SOME MUSLIM WOMEN MAKING A DIFFERENCE '' Seeking Knowledge is Mandatory for Every Muslim ''
Women and girls have been victims of ruthless power
struggles for centuries in all societies and cultures around the world. Sadly,
but truly, many societies including some Muslim societies continue to exercise
this patriarchy in different forms such as the denial to education, unequal
salaries compared to men in workplaces, forced marriages and prostitution,
among many others.
Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him (pbuh), came at a time
when the Arab society, like so many patriarchal
societies at that time, was rife with abhorrent practices against girls.
He preached Islam, liberating women and girls in every walk of life, education
being a prime aspect.
Let us start with the first Quranic revelation:
These verses address humankind to seek knowledge and delve
in critical thinking. The emphasis laid in the acquisition of knowledge, in the
above verses, surpasses any statement or action denying girls’ the right to
education. Had these verses only been for men, it would be inconceivable to
imagine the extent of progression that the society made in a mere twenty-three
years — the entire duration of the revelation of the Quran.
In another verse in the Quran, God says:
(This is) a Book (the Quran) which We have sent down to you,
full of blessings that they may ponder over its Verses, and that men of
understanding may remember. (38:29)
It is important to mention that the word “men” in the above
verse refers to humankind as it does so in several other places in the Quran
when God addresses humanity. These and other verses inform the readers that
engaging in critical thinking is a moral obligation on both men and women. The
Quran repetitively reminds people to ponder, think, analyze, thus using their
mind power to contemplate and understand, whilst making no distinction between
men and women.
Nigerian genius, Saheela Ibraheem, 19, made history On Thursday, February, 26, when she was honoured with an official reception in the White House by the US President, Barack Obama and the First Lady, Michelle.
Saheela Ibraheem got into the Ivy League Harvard at the age of 15, where she is currently studying neurobiology a branch of science that studies the brain and has been listed among the “World’s 50 Smartest Teenagers.” She was also accepted for admission by 13 other top colleges in the United States, including the MIT, Princeton, Columbia, and six Ivy League institutions, choosing Harvard, she became one of the youngest students to ever attend the university.
Speaking after an introductory speech by Ibraheem at the White House, President Obama stated that “there are a lot of teenagers in the world. Saheela is like one of the 50 smartest ones. That’s pretty smart. And she’s a wonderful young lady. She’s like the State Department and the National Institute of Health all rolled into one. And we are so proud of your accomplishments and all that lies ahead of you. And you reflect our history. Young people like you inspire our future.”
Ibraheem, who skipped two grades in school, said the key to success is figuring out what you love to learn as early as possible, which she did at the young age of five. “If you are passionate about what you do, and I am passionate about most of these things, especially with math and science, it will work out well,” she told CBS 2s Cindy Hsu. In addition, Ibraheem speaks four languages that include Arabic, Spanish and Latin.
The Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology School of Medical Sciences graduation saw a young lady sweep 12 out of 15 awards shattering the initial record of 8 out of 15. Fathia Ayodele Kareem, an alum of the Wesley Girls High School, was sworn in as a medical doctor where she picked up the dozen prizes to adulation on social media. An understandably overjoyed Fathia spoke to citifmonline.com and expressed her gratitude to God for seeing her through her seven year journey in medicine. The future is undoubtedly bright for Fathia and she hopes to narrow in on pediatrics/child care, a field for which she garnered the Ben Baffoe-Bonnie prize for Child Care. After seven years of studying medicine, Fathia is now a qualified doctor and is committed to helping improve healthcare in Ghana
Ibtihaj Muhammad, born in Maplewood, New Jersey, and of
Africandescent is currently ranked Number 2 in the United States and Number 8
in the world. Participation in Rio 2016
The easy thing for most athletes who spend four years striving
for a spot in the Olympics would have been to run away from the inevitable
attention that came with being the first Team USA member to wear a hijab
covering her head, to focus singularly on the competition rather than the
cultural and social impact her presence here in fencing could make.
