WOMEN’S RIGHTS
IN ISLAM
When: Wednesday, May 23, 2007;
6:30 to 9 p.m.
Where: House of the Association
( 42 West 44 th Street)
As part of the New York City Bar Association’s
continuing program of the study and discussion
of Islamic Law, we have brought together an outstanding
panel to present a spectrum of analysis of one
of its most challenging areas: the treatment
of women in both theory and practice around the
Muslim world and in the United States . This
is an important opportunity to understand an
issue that is not only on the front pages, but
also is of critical importance in bridging relationships
between the post-Enlightenment West and traditional
and modern Islam, both Sunni and Shi’a.
Under the Quran and original 7 th Century traditions,
Women’s Rights in Islam were far more egalitarian
than virtually all of their contemporaries. But
as with so many other areas of Islamic law, for
theological and theocratic reasons, its development
did not match that of Western Europe during the
second millennium. Repressive customs and traditions
and anti-feminist jurisprudence have created
a number of economic and personal hurdles for
women throughout the Muslim world. Our speakers
will explore a host of those and what is being
done here and around the world to foster improved
legal rights and opportunities for Muslim women.
This is a free public program. Reporters are
invited to cover the event, attend for their
own edification, or to cultivate Islamic law
sources for future stories. Reporters are encouraged
to confirm their attendance by calling Michael
Silverstein at (212) 382-6656 or by e-mail at msilverstein@nycbar.org.
This event is co-sponsored by the New York Women’s
Bar Association and the Muslim Bar Association
of New York.
Moderator:
ROBERT E. MICHAEL, Chair, Committee on Foreign
and Comparative Law.
Speakers:
PROFESSOR MARION HOLMES KATZ, of the Department
of Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies of New
York university. . Topic: “Women’s
Rights under classical Islamic Law.”
Farida Deif, Middle East and North Africa Researcher
for the Women's Rights Division of Human Rights
Watch. Topic: “Women’s Rights in
practice today in Muslim-majority countries;
including Egypt, Libya, Jordan, the Occupied
Palestinian Territories, and Saudi Arabia.”
Saleemah Abdul-Ghafur , author of Living
Islam Out Loud – American Muslim
Women Speak. Topic: “American Muslim
women – religious and practical challenges
and opportunities.”
ABED AWAD, practicing lawyer, Adjunct Professor
Rutgers Law School, Board Member of KARAMAH (Muslim
Women Lawyers for Human Rights). Topic: “Representing
Muslim women in family and domestic disputes.”
JANET BENSHOOF, President and Founder of the
Global Justice Center , lecturer in human rights
and gender at Harvard Law School , leader of
training programs for Iraqi women lawyers and
judges. Topic: “Opportunities and Challenges
for Women Lawyers and Judges in the Muslim World.”
