Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Daddy Can you give me 10$ ?

A man came home from work late, tired and irritated, to find his 5 year old son waiting for him at the door.

"Daddy, may I ask you a question?"

"Yeah, sure, what is it?" replied the man.

"Daddy, how much money do you make an hour?"

"That's none of your business! What makes you ask such a thing?" the man said angrily.

"I just want to know. Please tell me, how much do you make an hour?" pleaded the little boy.

"If you must know, I make $20.00 an hour."

"Oh, " the little boy replied, head bowed. Looking up, he said, "Daddy, may I borrow $10.00 please?"

The father was furious. "If the only reason you want to know how much money I make is just so you can borrow some to buy a silly toy or some other nonsense, then you march yourself straight to your room and go to bed. Think about why you're being so selfish. I work long, hard hours everyday and don't have time for such childish games."

The little boy quietly went to his room and shut the door. The man sat down and started to get even madder about the little boy's questioning. How dare he ask such questions only to get some money. After an hour or so , the man had calmed down, and started to think he may have been a little hard on his son. May be there was something he really needed to buy with that $10.00 and he really didn't ask for money very often. The man went to the door of the little boy's room and opened the door. "Are you asleep son?" he asked.

"No daddy, I'm awake," replied the boy.

"I've been thinking, maybe I was too hard on you earlier," said the man. "It's been a long day and I took my aggravation out on you. Here's that $10.00 you asked for."

The little boy sat straight up, beaming. "Oh, thank you daddy!" he yelled. Then, reaching under his pillow, he pulled out some more crumpled up bills. The man, seeing that the boy already had money, started to get angry again. The little boy slowly counted out his money, then looked up at the man.

"Why did you want more money if you already had some?" the father grumbled.

"Because I didn't have enough, but now I do," the little boy replied. "Daddy, I have $20.00 now... Can I buy an hour of your time?"

Sunday, July 15, 2007

***OPERATION DEATH ***

It was early in the morning at four.
When death knocked upon a bedroom door.
"Who is there?" the sleeping one cried.
"I'm Izrael, let me inside."

At once, the man began to shiver,
as one sweating in deadly fever, he
shouted to his sleeping wife,
"Don't let him take away my life."

"Please go away, O Angel of Death!
Leave me alone, I'm not ready yet.
My family on me depend, give me a chance,
O please prepense!"

The Angel knocked again and again,
"Friend! I'll take your life without a pain,
'It is your soul Allah require,
I come not with my own desire.

Bewildered, the man began to cry,
"O Angel! I'm so afraid to die
I'll give you gold and be your slave,
don't send me to the unlit grave."

"Let me in, O Friend!" the Angel said,
"Open the door, get up from your bed.
If you do not allow me in,
I will walk through it, like a Jinn."

The man held a gun in his right hand,
ready to defy the Angel's stand,
"I'll point my gun, towards your head.
You dare come in, I'll shoot you dead."
By now, the Angel was in the room,
Saying, "O Friend! prepare for your doom.
Foolish man, Angels never die,
Put down your gun and do not sigh."

"Why are you afraid! Tell me O man,
to die according to Allah's plan?
Come, smile at me, do not be grim,
be happy to return to Him."

"O Angel! I bow my head in shame,
I had no time to take Allah's name.
From morn till dusk I made my wealth,
not even caring for my health."

"Allah's commands I never obeyed
nor five times a day I ever prayed.
A Ramadan came and Ramadan went but
no time had I to repent."

"The Haj was already fard on me
But I would not part with my money.
All charities I did ignore taking usury more and more."

"Sometimes I sipped my favorite wine
with flirting women I sat to dine.
O Angel! I appeal to you spare my life for a year or two."

"The Laws of Qur'an I will obey,
I'll begin Salat this very day.
My Fast and Haj, I will complete,
and keep away from self conceit."

"I will refrain from usury,
and give all my wealth to charity, wine
and wenches I will detest,
Allah's oneness I will attest."

"We Angels do what Allah demands,
we cannot go against His commands.
Death is ordained for everyone,
father, mother, daughter or son."

"I'm afraid, this moment is your last,
now be reminded, of your past.
I do understand your fears
but it is now too late for tears."

"You lived in this world, two score and more,
Never did you, your people adore.
Your parents, you did not obey,
hungry beggars, you turned away."

