Some Misconceptions about Women in Islam Summarized from: What Does She Expect Better? Islam gave women rights and privileges at a time when only barbaric manners and values dominated.

Yet, some people argue that Islam has alienated women in some domains. In fact, this belief is a misconception. People who say so, may have read about it in a magazine or seen it on TV. A quick examination of the issues judged as unjust to women will certainly correct the misunderstanding.

Man as the head of the household: Some people believe that a woman in Islam is regarded as inferior to man since the Quran says (what means):
"Men have one degree above women." [Quran 2: 228]

In fact, to understand this Quranic verse, you should see another one, related to the issue in question. It reveals the wisdom behind this concept.

In the Quran it also says (what means): "Men are the protectors and maintainers of women, because Allaah has given the one more than the other and because men support them from their means." [Quran 4:34]

This verse implies that it is a man's duty to support his wife, and not the reverse, but this, in no way, makes him superior to her. In fact, the rights and responsibilities of a woman are equal to those of a man but they are not necessarily identical. Since men and women are not created identical, they have different physical and emotional qualities, jobs and privileges. This does not mean that women are inferior.

On the contrary, women are considered crucial members of society in Islam since they are assigned the job of bringing up future generations. People today tend to look down at housewives but, in fact, raising children is one of the most important and difficult tasks. The way a mother brings up her child determines the way he will behave in the future. This duty, which requires patience, love, understanding and wisdom was significantly assigned to women in Islam because her nature suits this job.

Allaah The Exalted, in His Wisdom, has assigned a role for each member of the family so that there would be no arguments concerning who should do what. If a sailboat has two leaders, each will want to follow a path, leading ultimately to chaos and even a crash. In the same manner, how many times have your parents fought over some decision because each had their own point of view and wanted to apply it? This is precisely why it is preferable to have one leader for each household. However, this does not give the leader the right to be a dictator, or to neglect the role of his companion. This does not make him superior to other members of his family. It just gives him a larger duty.

Inheritance: Some people claim that Islam is unjust towards women because it entitles them to inherit half of what men get. In fact, those people only know one side of the truth.

First, the principle of women inheriting half the money is only applicable in 45 percent of the cases. In the other 55 percent, women inherit the same amount or sometimes even more. For example, a mother and a father each inherit the sixth of their son's property when they are not the only inheritors.

In addition, the laws of inheritance in Islam are proportional to the duties of spending. Indeed, a man in Islam has the responsibility of supporting his family, his brother's children (when his brother dies), his parents (when they retire and do not have an income), his children from his previous marriage (if he has them) and his household, including his wife and children. A woman, on the other hand, does not bear this responsibility. She has the freedom to use the money she collects from her dowry or work as she pleases. You might object here, saying that women today are working and helping their husbands pay the expenses, which entitles them to share equality with men. In fact, you should know that women's economic assistance to their husbands, which has become the norm today, is only an answer to the females’ wishes. Islam does not oblige women to spend on their households. It is a free choice many women have themselves taken today to feel more liberated, so it does not entitle them to a bigger portion of the inheritance.

Polygyny: Polygyny is one of the most questioned principles that Islam grants men and women. Indeed, many people wrongfully accuse Islam of injustice because it allows a man to have up to four wives. Nevertheless, like every instruction in the Quran, polygyny has a reason. You see, Islam is a practical religion that acknowledges the needs and temptations of human beings and provides laws that deal with them, thus preserving harmony and morality.

·       Polygyny might be the solution for a couple if the wife is barren, the husband wants children of his own and the option of separation does not appeal to both parties.·       If a woman is chronically ill and is unable to perform her marital duties. Polygyny may also be the solution when the couple does not want divorce.

