Societal Impact of Arguments for Women's Rights

The fact is that we have not seen any law coming from Islam ruling that women are to be prohibited from involvement in the occupations of men. A woman is just as much a human being as a man is, with complete mental faculties and abilities. So many women have ruled over men, participated in government, determined statutes of law and behavior, recruited soldiers, gone forth into battle, and carried out wars—like the many queens who have preceded us and ran their kingdoms well. Regarding the poor women in Cairo or Alexandria, most of them pursue work just like men. Among these women are merchants, craft workers, and those earning their livelihood with male laborers in construction and in other professions. We find the markets are full of women capable of competing with men in business and many other activities. The intelligent person who examines the world’s affairs finds the two sexes equal.