WUNRN
Via Canadian Council of Muslim Women – CCMW
Alaa Murabit's family moved from Canada to Libya when she was
15. Before, she'd felt equal to her brothers, but in this new environment she
sensed big prohibitions on what she could accomplish. As a proud Muslim woman,
she wondered: was this really religious doctrine? With humour,
passion and a refreshingly rebellious spirit, she shares how she discovered
examples of female leaders from across the history of her faith - and she
launched a campaign to fight for women's rights using verses directly
from the Koran.
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TED Talk & Text Transcript - http://www.ted.com/talks/alaa_murabit_what_my_religion_really_says_about_women/transcript?language=en
What My Muslim Religion Really Says About Women – Alaa
Murabit - Libya
0:45 Every day, I work to amplify the
voices of women and to highlight their experiences and
their participation in peace processes and conflict resolution, and
because of my work, I recognize that the only way to ensure the full
participation of women globally is by reclaiming religion.
1:10 Now, this matter is vitally important to me. As a young Muslim woman, I am very proud of my faith. It gives me the strength and conviction to do my work every day. It's the reason I can be here in front of you. But I can't overlook the damage that has been done in the name of religion, not just my own, but all of the world's major faiths. The misrepresentation and misuse and manipulation of religious scripture has influenced our social and cultural norms, our laws, our daily lives, to a point where we sometimes don't recognize it.
1:51 My parents moved from Libya, North Africa, to
Canada in the early 1980s, and I
am the middle child of 11 children. Yes, 11. But
growing up, I saw my parents, both religiously devout and spiritual people, pray
and praise God for their blessings, namely me of course, but among others. (Laughter) They
were kind and funny and patient, limitlessly patient, the kind of patience that
having 11 kids forces you to have. And they were fair. I was
never subjected to religion through a cultural lens. I was
treated the same, the same was expected of me. I was
never taught that God judged differently based on gender. And
my parents' understanding of God as a merciful and beneficial friend and
provider shaped the way I looked at the world.
2:53 Now, of course, my upbringing had additional
benefits. Being one of 11 children is Diplomacy 101.
(Laughter) To this day, I am asked where I went to school, like,
"Did you go to Kennedy School of Government?" and I
look at them and I'm like, "No,
I went to the Murabit School of
International Affairs." It's extremely exclusive. You would have to talk
to my mom to get in. Lucky for you, she's here. But
being one of 11 children and having 10 siblings teaches
you a lot about power structures and alliances. It teaches
you focus; you have to talk fast or say less, because
you will always get cut off. It teaches you the importance of messaging. You
have to ask questions in the right way to get the answers you know you want, and
you have to say no in the right way to keep the peace.
3:48 But the most important lesson I learned growing
up was the importance of being at the table. When
my mom's favorite lamp broke, I had to be there when she was trying to
find out how and by who, because I had to defend myself, because
if you're not, then the finger is pointed at you, and
before you know it, you will be grounded. I am
not speaking from experience, of course.
4:15 When I was 15 in 2005, I completed high school
and I moved from Canada -- Saskatoon -- to
Zawiya, my parents' hometown in Libya, a
very traditional city. Mind you, I had only ever been to Libya before on
vacation, and as a seven-year-old girl, it was magic. It
was ice cream and trips to the beach and really excited relatives.
4:44 Turns out it's not the same as a 15-year-old
young lady. I very quickly became introduced to the cultural
aspect of religion. The words "haram" -- meaning
religiously prohibited -- and "aib" -- meaning culturally
inappropriate -- were exchanged carelessly, as if
they meant the same thing and had the same consequences. And I
found myself in conversation after conversation with classmates and
colleagues, professors, friends, even relatives, beginning
to question my own rule and my own aspirations. And
even with the foundation my parents had provided for me, I
found myself questioning the role of women in my faith.