"Your two ill-gotten, female offsprings,
in night-clubs, for livelihood they sing.
Instead of making more Muslims,
you made your children non-Muslims."

"You ignored the Mu'athin's Athaan,
nor did you read the Holy Qur'an.
Breaking promises all your life,
backbiting friends, and causing strife."

"From hoarded goods, great profits
you made, and your poor workers,
you underpaid.
Horses and cards were your leisure,
money-making was your pleasure."

"You ate vitamins and grew more fat,
with the very sick, you never sat.
A pint of blood you never gave,
which could a little baby save."

"O human, you have done enough wrong,
you bought good properties for a song.
When the farmers appealed to you,
you did not have mercy, 'tis true."

"Paradise for you? I cannot tell,
undoubtedly you will dwell in hell.
There's no time for you to repent,
I'll take your soul for which I'm sent."

The ending, however, is very sad.
Eventually the man became mad.
With a cry, he jumped out of bed.
And suddenly, he fell down dead.

O Reader! take a moral from here,
you never know, your end may be near.
Change your living and make amends,
for heaven, on your deeds depends.

With du'a
Wassalamu'alaikum wa Rahmatullah wa Barakatuh
====================================
"Life is such a wonderful gift......"

Thursday, July 12, 2007

Who I Am !

An Excellent poem about the Muslim Woman.

What do you see
when you look at me
Do you see someone limited,
or someone free

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All some people can do is just look and stare
Simply because they can't see my hair

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Others think I am controlled and uneducated
They think that I am limited and un-liberated

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They are so thankful that they are not me
Because they would like to remain 'free'

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Well free isn't exactly the word I would've used
Describing women who are cheated on and abused

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They think that I do not have opinions or voice
They think that being hooded isn't my choice

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They think that the hood makes me look caged
That my husband or dad are totally outraged

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All they can do is look at me in fear
And in my eye there is a tear

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Not because I have been stared at or made fun of
But because people are ignoring the one up above

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On the day of judgment they will be the fools
Because they were too ashamed to play by their own rules

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Maybe the guys won't think I am a cutie
But at least I am filled with more inner beauty

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See I have declined from being a guy's toy
Because I won't let myself be controlled by a boy

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Real men are able to appreciate my mind
And aren't busy looking at my behind

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Hooded girls are the ones really helping the muslim cause
The role that we play definitely deserves applause

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I will be recognized because I am smart and bright
And because some people are inspired by my sight

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The smart ones are attracted by my tranquility
In the back of their mind they wish they were me

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We have the strength to do what we think is right
Even if it means putting up a life long fight

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You see we are not controlled by a mini skirt and tight shirt
We are given only respect, and never treated like dirt

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So you see, we are the ones that are free and liberated
We are not the ones that are sexually terrorized and violated

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We are the ones that are free and pure
We're free of STD's that have no cure

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So when people ask you how you feel about the hood
Just sum it up by saying 'baby its all good' ;)

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Monday, July 2, 2007

Veil: the View From the Inside

Should we not listen to the woman who was raised and educated in the West, had first hand experience of the status of women in this society, then studied Islam and observed the life behind the veil, decided to cross the fence against all the propaganda about immediate doom, and has enjoyed life ever since? That woman does not exist in the propaganda world. She is never allowed to speak on the pages of "prestigious" publications. She has no rights! She is the one you should be listening to, to find the truth. She speaks on these pages. Listen to her.

By Nakata Khaula


Do Muslim Women Have Rights?

Anyone whose sole source of knowledge about Islam has been the Western media, "knows" that Islam "oppresses" women. The hijab or veil, is the symbol of such "oppression." To "liberate" Muslim women from such "oppression" has been the cherished goal of media pundits, Western "experts" on Islam, and the feminists.

Such is the result of a fierce propaganda campaign that has been going on for a very long time. The attack has been so ferocious that the veil and all the aspects of Shariah (Islamic laws) dealing with women should have pulverized under its intense heat. Yet in the U.S., the Western Europe, Japan and Australia, it is the women who have been turning to Islam in record numbers. It was not supposed to happen! And when it does, the propaganda machinery does not acknowledge it. It just puts a little more pressure on the accelerator.