But for Ibtihaj Muhammad, it wouldn’t have been the right
thing. In late 2002, Muhammad joined the prestigious Peter Westbrook
Foundation, a program which utilizes the sport of fencing as a vehicle to
develop life skills in young people from underserved communities.
She was invited to
train under the Westbrook Foundation's Elite Athlete Program in New York City.
She is coached by former PWF student and 2000 Sydney Olympian Akhi Spencer-El. Muhammad attended Duke University, where she received an
academic scholarship. She was a 3-time All-American and the 2005 Junior Olympic
Champion. Muhammad graduated from Duke University in 2007 with an International
Relations and African Studies double major.
Muhammad has been a member of the United States National
Fencing Team since 2010 and a 5-time Senior World medalist, including 2014
World Champion in the team event. In 2014, Muhammad launched her own clothing company,
Louella, which aims to bring modest fashionable clothing to the United States
market. She is also a sports ambassador, serving on the U.S. Department of State’s
Empowering Women and Girls Through Sport Initiative. She has traveled to
various countries to engage in dialogue on the importance of sports and
education.
In Agra, on Tuesday, a 15-year-old Muslim girl, Nazia, was
awarded the Rani Laxmibai Bravery Award by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav for
saving the life of a six-year-old Hindu girl last August. On August 7, 2015,
when Nazia, a student of Saghir Fatima Mohammadia Girls Inter College, was
returning home she heard the cries for help from Dimpy who was being forcibly
pulled on a motorcycle by two youths. Unmindful of her own safety, Nazia rushed
to the minor’s aid and managed to pull her away from her kidnappers, who then
fled the spot. It was only after she had rescued Dimpy that Nazia learnt that
she was her junior from school. Dimpy’s parents treat Nazia as their own
daughter and feel they are indebted to her for saving their child.
Talking to The Times Of India over the phone after receiving
her award, Nazia said her actions were spontaneous and she didn’t hesitate even
for a second to think about her own safety. “It was around 12.30pm when I heard
Dimpy’s cries for help. I just rushed and caught hold of her hand tightly,” she
said. “It was like a tug-of-war match for about two minutes. While they tried
pulling her away on the motorcycle, I held her with all my might,” recalled
Nazia before adding that the suspects finally gave up and fled.
Nazia said since the incident happened near Sadarbhatti
area, which is just 100m from their school, she rushed to inform their
principal of the incident. “Dimpy was crying. After school authorities informed
police, I took her home to her parents,” she said. They now treat me like their
daughter and Dimpy calls her ‘didi’, Nazia added. When contacted, Dimpy said
she was very happy that ‘didi’ had been awarded for her bravery. “Agar didi uss
din na hoti to woh log mujhe le jaate (Had ‘didi’ not been there for me that
day, those people would have surely taken me away),” she said. Describing the
award ceremony as a moment of pride of her, Nazia said she would do the same if
something like this ever happens again. The award also carries a cheque of Rs 1
lakh.
The 2016 Oscars may have been riddled with controversy about nominating only White actors, but let’s not forget to acknowledge some serious groundbreaking wins from Muslim filmmakers.
This year, two of them have taken home the wins in both the
shorts and feature categories for documentaries!
Pakistani-Canadian filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy has won
an Academy Award for “A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness” in the
category of best documentary (short subject). The film features the story of an
18-year-old Pakistani honor killing survivor as well as the rampant other cases
persisting in rural villages of Pakistan.
This film is the latest in a series of investigative shorts
from her Karachi-based film company SOC Films, which highlight social issues
not often covered on mainstream platforms. She previously won another Academy
Award for “Saving Face” in 2012, about acid attacks in the same category.
Kapadia has previously won four BAFTAs for “Amy,” “Senna”
and “The Warrior” as well as a Grammy Award for “Amy.”