·       Polygyny is the religion's answer to cases where some men have excessive sexual needs that cannot be fulfilled by one wife. This in no way means that men should abuse this right and use it whenever they fancy a woman. It is rather a chance Islam has provided to prevent men from committing adultery. Many people who condemn polygyny cheat on their wives, calling this phenomenon a 'swift affair.' Islam, at least, has offered the second woman the option of being called 'a wife' rather than 'a mistress', especially in some countries where women remarkably outnumber men.

·       Polygyny may settle the problem of an increased number of unmarried women, especially during wars.

However, polygyny has some limits and conditions to be met. Indeed, the Quran instructs the man to be fair with his wives on all levels, including treatment, money, house, etc. The only level where the man may have an uneven stance is the level of the feelings that he cannot control:

The Quran says (what means): "You will never be able to do perfect justice between wives even if it is your ardent desire, so do not incline too much to one of them [by giving her more of your time and provision] so as to leave the other hanging [i.e. neither divorced nor married]. And if you do justice, and do all that is right and fear Allaah by keeping away from all that is wrong, then Allaah is Ever-Forgiving and All-Merciful." [Quran 4:129]

Finally, it is worth knowing that Islam gives a woman the right to refuse polygyny for her husband by setting it as a condition during the marriage procedures. If this condition is set, then the woman is granted divorce if her husband marries another while he is still married to her.

You might ask, why could not there be polyandry (a woman having more than one husband)? The answer is simple. Islam did not allow it because Allaah is All-Aware that it will create a problem of kinship. This means that the child may not know who is actually his father (it could be anyone of the four husbands). In addition to the psychological damage it may cause, this problem also complicates the issue of inheritance. Even birds and animals do not allow polyandry. Divorce Islam considers marriage a basis for the Islamic family, since it develops bonds of love and caring and a secure atmosphere for the growth and progress of the human race. This, in turn, produces a sound society. This is why the Prophet  taught us in a narration, that although classified ‘weak’, has a valid and important meaning. He  said: "The most detestable of all lawful things in the sight of Allaah is divorce."However, this does not mean that divorce is prohibited. On the contrary, it can sometimes be the best alternative. Divorce is a right for both women and men if their problems cannot be solved. Two French legislators, Planoil and Ripert, have said: "Divorce is a mischief. However, it is a measure that cannot be avoided for the welfare of the community, because it is the only remedy for another harm which may be more dangerous, i.e. murder."

The above statement applies to cases where the husband and wife have lost their love for each other and where harmony in the marriage is over. Indeed, any other alternative will make them unhappy and will affect their children in the long run.

In these cases, Islam advises the couple to try to reconcile their differences in the presence of some immediate relatives belonging to both sides. If they are unable to do so, they are instructed to seek counseling through a third party, such as friends or other relatives. If there is still no solution, then they should seek a solution through a judge.

The judge will advise the couple to be patient and think of the children. However, if the problem remains unsolved, the family life becomes unbearable and the children are affected, then divorce becomes the only alternative, to enable them to have other spouses.

When it is inescapable, divorce is neither harmful to men nor to women. It is also definitely not unjust to women.
 First, the couple must seek divorce in an amicable way. They are instructed to separate without hard feelings towards each other. They should keep a minimum of understanding that will secure the children's situation after the divorce.

The Quran says (what means): "Divorce is twice. Then [after that], either keep [her] in an acceptable manner or release [her] with good treatment. And it is not lawful for you to take anything of what you have given them unless both fear that they will not be able to keep [within] the limits of Allaah, and then there is no blame upon either of them concerning that by which she ransoms herself. These are the limits of Allaah, so do not transgress them. And whoever transgresses the limits of Allaah -- it is those who are the wrongdoers [i.e. the unjust]."  [Quran 2: 229]