There is something to be said about the N.Y. Times or L.A. Times reporter who will travel half way around the world to interview a woman with a Muslim sounding name in, say, Pakistan to talk about the Shariah's injustices to the women, while ignoring the Muslim women in their own backyard who have experienced both worlds and love the Islamic one --- hijab and all. The reporter travels not in search of truth, but only believability. For, the truth hurts; believability, on the other hand, is the foundation for building circulation and for propaganda.

Should not we listen to the woman who was raised and educated in the west, had first hand experience of the status of women in this society, then studied Islam and observed the life behind the veil, decided to cross the fence against all the propaganda about immediate doom, and has enjoyed life ever since? That woman does not exist in the propaganda world. She is never allowed to speak on the pages of "prestigious" publications. She has no rights! She is the one you should be listening to, to find the truth. She speaks on these pages. Listen to her.

Note: This article was taken from the magazine Impact.

Back to Top

Veil: The View From The Inside

When I returned to Islam, the religion of our inborn nature, a fierce debate raged about girls observing the hijab at schools in France. It still does. The majority, it seemed, thought that wearing the head-scarf was contrary to the principle that public - that is state-funded - schools should be neutral with regard to religion. Even as a non-Muslim, I could not understand why there was such a fuss over such a small thing as a scarf on a Muslim student' s head.

Muslims contributed a proportionate amount of tax to the state funds. In my opinion, schools could respect religious beliefs and practices of students as long as they did not disrupt the school routine, nor pose a threat to discipline. However, the French faced, apparently, increasing unemployment and they felt insecure about the immigration of Arab workers. The sight of the hijab in their towns and schools aggravated such insecurity.

More and more young people in Arab countries were ( and are ) wearing the hijab, despite the expectations of many Arabs and non-Arabs alike that it would disappear as Western secularism took root in Arab societies. Such a revival of Islamic practices is often regarded as an attempt by Muslims to restore their pride and identity, both undermined by colonialism. In Japan, it may be seen and understood as conservative traditionalism, or the result of anti-Western feeling, something which the Japanese themselves experienced following the first contact with Western culture during the Meiji era; they too reacted against a non-traditional lifestyle and Western dress. There is a tendency for people to be conservative in their ways and to react against anything new and unfamiliar without taking the time to see if it is good or bad.

The feeling still persists amongst non-Muslims that Muslim women wear the hijab simply because they are slaves to tradition, so much so that it is seen as a symbol of oppression. Women' s liberation and independence is, so they believe, impossible unless they first remove the hijab.

Such naivete is shared by "Muslims" with little or no knowledge of Islam. Being so used to secularism and religious eclecticism, pick and mix, they are unable to comprehend that Islam is universal and eternal. This apart, women all over the world, non-Arabs, are embracing Islam and wearing the hijab as a religious requirement, not a misdirected sense of "tradition." I am but one example of such women. My hijab is not a part of my racial or traditional identity; it has no social or political significance; it is, purely and simply, my religious identity.

For non-Muslims, the hijab not only covers a woman' s hair, but also hides something, leaving them no access. They are being excluded from something which they have taken for granted in secular society.

I have worn the hijab since embracing Islam in Paris. The exact form of the hijab varies according to the country one is in, or the degree of the individual' s religious awareness. In France I wore a simple scarf which matched my dress and perched lightly on my head so that it was almost fashionable! Now, in Saudi Arabia, I wear an all-covering black cape; not even my eyes are visible. Thus, I have experienced the hijab from its simplest to its most complete form.

What does the hijab mean to me? Although there have been many books and articles about the hijab, they always tend to be written from an outsider's point of view; I hope this will allow me to explain what I can observe from the inside, so to speak. When I decided to declare my Islam, I did not think whether I could pray five times a day or wear the hijab. Maybe I was scared that if I had given it serious thought I would have reached a negative conclusion, and that would affect my decision to become a Muslim. Until I visited the main mosque in Paris I had nothing to do with Islam; neither the prayers nor the hijab were familiar to me. In fact, both were unimaginable but my desire to be a Muslim was too strong (Alhamdulilah) for me to be overly concerned with what awaited me on the "other side" of my conversion.