A 12-year-old Muslim girl, studying in Class 6 of a Mira Road school in Mumbai, secured the first place in a Bhagwad Gita competition organised by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) last month. Mariyam Asif Siddiqui, a student of Cosmopolitan High School in Mira Road, won the contest from among 4,500 students who appeared for the competition.
She received the first prize in an inter-school competition
for explaining the teachings of the holy book.
Mariam Kadri, daughter of Asif Naseem Siddiqui, an editor of
a local political magazine called Bartaman News, said, “My parents encouraged
me to take part in the competition with a view that there is no need to hate
any particular religion and it is important to know about the epics from
religions to which they do not belong.”
Mariyam said she learned from Bhagwad Gita that humanity is
the biggest religion in this world. "It was very interesting to read
Bhagwad Gita as I have got a lot of information about life from it. The holy
book has taught me the golden rules of life. It says that though there are many
religions but humanity is the biggest religion among all," Mariyam said.
Students from more than 150 schools in Mumbai, Thane and
Navi Mumbai had participated in "Shrimad Bhagwad Gita Champion
League" organised by ISKCON, which included recitation of the Gita in
English along with a written test conducted, in February. The prizes were
distributed on March 15.
Siddiqui, her father, said, “These kids are the future of
our nation. They should not be divided by religions and should be taught to
respect all religions. We encouraged Mariam to recite the Gita, though in
English, to make her understand the importance of the Mahabharata in Hindu
religion. We also wish to teach her about different religions.”
"We are delighted. She prepared a whole month for the contest," he told PTI.
The English version of the holy book was given to students
for a month for preparation purpose. A teacher was also appointed to help
students understand the book in detail.
After a month, a written examination was held with 100
questions.
Asif said he is happy and a proud father as his daughter has
shown a keen interest in reading a holy book of other religion.
"I have told children to respect every religion as they
show us the right path," he said.
British-Palestinian Leanne Mohamad has won a 2015-16 Speak Out Regional Challenge held in London following a moving speech about the Nakba and its effects on Palestinian society. She will now be progressing on to the national finals.
Leanne, from Al-Burj Al-Shamali refugee camp in Lebanon, is
a student at Wanstead High School in London. She joined the Speak Out Challenge
giving a speech entitled “Birds not Bombs”.
In it Leanne spoke about the suffering of the Palestinian refugees since
1948 and how even children are discriminated against because of their
nationality.
She also spoke about the continuous Israeli assaults and
violations against the Palestinian people, as well as the threat of bombing.
Leanne gave an example of a one-year-old baby, who had
cancer and died because he could not receive proper treatment due to travel
restrictions imposed by the Israeli siege on the Gaza Strip.
The Palestinian girl also criticised those who describe
people as terrorists because their own religions, saying that people should not
be discriminated against due to their culture, origin or religion
The "Crush" singer plans to make her way down the East Coast of the U.S. with stops planned in D.C., Philadelphia, NYC, Atlanta, New Orleans, Dallas and many other cities. There are currently no West Coast or Midwest tour dates, but hopefully more dates will be added later. The international songstress has been making a name for herself with performances around the world, mesmerizing audiences with her unique pop-R&B sound. Judging from her past shows and a recent live showing of "Used To Love Me" on Late Night with Seth Meyers, Yuna is definitely someone you should check out at a venue near you.
In 2013, she was awarded the MILEAD Fellowship as one of 27 most promising women leaders in Africa by the Moremi Initiative for Women’s Leadership in Africa.
She is also A World at School Global Youth Ambassador, a Global Startup Youth, a Fellow of the International Development Summer Institute and a 2015 Fellow of Vital Voices. She has also been named among 200 young leaders by Women Deliver with a 3 year fellowship award.
She is also A World at School Global Youth Ambassador, a Global Startup Youth, a Fellow of the International Development Summer Institute and a 2015 Fellow of Vital Voices. She has also been named among 200 young leaders by Women Deliver with a 3 year fellowship award.
