An Observation From a Muslim Feminist Cowgirl

A report and comment on religious trends and events being covered by the media.  This week’s item is from The Dallas Morning News, September 8, 2001, with the headline:  “Muslim Feminist Cowgirl fights stereotypes of Islam” by Asma Gull Hasan.  “I am a twenty-something recent law school graduate who calls herself a cowgirl, because I am self-reliant and tough and I am Muslim, too.  Surprised?  You shouldn’t be.  The United States is home to roughly 6 million Muslims, a few of whom are cowgirls like me.  Unfortunately, the radical Muslim element is often seen as representative of all Muslims.  Even us cowgirls are misrepresented. But Muslim terrorists and dictators no more represent the vast majority of Muslims than the IRA represents the vast majority of Catholics.  I have suffered from Muslim’s negative image.  Many times I find myself exclaiming I have just met, yes, I really am Muslim.  It’s as if no one can believe that a young, intelligent woman could be Muslim.  United States Muslims want to help strengthen America, not tear it apart.  The philosophies of main stream Muslims emphasize hard work, providing for one’s family and respect for property and freedom.  I believe that being American actually makes being a Muslim easier.  As a female, raised in a Muslim household, I was reminded frequently of what the Qur’an says about women.  Women are equal to men and have the right to own property, declare a divorce, and receive an education.  My parents continually stressed the importance of performing to my full potential in every endeavor, from education to community service.  Growing up in Pueblo, home of the Colorado State Fair and Rodeo, I began referring to myself as a Muslim feminist cowgirl.  Typically, people are surprised, more by the association of Islam and feminism than by the cowgirl reference.  The stereotypical image of the oppressed Muslim woman, drawn primarily from Middle East cultural traditions, rather than religious ones, prevails.  Yet my concerns and those of most American Muslims are much like the concerns of non-Muslims.  American Muslim’s first goal was to build our own space so that we could bond as church members do.  There are more than 1000 mosques in towns of every size across America.  Even in the face of the current Middle East crisis, I look at how much American Muslims have accomplished both personally and nationally and say, it’s good to be an American Muslim.  Living in an Islamic country. I probably would never have been teased about my name, or queried about whether I was really Muslim, but I would have missed the aspects of American culture that make me a strong Muslim.  Individualism, freedom of speech, activism, and tolerance among many others.  Some day soon I hope my identity as a cowgirl will surprise my neighbors more than my identity as an American Muslim.”

Tom:

Dave, I want to start off with this by telling—the date on this article—this is from The Dallas Morning News on September 8, as Gary mentioned.  September 8^th, so this is a few days prior to the day of infamy, September 11th.  Now, one of the things I want to get out here, before you jump all over this, is that Islam, particularly in this country, can’t there be a liberal branch of it that sort of, you know, I am a former Catholic and for a part of that time I was what you would call a cafeteria Catholic.  I just picked and chose whatever I want.  I didn’t necessarily buy into this particular dogma. Purgatory, I thought that was stretching it a bit and so on.  Now, can’t there be a place for liberal Muslims who don’t buy the Khomeini and the Mullahs of Yeomen or whatever?

Dave:

Yes Tom, when I wrote A Woman Rides the Beast, I give you what the Catholic Church teaches and believes.Now call yourself a Catholic if you want to, but if you don’t follow the Church, you’re not a Catholic and it’s not fair to call yourself a Catholic.Now this lady’s called—

Tom:

But can you say the same about Islam?About the Qur’an?

Dave:

That’s what I am getting to.  This lady is calling herself a Muslim.  Well, she says, Muslim terrorists and dictators no more represent the vast majority of Muslims than the IRA represents the vast majority of Catholics.  That’s not the point!  Is a Muslim following Islam?  Does he follow Muhammad?  If you don’t follow Muhammad, don’t call yourself a Muslim—it’s that simple!  I mean, you’ve got some new idea about Islam.  Now, this lady talks about she was raised to have these standards of freedom of speech!  What?  Let this lady go to Saudi Arabia, let her go to Afghanistan, let her go to Egypt even, let her go to a Muslim country—

Tom:

As a practicing Muslim.

Dave:

That’s right.  She would have to wear the veil, she would have to dress like they dress and, oh Muslim women are equal with men?  Really!  You can’t even drive a car over there, women have no rights.  I’m not talking about what some liberal Muslim cleric may be in this country says, because this is the image that they show now.  But a woman can be beaten.  A man can have four wives; he can divorce anyone anytime he wants to and just get another one, okay?  A woman can’t have four husbands and she can’t divorce her husband anytime she wants to.  But this lady says, oh yeah, a woman can divorce and so forth.  Well, I don’t know under what circumstances, and try to do that in Saudi Arabia.  So, first of all, is this lady naive?  I don’t know.

Tom:

She’s a law graduate, NYU.

Dave:

I don’t understand it, Tom.  She says the stereotypical image of the oppressed Muslim woman, drawn primarily from Middle East cultural traditions, rather than religious ones.  Now wait a minute!  The whole idea of Islam is, and this is why they are upset with the United States, one of the reasons, we’re the great Satan because of the way that we dress, because of the freedoms we have, because of the things we eat and the liberty that we allow people.  Islam says you must get back to the 7th century. You must dress the way Muhammad and the women in that day dressed, you must eat what they eat, and so forth.

Tom:

Dave, let me interject something here.  Now is that cultural?  This seems to be her argument.  She’s saying that’s not Islam, that’s a cultural thing.

Dave:

Oh no, but it’s in the Qur’an, it’s in the Hadith, and why do they do it over there?  If it were just cultural, Tom, then some women could drive cars, some women could dress, you know--this is why—why was Anwar El Sadat killed?  Why were they so upset?  His wife dressed like a Westerner.  You can’t do that.  So, it’s not just culture, it is the religion.  But the point is, Islam, what it teaches, this lady is misrepresenting it.  Now she says, well, you’ve got a stereotype, I mean, the terrorists, that’s not what Muslims are.  Well, I’m sure there are many Muslims who wouldn’t be terrorists, who want peace, love, and brotherhood, but that is not Islam!  They are misrepresenting Islam.  It is the terrorists who are properly representing Islam and there is no argument.  This is what Muhammad did, this is what the Qur’an, and the Hadith teach—closed case!  Now, if somebody wants to say that they are a Muslim and they do it in some other way, they are doing it in disobedience to Muhammad, the Qur’an and the Hadith