The benefits of observing hijab became clear to me following a lecture at the mosque when I kept my scarf on even after leaving the building. The lecture had filled me with such a previously unknown spiritual satisfaction that I simply did not want to remove it. Because of the cold weather, I did not attract too much attention but I did feel different, somehow purified and protected; I felt as if I was in Allah' s company. As a foreigner in Paris, I sometimes felt uneasy about being stared at by men. In my hijab I went unnoticed, protected from impolite stares.

My hijab made me happy; it was both a sign of my obedience to Allah and a manifestation of my faith. I did not need to utter beliefs, the hijab stated them clearly for all to see, especially fellow Muslims, and thus it helped to strengthen the bonds of sisterhood in Islam. Wearing the hijab soon became spontaneous, albeit purely voluntary. No human being could force me to wear it; if they had, perhaps I would have rebelled and rejected it. However, the first Islamic book I read used very moderate language in this respect, saying that "Allah recommends it (the hijab) strongly" and since Islam (as the word itself indicates) means we are to obey Allah' s will I accomplished my Islamic duties willingly and without difficulty, Alhamdulilah.

The hijab reminds people who see it that God exists, and it serves as a constant reminder to me that I should conduct myself as a Muslim. Just as police officers are more professionally aware while in uniform, so I had a stronger sense of being a Muslim wearing my hijab.

Two weeks after my return to Islam, I went back to Japan for a family wedding and took the decision not to return to my studies in France; French literature had lost its appeal and the desire to study Arabic had replaced it. As a new Muslim with very little knowledge of Islam it was a big test for me to live in a small town in Japan completely isolated from Muslims. However, this isolation intensified my Islamic consciousness, and I knew that I was not alone as Allah was with me. I had to abandon many of my clothes and, with some help from a friend who knew dress- making, I made some pantaloons, similar to Pakistani dress. I was not bothered by the strange looks the people gave me!

After six months in Japan, my desire to study Arabic grew so much that I decided to go to Cairo, where I knew someone. None of my host family there spoke English (or Japanese!) and the lady who took my hand to lead me into the house was covered from head to toe in black. Even her face was covered. Although this is now familiar to me here in Riyadh, I remember being surprised at the time, recalling an incident in France when I had seen such dress and thought, "there is a woman enslaved by Arabic tradition, unaware of real Islam," (which, I believed, taught that covering the face was not a necessity, but an ethnic tradition).

I wanted to tell the lady in Cairo that she was exaggerating her dress, that it was unnatural and abnormal. Instead, I was told that my self-made dress was not suitable to go out in, something I disagreed with since I understood that it satisfied the requirements for a Muslimah. But, when in Rome . . . So I bought some cloth and made a long dress, called khimar, which covered the loins and the arms completely. I was even ready to cover my face, something most of the sisters with whom I became acquainted did. They were, though, a small minority in Cairo.

Generally-speaking, young Egyptians, more or less fully westernized, kept their distance from women wearing khimar and called them "the sisters." Men treated us with respect and special politeness. Women wearing a khimar shared a sisterhood which lived up to the Prophet' s saying (Allah' s blessings and peace on him) that "a Muslim gives his salaam to the person he crosses in the street, whether he knows him or not." The sisters were, it is probably true to say, more conscious of their faith than those who wear scarves for the sake of custom, rather than for the sake of Allah.

Before becoming a Muslimah, my preference was for active pants-style clothes, not the more feminine skirt, but the long dress I wore in Cairo pleased me; I felt elegant and more relaxed. In the western sense, black is a favorite color for evening wear as it accentuates the beauty of the wearer. My new sisters were truly beautiful in their black khimar, and a light akin to saintliness shone from their faces. Indeed, they are not unlike Roman Catholic nuns, something I noticed particularly when I had occasion to visit Paris soon after arriving in Saudi Arabia. I was in the same Metro carriage as a nun and I smiled at our similarity of dress. Hers was the symbol of her devotion to God, as is that of a Muslimah. I often wonder why people say nothing about the veil of the Catholic nun but criticize vehemently the veil of a Muslimah, regarding it as a symbol of` "terrorism" and "oppression." I did not mind abandoning colorful clothes in favor of black; in fact, I had always had a sense of longing for the religious lifestyle of a nun even before becoming a Muslimah!

