Ani Zonneveld, writer, singer, songwriter and founder of MPV MVPUSA.ORG / COURTESY
Laili Shahrestani Editor-in-Chief
On Feb. 3, the Holocaust, Genocide, Interfaith and Education Center (HGI) at Manhattan University (MU), welcomed Ani Zonneveld, writer, singer, songwriter and founder of Muslims for Progressive Values (MPV) to lead a discussion on social justice, feminism and Islam.
Zonneveled identifies as a Muslim feminist and has openly spoken about her upbringing and advocacy work, particularly in relation to the freedom of expression and women’s rights in Islam. She explores these topics within her newly published memoir titled “An Unlikely Social Justice Warrior: Making My Life Count as a Muslim Feminist,” which she highlighted throughout the event.
The Quadrangle spoke with Zonneveld about common misconceptions seen within the Islamic community regarding women’s rights and feminism. She explained how the two are actually very compatible, and that stereotypes and false narratives are what claim otherwise.
“When it comes down to the basic qualities that feminism is supposed to stand for, we see equality and the social, economic well-being of everyone,” Zonneveld said. “And then if you look at Prophet Muhammad, he was the first feminist, because of what existed [at the time]. So it’s very easy for me to debunk this notion that feminism is not compatible with Islam.”
Through Zonnoveld’s work as founder and president of Muslims for Progressive Values, she hopes to help fight against harmful misunderstandings when it comes to Islam, and also give people a better understanding on the inclusivity of women’s rights within the religion.
According to MPV’s website, the organization supports “women’s agency and self-determination in every aspect of their lives … [and the belief] in women’s full participation in society at every level.” In addition, MPV advocates for women’s rights in regards to their bodily autonomy, economic independence, marriage and more – all in a way that is still backed up by Islamic values.
Zonneveld expressed her thoughts regarding the permissibility of women holding leadership positions in Islam, as well as how Islamic history reveals many examples of feminism.
“In [some] Sunni interpretations, ‘Sharia law’ supposedly states that only men can be imams [Islamic leader], which to me is utterly nonsense, because the first woman imam was appointed by Prophet Muhammad,” Zonneveld said. “There are all these gold nuggets found in Islam that show how Prophet Muhammad really practiced Islam at its inception … and now we see this patriarchal version of Islam, instead of the true, egalitarian version Islam.”
Mehnaz Afridi, Ph.D, professor of religious studies and director of the HGI Center at MU added onto this conversation, expressing how in both Christian and Jewish traditions, similar issues regarding the permissibility of women in positions of religious leadership are seen. She emphasized how this issue stems from problems within society, rather than with the religions themselves.
“We see similarities in Christianity and Judaism,” Afridi said. “Jewish women struggled at first to become rabbis, and eventually became rabbis in the 1970s. And then right now, the Catholic Church is being pressured to allow women to lead. And so I think the problem is not about faith, but rather with men, and the oppression of women.”
When it comes to the topic of patriarchy and male domination in Islam, both Zonnoveld and Afridi emphasized how it is a problem that emerged from culture, harmful stereotypes and human beings – not from the actual teachings of the religion. They expressed how Islam is both a just and egalitarian religion.
“God has said that every single human being here has been created by God,” Afridi said. “We have been created equally, and so to reconcile one’s identity is to add to the environment, to show with grace what the Qur’an [the Islamic holy text] truly stands for, which is justice and egalitarianism.”
Afridi also mentioned how there are several women, Muslim feminists, all throughout history, who have made a profound impact on the religion.
“The question about patriarchy is in every religion,” Afridi said. “I teach a course on women in Islam, and we do feminist readings of the Qur’an, which have been going on for quite some time. There are scholars like Leila Ahmed, Fatema Mernissi and also contemporary scholars that have re-read the Qur’an from a feminist perspective…I think it’s us human beings that have weaknesses, and need for power or control that create this problem of patriarchy in all religions.”
Zonneved expressed how she hopes MVP can continue to serve as a resource to help erase false narratives around religion and educate people on the true values of Islam, all while creating a safe and inclusive space for all.
“I think that through the work of Muslims for Progressive Values, we can really help promote the progressive and true teachings of Islam,” Zonneveld said. If you are interested in learning more about MPV and their mission, check out: @mpvusa on Instagram, or go to: mpvusa.org.