In Islam, the woman is not neglected after the divorce. Indeed husbands are instructed to provide housing to the divorced wife until her waiting period is completed, as in the saying of Allaah (which means): "Lodge them (During their waiting period (referring to wives whose divorce has been pronounced) [in a section] of where you dwell out of your means and do not harm them in order to oppress them (so that they would be forced to leave or to ransom themselves). And if they should be pregnant, then spend on them until they give birth. And if they breastfeed for you, then give them their payment and confer among yourselves in the acceptable way; but if you are in discord, then there may breastfeed for him [i.e. the father] another woman." [Quran: 65:6] Finally, although it is true that only men are allowed to pronounce divorce, yet a woman has the right to ask for a divorce, which is called ‘Khul’. In this case, she has to return the dowry given by the husband, so that he utters the divorce.Attestations In Islam, one male witness equals two females: The Quran says (what means): "And get two witnesses out of your men. If there are not two men, then a man and two women such as you choose [maybe in place of two men as the witnesses]; so that if one of the women errs, the other one will remind her..." [Quran 2:282]

Here again, many people tend to denounce Islamic principles as unjust to women. They tend to interpret this requirement as proof of men's superiority over women. Again, this assumption is not true. In fact, various psychological and biological studies conducted on the psyche and hormonal functions of women, have proved that men generally tend to react more rationally and less emotionally, than women.

In cases of crime, for example, torn bodies and pouring blood are more likely to spur an emotional reaction among women than among men. This reaction is alone capable of distorting the female's perception and/or memory.

On the other hand, men are also bound by rules concerning their testimony. For instance, they must not be parents, friends or enemies of the accused. Can we then conclude that, if it was the case for women, that male parents and friends of the accused must be considered inferior too? Of course, they are not.

Finally, one should note that there are matters where a woman is the only witness required. These are related to areas where women are the experts, for example, in issues of breast feeding, bringing up children and the question of kinship (who is her child's father).

The Veil How many times have you seen an educated veiled woman, working and acting normally on television ? Very, very rarely. On the other hand, how many times have you seen a veiled woman being hit by her husband, in tears or fighting and rioting along with fundamentalists?

Just think: What does a black 'Hijaab' veil evoke in your mind? Certainly not the image it is meant to evoke -- religious commitment and peaceful, deep-rooted faith. How many times have you seen a veiled young girl and said: "Haraam! Poor thing! She has not seen the world yet..." Is all this just a coincidence?

Veiled women today are either associated with alienation or fundamentalism. They are either looked upon with pity or fear. Have people ever asked the question: Where is the woman's will to surrender to God in this? Where is her choice of protecting her dearest possession, her body?

When Islam ordered women to wear the veil, it did it to privilege her, not constrain her:

The Quran says (what means): "O Prophet! Tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to draw upon them their over-garments. That is more appropriate so that they may be recognized and not molested." [Quran 33: 59]

The above verses show that Islam aims to protect women from being considered sexual objects. It instructs women to uncover their faces in front of their husband, close relatives whom she cannot marry (Mahaarim) and other women. In front of strangers, she must conceal everything but her face and hands.

Why does one need to show a semi-clad woman in a car's advertisement? Why do we not see a veiled woman? In the first case, because the advertisers are trying to sell the image of the woman with the car. Unconsciously, you buy the car wishing it will provide you with such a "babe." In the second case, the woman has refused to be treated as an object for trade and has worn the veil, a sign of dignity rather than humiliation. http://www.islamweb.net/ver2/archive/article.php?lang=E&id=119852