Nevertheless, I balked at the suggestion that I should wear my khimar back in Japan. I was angry at the sister' s lack of understanding: Islam commands us to cover our bodies, and as long as this is done, one may dress as desired. Every society has its own fashions and such long black clothes in Japan could make people think I am crazy, and reject Islam even before I could explain its teachings. Our argument revolved around this aspect.

After another six months in Cairo, however, I was so accustomed to my long dress that I started to think that I would wear it on my return to Japan. My concession was that I had some dresses made in light colors, and some white khimars, in the belief that they would be less shocking in Japan than the black variety.

I was right. The Japanese reacted rather well to my white khimars, and they seemed to be able to guess that I was of a religious persuasion. I heard one girl telling her friend that I was a Buddhist nun; how similar a Muslimah, a Buddhist nun and a Christian nun are! Once, on a train, the elderly man next to me asked why I was dressed in such unusual fashion. When I explained that I was a Muslimah and that Islam commands women to cover their bodies so as not to trouble men who are weak and unable to resist temptation, he seemed impressed. When he left the train he thanked me and said that he would have liked more time to speak to me about Islam.

In this instance, the hijab prompted a discussion on Islam with a Japanese man who would not normally be accustomed to talking about religion. As in Cairo, the hijab acted as a means of identification between Muslims; I found myself on the way to a study circle wondering if I was on the right route when I saw a group of sisters wearing the hijab. We greeted each other with salaam and went on to the meeting together.

My father was worried when I went out in long sleeves and a head-cover even in the hottest weather, but I found that my hijab protected me from the sun. Indeed, it was I who also felt uneasy looking at my younger sister' s legs while she wore short pants. I have often been embarrassed, even before declaring Islam, by the sight of a women' s bosoms and hips clearly outlined by tight, thin clothing. I felt as if I was seeing something secret. If such a sight embarrasses me, one of the same sex, it is not difficult to imagine the effect on men. In Islam, men and women are commanded to dress modestly and not be naked in public, even in all male or all female situations.

It is clear that what is acceptable to be bared in society varies according to societal or individual understanding. For example, in Japan fifty years ago it was considered vulgar to swim in a swimming suit but now bikinis are the norm. If, however, a woman swam topless she would be regarded as shameless. To go topless on the south coast of France, however, is the norm. On some beaches in America, nudists lie as naked as the day they were born. If a nudist were to ask a "liberated" female who rejects the hijab why she still covers her bosoms and hips which are as natural as her hands and face could she give an honest answer? The definition of what part of a woman' s body should remain private to her is altered to suit the whims and fancies of either men or their surrogates, the so-called feminists. But in Islam we have no such problems: Allah has defined what may and may not be bared, and we follow.

The way people walk around naked (or almost so), excreting or making love in public, robs them of the sense of shame and reduces them to the status of animals. In Japan, women only wear makeup when they go out and have little regard for how they look at home. In Islam a wife will try to look beautiful for her husband and her husband will try to look good for his wife. There is modesty even between husband and wife and this embellishes the relationship.

Muslims are accused of being over-sensitive about the human body but the degree of sexual harassment which occurs these days justifies modest dress. Just as a short skirt can send the signal that the wearer is available to men, so the hijab signals, loud and clear: "I am forbidden for you."

The Prophet, Allah's blessings and peace on him, once asked his daughter Fatima, May Allah be pleased with her, "What is the best for a woman?" And she replied: "Not to see men and not to be seen by them." The Prophet, Allah' s blessings and peace on him, was pleased and said: "You are truly my daughter." This shows that it is preferable for a woman to stay at home and avoid contact with male strangers as much as possible. Observing the hijab, when one goes outside, has the same effect.

Having married, I left Japan for Saudi Arabia, where it is customary for the women to cover their face outdoors. I was impatient to try the niqab (face cover), and curious to know how it felt. Of course, non-Muslim women generally wear a black cloak, rather non-chalantly thrown over their shoulders but do not cover their faces; Non-Saudi Muslim women also often keep their faces uncovered.

Once accustomed to, the niqab is certainly not inconvenient. In fact I felt like the owner of a secret masterpiece, a treasure which you can neither know about, nor see. Whereas non-Muslims may think they are life imitating caricatures when they see Muslim couples walk in the streets, the oppressed, and the oppressor, the possessed, and the possessor, the reality is that the women feel like queens being led by servants.