5:31 So at the Murabit School of International
Affairs, we go very heavy on the debate, and
rule number one is do your research, so that's what I did, and
it surprised me how easy it was to find women in my faith who were leaders, who
were innovative, who were strong -- politically, economically, even militarily. Khadija
financed the Islamic movement in its infancy. We
wouldn't be here if it weren't for her. So
why weren't we learning about her? Why weren't we learning about these women? Why
were women being relegated to positions which predated the
teachings of our faith? And why, if we are equal in the eyes of God, are
we not equal in the eyes of men?
6:23 To me, it all came back to the lessons I had
learned as a child. The decision maker, the person who gets to
control the message, is sitting at the table, and
unfortunately, in every single world faith, they
are not women. Religious institutions are dominated by men and
driven by male leadership, and they create policies in their likeness, and
until we can change the system entirely, then
we can't realistically expect to have full economic and
political participation of women. Our foundation is broken. My
mom actually says, you can't build a straight house on a crooked foundation.
7:13 In 2011, the Libyan revolution broke out, and my
family was on the front lines. And there's this amazing thing that happens in
war, a cultural shift almost, very temporary. And
it was the first time that I felt it was not only acceptable for
me to be involved, but it was encouraged. It
was demanded. Myself and other women had a seat at the table. We
weren't holding hands or a medium. We were part of decision making. We
were information sharing. We were crucial. And I
wanted and needed for that change to be permanent.
7:53 Turns out, that's not that easy. It
only took a few weeks before the women that I had previously worked with were
returning back to their previous roles, and
most of them were driven by words of encouragement from
religious and political leaders, most of whom cited religious scripture as their
defense. It's how they gained popular support for their
opinions.
8:18 So initially, I focused on the economic and
political empowerment of women. I thought that would lead to cultural and social
change. It turns out, it does a little, but not a lot. I
decided to use their defense as my offense, and I
began to cite and highlight Islamic scripture as well.
8:40 In 2012 and 2013, my organization led the single
largest and most widespread campaign in Libya. We
entered homes and schools and universities, even mosques. We
spoke to 50,000 people directly, and hundreds of thousands more through billboards
and television commercials, radio commercials and posters.
9:01 And you're probably wondering how a women's
rights organization was able to do this in communities which had
previously opposed our sheer existence. I
used scripture. I used verses from the Quran and sayings of the
Prophet, Hadiths, his sayings which are, for example, "The
best of you is the best to their family." "Do
not let your brother oppress another." For
the first time, Friday sermons led by local community imams promoted
the rights of women. They discussed taboo issues, like domestic
violence. Policies were changed. In
certain communities, we actually had to go as far as
saying the International Human Rights Declaration, which
you opposed because it wasn't written by religious scholars, well,
those same principles are in our book. So
really, the United Nations just copied us.
10:06 By changing the message, we were able to provide an
alternative narrative which promoted the rights of women in Libya. It's
something that has now been replicated internationally, and
while I am not saying it's easy -- believe me, it's not. Liberals
will say you're using religion and call you a bad conservative. Conservatives
will call you a lot of colorful things. I've
heard everything from, "Your parents must be extremely ashamed of
you" -- false; they're my biggest fans -- to
"You will not make it to your next birthday" -- again
wrong, because I did. And I remain a
very strong believer that women's rights and religion are not mutually
exclusive. But we have to be at the table. We
have to stop giving up our position, because by remaining silent, we
allow for the continued persecution and abuse of women worldwide. By
saying that we're going to fight for women's rights and fight
extremism with bombs and warfare, we completely cripple local societies which need
to address these issues so that they're sustainable.
11:22 It is not easy, challenging distorted religious messaging. You will have your fair share of insults and ridicule and threats. But we have to do it. We have no other option than to reclaim the message of human rights, the principles of our faith, not for us, not for the women in your families, not for the women in this room, not even for the women out there, but for societies that would be transformed with the participation of women. And the only way we can do that, our only option, is to be, and remain, at the table.