url:http://myreader.co.uk/gp/1267-1.aspx

Do not feed the Muslim troll. The troll (Faris Jawad) emigrated from
southern India to Hamilton, Canada, where he makes a living as a
computer programmer. His account has been banned because he violated
the Google Groups Terms Of Use. The troll uses many sockpuppet names
including: Islam, Ramabriga, ourfreedomandliberty@lycos.com, Cosmic
programmer, visualseeplus@yahoo.com, LeBlanc, Islamaphobia, Yaako
Warrior, globalcheckup@yahoo.ca, whileyouslept@live.ca, Matt, Anti-
Muslim Bigots, V-for-Vendicar, fruitella, Zionism equal Racism, The
Chemical Oil Nazi, LORD RAMA RANTER, Muslim With Mission, Wayne, Ian
Balchin, Qahir Al-Ashrar, Venkataraman the Biiiig Hindu, Liu Yan,
ISLAMOPHOBIA, Möbius Pretzel, Buddy III, Mujahid, V i v a P a l e s t
i n e!, Burhan, Farid Ahmed, Kope, Death to Israel..Israel has no
Right to Exist, Franko Pizza, rick murphy, rich murphy, ISLAM - THE
SOLUTION OF MODERN PROBLEMS, Faris Jawad, Sabastawi, The Founding
Church, Ilan Ramon: Kike Lost in Space. Proudly serving Islam and al
Quds, Katrina, Ahura Mazda, TROLLS HUNTER, Kayid Al-Kuffar, Firnando,
R Geovani, Blondes Gaulloises, Zimbawi, Muslims Always Victorious,
Islam Will Replace Collapsing Amerikan Empire, Muslims Are Good Folks,
Katucha, katucha is the zionists worst nightmare, We are Muslims, and
we are extremely proud of it, Born To Serve Islam, All praise is due
to Allah Lord of the Worlds, the Owner of all of the creation, Ardalan
Keykavoussi, Tommy Davis, LORD RAMA. (The 19 terrorists who attacked
our nation on September 11, 2001 used a total of 364 aliases.)

Islam is a supremacist political ideology. The Arabs, especially the
Quraish tribe, are, according to Islam, the master race of the
universe. Other Muslims are their helpers, and the rest of us are
called kuffars. According to the sharia law, Arab women cannot marry
non-Arab men because Allah has chosen the Arabs above others. The word
kuffar is as pejorative as the word nigger; it means a non-Muslim
beast in a human form. Muslims who treat the kuffars as human beings
are apostates, so they must be killed, preferably by their own
families. (According to the hadith, a special reward in paradise is
reserved for the killers of apostates.) Muslims broke world records of
genocide (270 million victims), slavery, religiously sanctioned rape,
abuse of human rights, and prohibition of scientific inquiry. Two
years after Adolf Hitler became the Chancellor, the Haavara Agreement
permitted emigration of German Jews to Palestine. Haj Amin El-
Husseini, the mufti of Jerusalem, persuaded Adolf Eichmann and Adolf
Hitler that Jews should be killed before they flee Germany. Islam
forbids Muslim emigration to the lands of the infidels because a
Muslim minority cannot enslave the infidel majority. Despite this
prohibition Muslims emigrate to the West, not as migrants, but as
conquerors. They live in sharia mini-states and expand these mini-
states by terrorizing infidel neighbors and driving them out. Any
society not willing to subjugate itself to Islamic authority is,
according to Islam, in a state of war, or Dar al-Harb, with Islam.
Arabic proverb says "first comes Saturday, then Sunday." It means that
Arabs are going to exterminate Jews before they exterminate
Christians. It also means that Israel is the first line of defense
against Islam. Another Arabic proverb (al-fikr kuffar) says that the
very act of thinking (fikr) makes one an infidel (kuffar). Islam, like
cancer, has the sole purpose of making more of itself. It will kill
our civilization unless it is cut, poisoned, and radiated into
remission.

Best ways to deal with Muslim invasion of the West:
1. Deportation to countries of their origin.
2. Deportation to Muslim-only towns guarded by the police.
3. One child per family policy reinforced with sterilization.
4. Mandatory lessons about Muslim atrocities.
5. Very strict control of Muslim clergy (mullahs).
6. Sermons (khutbah) and religious instructions must be conducted in
the local language, rather than Arabic, so that hate speech can be
easily identified.