My first niqab left my eyes uncovered. But in winter I wore a fine eye-covering as well. All the feelings of un-ease when a man's eyes met mine disappeared. As with sun glasses, the visual intrusion of strangers was prevented.

It is an error of judgment to think that a Muslim woman covers herself because she is a private possession of her husband. In fact, she preserves her dignity and refuses to be possessed by strangers. It is non-Muslim (and "liberated" Muslim) women who are to be pitied for displaying their private self for all to see.

Observing the hijab from outside, it is impossible to see what it hides. The gap, between being outside and looking in, and being inside and looking out, explains in part the void in the understanding of Islam. An outsider may see Islam as restricting Muslims. In side, however, there is peace, freedom, and joy, which those who experience it have never known before. Practicing Muslims, whether those born in Muslim families or those returned to Islam, choose Islam rather than the illusory freedom of secular life. If it oppresses women, why are so many well-educated young women in Europe, America, Japan, Australia, indeed all over the world, abandoning "liberty" and "independence" and embracing Islam?

A person blinded by prejudice may not see it, but a woman in hijab is as brightly beautiful as an angle, full of self-confidence, serenity, and dignity. No signs of oppression scar her face. "For indeed it is not the eyes that grow blind, but it is the hearts within the bosoms, that grow blind," says the Qur'an (Al-Hajj 22:46). How else can we explain the great gap in understanding between us and such people?

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PostScript: The Life Without the Hijab

  • Beatings by husbands and boy friends are the leading cause of injuries to the U.S. women. (surgeon general's report.)
  • According to the FBI, a battering incident occurs every 18 seconds in the U.S., and 30% of female homicide victims are killed by their husbands or boyfriends. In October 1992, the Senate Judiciary Committee found that at least 1.1 million assaults against women in the home were reported in 1991. By some estimates 3 million more such crimes go unreported each year.
  • Rule of Thumb: Under English Common Law a husband was allowed to beat his wife if he used modertion, as in a stick no thicker than a thumb.
  • 42% of women in the U.S. military are sexually assaulted.
  • Three out of four women will be victims of violent crimes. And one out of five will be raped in their life time.
  • A woman is raped every six minutes.
  • Every other U.S. woman has been approached by at least one person who tried to rape her.
  • "Thirteen year old rapists are no uncommon, neither are 8 year old victims." (N. Y. Times 13 June 89).
  • "More than a third of women slain in this country die at the hands of husbands or boyfriends, and domestic violence is the single largest cause of injuries to women in the United States. The home is actually a more dangerous place for American women than city streets." [ U.S. Surgeon Geberal Dr. Anotnia C. Novello, 20 Oct 91]
  • "During 1985-1990 more than half of all births to 18- and 19- year old women in the U.S. were out of wedlock." [Census Bureau Report, N.Y. time s4 Dec 91]
http://www.albalagh.net/women/hijab.shtml

And They Called it Women's Liberation

How Women Were Lured Out of the Home in the USA

By Areeba bint Khalid

From the 1800s to the present day, family life in the West has remarkably changed. While the West calls this change part of the women freedom movement, a look at history may show otherwise.

America before the 1800s was a farming country and ninety percent of the population lived and worked on private farms. Households were mainly self-sufficient--nearly everything needed was produced in the house. The few things that could not be produced at home were bought from local craftsmen. Some other things, especially imports from Europe, were bought from stores. Males would take care of the fields and females would take care of the home. In addition, they would engage in spinning, knitting, weaving, and taking care of the farm animals.

Industrial Revolution

The Industrial Revolution, which began around the early 1800s, brought a major change to this way of life. In 1807, in the wake of the war between Great Britain and France, President Jefferson signed the Embargo Act, which stopped all trade between Europe and America. The Act meant that European goods would no longer be available in the US and Americans would have to produce them. One major European import to America was cloth, and so merchants used this opportunity to create a cloth industry in America.

In 1814, Francis Cabot Lowell, a man from Boston opened the first modern factory. Work here was to be done way faster than before. Instead of manually making things in houses, things were to be made at higher speeds in a factory and all stages of the work were to be completed under the same roof. Now what Lowell needed were workers. He found out that women, especially unmarried daughters of the farmers, were more economical to use in labor than men. They were also more willing to work as hired people in factories.

