the phone thank you yes brother
thank you i'm glad to be here my friend
invited me here today
there's a narrative
that's in america
that's growing stronger
that islam mistreats women work
political work and everything like that
i hope you don't mind me
thank you that's a really good question
that
what does islam say about women because
there is a narrative out there that
islam oppresses women
let me get a quick yes and no from the
sisters up there the muslim ladies
is somebody oppressing you
louder
it's really important my dear what's
your name
brother eric right brother eric
many times people judge
a person's faith based upon the cultural
practices and sometimes the media only
highlights the practices uh when they
want to define a faith so it's really
important we cannot judge any faith
based upon the fallible humans and their
practices
important right so before islam came to
arabia women did not have the rights
that we enjoy right now they were taken
as property they were inherited from
generation to generation but islam came
to uplift women equal to man in the eyes
of god different responsibilities but
equal reward if they fulfill those
responsibilities right number one
you know look at the wonderful honor
that islam has given to the mothers
right to the mothers you know one time
a muslim came to muhammad peace be upon
him and asked him a really important
question that oh messenger of god
who should my love my admiration by and
my honor should go towards
of all the people in the world who
should i respect and honor and admire
the most muhammad peace be upon him he
said your mother
then the person asked the question okay
fine who next
and the prophet said
your mother right and the third time the
person asked the question okay who next
and the prophet said your mother right
and the fourth time the person has the
question and the prophet said your
father
so if mothers and fathers if we were
praying the spiritual olympics the gold
medal goes to the mother
so does the silver and the bronze medals
and poor dares like me they come home
with a participation prize right
love and respect that islam is given to
the mothers you know he said muhammad
peace be upon him that paradise lies
under the feet of your mothers
honoring and respecting and obeying
that's one of the ways for a muslim to
go to paradise you know one time when i
was in saint louis for an open house
a non-muslim lady
maybe in her 80s she came she listened
to the presentation and then she started
to cry
i asked her my dear sister why are you
crying and she said
i am so amazed
at the honor the rights and the respect
that you are saying that islam has given
to women because i i also mentioned to
her that there is no such thing in islam
as a nursing home
the nursing home
for the parents is the home of the child
that's how much right when it comes to
the wives islam muhammad peace be upon
him he said that the best amongst you is
the one who is the best towards your
wife
regarding the daughters you know in that
time before islam came to them
women were going through the dark ages
dark ages to such an extent that it was
a shame for any home in which a baby
girl was born
it was a thing of shame for them
so what they used to do is they used to
once the baby girl is born they used to
wrap her wrap her up
and
took her to the cemetery
and dug it home
and buried the baby girls alive
can you imagine that was the state of
darkness islam came to prohibit
infanticide islam uplifted women and
muhammad peace be upon him he said if
anyone has three daughters even two
daughters daughter if a person
gives them the proper upbringing
good character good education good name
they would be in paradise with prophet
muhammed peace be upon him look at this
he pulled them out from the dark edges
uplifted women and mentioned that by
taking care of our ladies that's one of
the ways of going to paradise and lastly
you'll be surprised to find out uh
brother alex right
eric eric you'll be surprised to find
out that the wonderful rights that islam
has given to ladies
you know not until 1920s in this country
after the suffrage the struggles and the
rallies our women they won the right to
vote in 1920
islam gave them the right not culture by
the way islam gave them the right to
have a say in the political process way
back in the 7th century
islam gave women the right to owe
property and to sell property
in our country so i am coming from
illinois in the state of illinois maybe
similar in california
a married caucasian lady she won the
right to all property
not african-americans not you know
hispanic india and pakistani a caucasian
married ladies in 1861 they won the
right to owe property islam gave them
the right in the 7th century
they have the right to work
they have the right to keep the last
name
and not change the last name to the
husband's last name so when i got
married
i went to a dupage county yasser i went
to dupes county right for the for the
for the marriage certificate so when i
went there uh the clerk uh before
writing the names of my my myself and my
wife uh he looked to my wife and he
asked her the question of mrs naheed uh
what should we change your last name to
she looked at him in the angry face and
she said why would you like to change my
name change his name right
come on
she knows her rights right that's a
muslim lady
she has the right to gain education
no one can take that away brother eric
if somebody is doing it in some country
we blame them but not islam
not only she has the right to gain
education she has the obligation to gain
education to such a degree that they
were
they were empowered our muslim ladies
surprising surprising surprising
the oldest continuous university in the
history of humanity it was made by a
muslim lady eric wearing the hijab do
you know that
so our muslim so this is in morocco
which is called as a university of
kharavain
built in the year 859
way before oxford and harvard and
cambridge and penn state or any campus
it where the muslim lady by the name of
fatima al-fari 859 she laid the
foundation for the oldest continuous
university in the whole world
i can go on and on but the point is made
right empowered by these rights our
ladies the muslim ladies way back
seventh eighth ninth centuries they were
the initiators of hospitals and
pharmacies and yes universities
so culture
does not do justice islam is perfect
muslims are imperfect just like we don't
blame christianity for the abuses that
we see by some priests and pastors
unfortunately we don't want to hold a
christianity responsible for what kkk
may be doing we don't want to hold
you know hinduism responsible for what
the atrocities going on there we don't
want to hold you know the buddhism
responsible for the buddhist monks are
doing to the muslims up there in the
same way we don't want to hell islam
responsible for the misguided muslims if
you want to know what islam is read the
quran look into the life of prophet
muhammed peace be upon him and you will
find that islam will bring
justice morality unity and peace for all
of humanity and that's the status of
women in islam
[Applause]