woman marries the man of her choice. She
may even marry someone that her mother and/or father objects to.
The point is that it is the woman who makes the final decision as to
whom she will marry. Once the man and the woman decide that they are
interested in one another for marriage, a dowry is decided upon. A
dowry is not a bride's price but it is a gift from the groom to the
bride.
They agree upon a gift that is affordable by the groom. In the time of
the Prophet, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam , often things such as
livestock and money were given. This is a wise decision in the event
that a woman becomes divorced or widowed, she has some financial
security to fall back on even if it is for a limited amount of time.
Once the man and woman are married, the man is required to clothe,
feed, shelter and educate her )or allow her to be educated( in the
same manner as he does himself.
The last distorted image that I will cover is that of the Muslim
women's dress. The western-influenced media portrays our dress to be
outdated and oppressive. Needless to say, I differ with these
adjectives. Our dress code does not hinder us from doing anything
productive in our lives.
Muslim women maintain a variety of jobs, none of which are devalued
nor hampered due to their dress code. And as for the timing of Muslim
women's dress during these contemporary times, it seems most
appropriate due to decreasing morals in the world today.
For those who say that Islamic dress is outdated, they speak from
great ignorance. The decreasing morality and trials of this time makes
Hijab even more in need. More than ever before sex crimes are rampant.
Although this society tells women they can wear what they want to
wear, anytime a rape occurs the woman is the one put on trial and one
of the first questions is, "What were you wearing?" This concept seems
as though it is a set up directed against the so-called contemporary
woman. Also there is a direct correlation between the respect a man
has for a woman and the amount of her body she displays flauntingly.
In conclusion, I hope this article helps to clear up some
distorted/misunderstood aspects of Islam and women. Women in Islam are
respected and held in high regard. We will never find success and/or
solutions to our problems until we realize that Allaah knows best and
that this disbelieving society will ruin itself.