But Lowell had to make the working outside of home acceptable in a society which was not used to it. He assured parents that their daughters would be taken care of and kept under discipline. And he built a boarding community where the women workers lived and worked together.

Soon after, more and more factories emerged across America. Factory owners followed Lowell's example of hiring unmarried women. By 1850 most of the country's goods were made in factories. As production of goods moved from the country to the city, people too moved from the country to the city.

For money to be earned, people had to leave their homes. When women worked on the farm, it was always possible to combine work and family. When work for women moved outside the home, however, the only women who could follow it were those without family responsibilities or those who had no husband or no income. Likewise, the only women who could take care of their families were the ones that didn't have work.

This working out of home became a part of life for unmarried women. They would work until their marriage. But as time passed, women found family life interfering with their work life and instead of viewing working out of home as optional, they viewed family life as such. Many women started delaying marriage even more and some decided to stay single.

Married women however stayed home and dedicated their time to their children. Now that there wasn't any farm work to do, women had even more time to spend with the children. In 1900 less than about 5.6% of married women worked outside. If a married woman were to work, it would be considered that her husband was invalid or that she was poor.

World War I

The first major entry of married women to the workforce came during World War I in 1914. Men went to fight the war and the country needed workers to take over the jobs they left behind. Unmarried women were not sufficient for the labor needs, so employers started to invite married women too, to work. By 1919, 25% of the women in the workforce were married. But this was only the beginning.

Another change World War I brought was the entry of women to the army. About 13,000 women enlisted in the US Navy, mostly doing clerical work--the first women in US history to be admitted to full military rank.

Great Depression

The Great Depression came in the 1930s. The unemployment rate climbed from 3.2% in 1929 to 23.6% in 1932. Jobs became scarce for skilled people and men. Fathers went to search for jobs. Some, under despair, deserted their families. The responsibility of earning fell on mothers in many families.

Most women and children, however, found jobs more easily than men because of the segregation of work categories for men and women. Although 80% of men during the Great Depression opposed their wives entering the workforce under any circumstances, economic factors made it necessary for the women to work. Hours were long and pay was low. Twenty percent of white women were in the workforce.

World War II

World War II came in the early 1940s. Men were drafted to fight, and America needed workers and supplies. Again, the employers looked towards the women for labor. Unmarried and married women were invited to work, as had been done during World War I.

But still, public opinion was generally against the working of married women. The media and the government started a fierce propaganda campaign to change this opinion. The federal government told the women that victory could not be achieved without their entry into the workforce. Working was considered part of being a good citizen, a working wife was a patriotic person.

The government founded the Magazine Bureau in 1942. The Bureau published Magazine War Guide, a guide which told magazines which themes stories they should cover each month to aid war propaganda. For September 1943, the theme was "Women at Work". The slogan for this was "The More Women at Work the Sooner We Win." Magazines developed stories that glorified and promoted the placement of women into untraditional jobs where workers were needed. The idea was that if smaller, unexciting jobs were portrayed as attractive and noble more women would join the work force.

The media created Rosie the Riveter, a mythical character to encourage women into the workforce. Rosie was portrayed as a patriotic woman, a hero for all American women. "All the day long, Whether rain or shine, She's a part of the assembly line. She's making history, Working for victory, Rosie the Riveter… There's something true about, Red, white, and blue about, Rosie the Riveter."

The propaganda efforts worked. More than six million women joined the workforce during the war, the majority of them married women. In 1940, before the war, only 36% of women workers were married. By 1945, after the war, 50% of women workers were married. The middle class taboo against a working wife had been repealed.

Post World War II

The 1950s marked an era of prosperity in the lives of American families. Men returned from war and needed jobs. Once again, the government and media got together to steer the opinion of the public. This time, however, they encouraged women to return home, which shows that the women were brought out not for their freedom but because workers were needed.

But this effort was not as successful and was abandoned quickly. First, women from lower economic ranks had to remain in the workforce because of economic necessity. And second, there came the rise of consumer culture.

The baby boom took place during the 1950s as well. Women who returned home dedicated their lives once again to their children. But around the same time an important change had come in the American life. This was the spread of the television. By 1960, 90% of the population owned at least one set. Families would gather around the screen for entertainment. In the early days, everything including commercials was watched with great interest.