“I have been made victorious with terror.” - Muhammad (according to
Bukhari: 4.52.220)

"Human blood is the life-line of Islam, violence its hallmark, and
hate its foundation. In the beginning, Islam lives on the blood of
infidels. When that is unavailable, or becomes difficult, Islam must
cannibalize itself." - Abul Kasem

In a poll taken for the Davos World Economic Forum, stunning numbers
of Europeans fear a "threat" from Muslims with whom they "interact":
79 percent of Danes, 67 percent of Italians, 68 percent of Spaniards,
65 percent of Swedes and 59 percent of Belgians. source:
http://www.jewishworldreview.com/0408/blankley042308.php3?printer_friendly

Islam is already the fastest-growing religion in Europe. Driven by
immigration and high birthrates, the number of Muslims on the
continent has tripled in the last 30 years. Most demographers forecast
a similar or even higher rate of growth in the coming decades. source:
http://pewforum.org/docs/index.php?DocID=60

Europe’s Muslim population is set to increase from around 13% today to
between 22% and 37% of the population by 2025. source:
http://news.scotsman.com/europeanunion/CIA-gives-grim-warning-on.2595505.jp

The average European couple now has fewer than 1.4 babies, compared to
3.6 babies born to the average Muslim immigrant couple in Europe.
Across Western Europe 16 to 20 percent of babies are being born into
Muslim families… By 2025, one-third of all European children will be
born to Muslims… In Italy, 95% of all rapists are Muslims. Eighty-five
percent of all murderers are Muslims… France will have a Muslim
majority in less than 25 years! Another telling statistic is that
although the Muslims are 12% of France's population, 70 percent of a
total of 60,775 prisoners in France are Muslims! All of France's urban
suburbs are being roamed by Muslim black African or Arabic gangs… A
very high proportion of French Muslims are in the underclass, that
segment of the population that relies not so much on education and
work as on welfare and predatory activities. In fact, over one
thousand Muslim neighborhoods are under monitoring throughout France.
Seven hundred of those Muslim neighborhoods are listed as "violent"
and nearly 400 hundred are listed as "very violent." Violence ranges
from rape (95% of rapists are Muslim), murder (85% of murderers are
Muslim), theft and looting of cars (58% committed by Muslims) and
street fighting to assault on teachers and civil servants… source:
http://www.masada2000.org/islam.html

Muslim per-capita arrest rate on terrorism-related charges in the
United States is 2.5 times higher than in Europe… If the United
States, despite the much better socio-economic standing of its
Muslims, suffers from 2.5 times more terrorism per capita than does
Europe, socio-economic improvements are unlikely to solve Europe's
problems. http://www.frontpagemag.com/Articles/Read.aspx?GUID=932DF90B-4644-49A7-A754-C263BF74DE9B

"Like children playing with dynamite, Western intellectuals,
journalists, and diplomats fantasize that they are achieving results
in the Middle East with their words, promises, apologies, money, and
concessions. Yet how can such innocents cope… with polities and
societies whose basic ruling ethos is that of the serial killer?… Can
anyone really expect a stable society capable of progress in Pakistan
when a large majority of the population expresses admiration for Usama
bin Ladin? And what about the Saudi system where, as one local writer
put it, the big Usama put into practice what the little Usama learned
in a Saudi school?… The radical forces in the region are not expecting
to retain or gain power by negotiating, compromising, or being better
understood. They believe they are going to shoot their way into power
or, just as good, accept the surrender of those they have intimidated.
That is why so much of the Western analysis and strategies for dealing
with the region are a bad joke." - Barry Rubin, source:
http://globalpolitician.com/articledes.asp?ID=3952&cid=6&sid=20

"Europe is being targeted for deliberate colonization by Muslim
states, and with coordinated efforts aimed at our Islamization and the
elimination of our freedoms. We are being subject to a foreign
invasion, and aiding and abetting a foreign invasion in any way
constitutes treason. If non-Europeans have the right to resist
colonization and desire self-determination then Europeans have that
right, too. And we intend to exercise it." - "Fjordman" source:
http://www.islam-watch.org/Fjordman/European-Declaration-Independence.htm