Hikmat holds a BA in Sociology and Social Work (major) with Political Science (minor) from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Ghana. She received various awards at the KNUST including the Personality of the Year Award (2012) at the Vice Chancellor’s Excellence Awards, KNUST where she served as a proactive student leader. She is currently pursuing an MPhil in Development Studies at the University for Development Studies (UDS), Ghana.
Ruka Yaro De-Liman is the founder and CEO of Jamilullah Farm Enterprise, a teacher and a philanthropist with a passion for helping the less-privileged in society. She is currently the President for Camfed Alumni (CAMA) in the Sagnarigu District in the Northen Region. Working as a Business Trainer for Camfed Ghana she has trained over 500 young women to become Financial Literacy Peer Educators who in turn, have trained over 10,000 community members in financial management.
Coming from a humble background, Ruka has used the entrepreneurial skills she gained from her experience as a Business Trainer to establish a Farm in her community that raises and processes poultry in order to create employment for young people in her community - especially young women.
Ruka believes that if young minds would shift focus from depending on the government for jobs to creating jobs for themselves the plight of high unemployment would be drastically reduced.
She holds a degree in Integrated Development Studies from the University for Development Studies in Ghana.
Rasheeda Mandeeya Yehuza founder Nasara Tech Ltd, She is passionate about technology and how we can apply it to improve development in Ghana and in Africa at-large.
Rasheeda currently works as a software engineer at VOTO Mobile, which provides a platform to amplify the voice of the under-heard and under-represented via a mobile phone notification and survey platform.
In 2013, Rasheeda founded Nasara Tech Ltd, a technology-focused company that creates solutions to problems identified in local communities, and accordingly can be applied worldwide. She has led and managed the development of Nasara Tech's two in-house products, Nasara Mobile and The Nasara Voting System, as well as custom application projects for specific client needs. With her keen knowledge of technology and programming, she has also built computer games such as Buju Hunt and Sphere Attack and has developed desktop applications, including the snapso shutdown manager and web browser as freewares which can be found on softpedia
As part of her commitment to social entrepreneurship, Rasheeda co-founded Tech Needs Girls Ghana, an interactive workshop for girls in Ghana. The workshop involves a hands-on session where girls learn to develop mobile and web applications, interact with software that teaches them more about STEM, and provides mentoring for female technologists. Rasheeda has instructed and mentored at several Tech Needs Girls events and has spoken at youth and girl education camps around Ghana to help raise the awareness for females in information technology
Ms Abubakari Kawusada, PROGRAMME MANAGER, GENDER AND GOVERNANCE Coordinator of NORSAAC's 'The Young Urban Woman: Life Choices and Livelihood Project. Dedicated to championing an improved quality of life for empowered women, youth, and marginalized groups asserting their rights, NORSAAC actively engages in community and policy-based work in the following four areas: Sexual Rights and Reproductive Health, Gender and Governance, Livelihood and Entrepreneurial Development, and Education.
Ms Kawusada Abubakar on Women and Environment
A newly-introduced cooking stove, which is made from ordinary clay, cow dung, sea sand, water and rice stocks, according to the Northern Regional Director of the EPA, Mr. Iddrisu Abu, was aimed at fighting or reducing the effects of climate change and also control the indiscriminate cutting down of trees for cooking purposes in the rural area. Programme Officer at NORSAAC, Ms Kawusada Abubakari, explained that the NGO, in collaboration with Ibis Ghana and the EPA, had identified women as the majority of people whose activities contribute to climate change.
She said that NORSAAC's involvement in the fight against climate change was born out of the fact that the majority of the women in Ghana, and for that matter the northern regions, have their livelihoods largely dependent on the forest or environment, hence the need for them to protect and respect the environment.
She was optimistic that the new cooking stove would reduce the rate at which the women cut down trees, and also reduce their frequent visits to the bush for firewood, which sometimes results in snake bites among other hazards.
Source; Leadership.ng citifmonline.com TheYirifa Wikipedia USA Today yourstory.com .hindustantimes.com .middleeastmonitor.com http://www.whyislam.org/
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