Most middle-class families could not afford the goods the television declared necessary to maintain or enhance quality of life with one paycheck alone. Many women returned to work in order to live according to "the American standard of living," whatever that meant to them.

The number of American women in the workforce from 1940 to 1950 increased by nine percent. From 1930 to 1940 there had only been a three percent increase.

Effects

As mothers returned to work, the television became the most important caretaker of a child. Children in the 1950s spent most of their non-sleeping hours in front of the television screen.

In 1940, less than 8.6% of mothers with children under eighteen worked. By 1987, 60.2% of women with children under eighteen were working.

As wives assumed larger roles in their family's financial support, they felt justified in demanding that husbands perform more childcare and housework. Across the years, divorce rates doubled reaching a level where at least 1 out of 2 marriages was expected to end in divorce. Marriage rates and birthrates declined. The number of single parent families rapidly increased. People grew unhappy with their lives, when compared to the lives of people on television.

Women working affected the society in many different ways. The first and most important of these was that children with working mothers were left alone without the care of a mother. As the number of working women increased, the number of children growing up unsupervised increased, and with this increased crime among teens.

Since most women placed their career ahead of family life, family life was greatly affected since unmarried women were generally able to make more money than married ones. For example, according to a study by a Harvard economist, women physicians who were unmarried and had no children earned thirteen percent more per year than those who were married and fifteen percent more than those with children.

Today

The majority of women still work at the lower levels of the economic pyramid. Most are employed in clerical positions, factory work, retail sales, or service jobs. Around 50% of the workforce is female. While about 78% of all cashiers and 99% of all secretaries today are female, only 31% of managers and administrators are female. Equality in the workplace has been a mirage but it has conned millions of women into leaving their homes and destroying the family structure.

It was only when economic or political factors made it necessary to get more workers that women were called to work. The Industrial Revolution, the Great Depression, and the World Wars, all the major events which increased the proportion of women workers, were times when the capitalists required more workers in order to be successful in their plans and so they used women.

The move of women from home to the public workforce has been gradual. First poor women went. Then unmarried women. Then married women without children. Then married women without young children And then, all women. The same thing can be seen to be happening in developing countries around the world, as the West spreads its propaganda of freedom for women to work. The results of this move will probably be the same too.

Bibliography

-Hawes, Joseph M., ed. American Families: A Research Guide and Historical Handbook. New York: Greenwood Press,- 1990.

-Mintz, Steven. Domestic Revolutions. New York: the Free Press, 1988.

-Gary B. Nash, American Odyssey. New York: Glencoe McGraw-Hill, 2002.

-Wilson, Margaret Gibbons. The American Woman in Transition. Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1979.

-Goldstein, Joshua S. War and Gender: How Gender Shapes the War System and Vice Versa. Cambridge University Press, 2001.

-U.S. Department of Labor, Women's Bureau. Women in the Force, 1900-2002. http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/0/1/0/4/6/7/A0104673.html

-The Library of Congress Rosie the Riveter: Real Women Workers in World War II http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/journey/rosie-transcript.html

Bismillah


(Teacher): “Now children, who knows what we should say before we start some new job or begin eating or go on a journey? Can anyone tell me?”

(Children): “Teacher! Teacher! Me! Me.... Bismillah!”
(Teacher): “Very good. Now what does it mean?” Bismillah.”

(Children): “In the name of Allah!”
I am a Muslim, the things I say

In everything I do everyday
We are Muslims, the things we say

In everything we do everyday
Oooh, Bismillah, Oooh, Alhamdullillah

I am a Muslim and this I know
I need to eat so that I will grow

We are Muslims and this we know
We need to eat so that we will grow

When we eat we say Bismillah
When we’re full, we say Alhamdullillah

Water, juice and milk, these I think
Are so delicious for me to drink

Water, juice and milk, these we think
Are so delicious for us to drink

When we drink we say, Bismillah
When we’re done we say Alhamdullillah

Going out with my mum and dad
Coming home, oh what fun we had

Going out with our mum and dad
Coming home, oh what fun we had

Driving in the car, Bismillah
Coming safely home, Alhamdullillah

I go to sleep saying Allah’s name
And in the morning I do the same

We go to sleep saying Allah’s name
And in the morning we do the same

When we sleep we say Bismillah
When we rise we say Alhamdullillah