It is Islamic violence which threatens Holland and all of Europe.
Exactly as in the 1930s, it is the weakness of European leaders which
allows the threat to grow. Just as the League of Nations refused to
stand up to fascism in pre-WW2 Europe, the United Nations grovels
before Islam today. source: http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/2414

"There does not exist an identifiable body of Muslims, substantive in
number or an outright majority, who could be described as "moderate"
by their repudiation of Muslim extremists. Violence has been an
integral part of Muslim history, irrespective of whether it is
sanctioned by Islam, and Muslims who unhesitatingly use violence to
advance their political ambitions have created a climate within their
faith culture that any Muslim who questions such practice is then
deemed apostate and subject to harm. Consequently, what might pass for
"moderate" Muslims, the large number of Muslims unaccounted for as to
what they think, in practical terms constitute a forest within which
extremists are incubated, nurtured, given ideological and material
support, and to which they return for sanctuary." - Salim Mansur

"A Muslim apostate once suggested to me a litmus test for Westerners
who believe that Islam is a religion of peace and tolerance: try
making that point on a street corner in Ramallah, or Riyadh, or
Islamabad, or anywhere in the Muslim world. He assured me you wouldn't
live five minutes." source: http://citizenwarrior2.blogspot.com/2007/10/taqiyya-religious-deception.html

“Muslims who share the same goals as Osama bin Laden but are pursuing
them through non-violent means are celebrated by gullible Westerners
as moderates.” - Robert Spencer

65.2% Muslims favor Caliphate, 65.5% Muslims favor strict Sharia law
in every Islamic country: http://www.frontpagemag.com/Articles/ReadArticle.asp?ID=28064
(Only the Caliph can wage offensive jihad and offensive jihad is his
main duty.)

"To say that moderate Islam is the solution to radical Islam implies
several things: that moderate Islam exists; that it represents the
true (though perhaps currently disregarded) norm of Islam; and that
radical Islam is a departure from that norm." - Lawrence Auster

At what point is it okay to fight dictators like Saddam or the al
Qaeda terrorists who want to take his place? It turns out that the
answer, according to Gandhi, is NEVER. During World War II, Gandhi
penned an open letter to the British people, urging them to surrender
to the Nazis. Later, when the extent of the holocaust was known, he
criticized Jews who had tried to escape or fight for their lives as
they did in Warsaw and Treblinka. “The Jews should have offered
themselves to the butcher’s knife,” he said. “They should have thrown
themselves into the sea from cliffs.” “Collective suicide,” he told
his biographer, “would have been heroism.” source:
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=MTM1NTg1YjFhMGE5MzZjZDUzNzNhNzdkMjE2YmEyNTY

Tears of Jihad: http://www.politicalislam.com/tears/pages/tears-of-jihad

Muslim persecution of Christians: http://tinyurl.com/5rro8p
http://www.americanthinker.com/2007/07/islams_global_war_against_chri.html

American Muslim leader Khalid Abdul Muhammad speaks about whites (2
minutes): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJh_mNXPw-E

Muslims in America: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLK1Xpc7SMQ

Young Talib beheads Ghulam Nabi: http://tinyurl.com/2rb2e3

Suppressing Discussion of Islam (85 minutes, 120 MB):
http://www.newcriterion.com/cm/webcast/wc_GZq4MHNn.mp3

History of Jihad: http://www.wikiislam.com/wiki/History_of_Jihad

Islam = illiteracy, poverty and backwardness:
http://www.islam-watch.org/SujitDas/Holy-Islam-Illiteracy-Poverty-Backwardness.htm

Obsession - Radical Islam's War Against the West: http://europenews.dk/en/node/5811

Latest offerings from the religion of peace: http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/

simple.Polish.troll......
> Do not feed the Muslim troll. The troll (Faris Jawad) emigrated from

Zionist-extremism is not a horror movie. It is a horror reality.