You have given me the courage to speak up. Thank you Michelle for giving us the forum to air our grief and shame. I have read Faitma and Fatemeh. They write under the threat of “dishonoring” their male relatives and the fear of being the latest “honor” killing every time they put pen to paper. They can not deny this.

So Fatemeh you say you fear that those that do not share your view point are personally coming after you. Your ego is much too big. We are Muslim women using this forum to air our differences with the muslim men’s standard spiel about their islam.

I too agree with Sar-ePol that muslim men deserve the small m when referred to to match their character. I also agree that men of the world, western or not should not give these boys of arrested development any consideration until they give their women some. Why should we have to wait until they get respect, or statehood, or any thing else? We have needs just as important as any man. If their needs are satisfied, we will still be their slaves while they enjoy their fruits.

Why should we be made to feel disloyal because we want equality?

Fatemeh get over yourself. This is not about you. You are correct that God’s word has been polluted and twisted by men in order to maintain control over women and children. But you are incorrect to attribute this only to the Taliban.

I don’t live where the Taliban has any influence. I live in Saudi Arabia. A land where I can be beaten or killed for driving a car. Fatemeh in Saudi Arabia women have less rights than a puppy. We are but instruments of men’s pleasure. When I am allowed to go to western countries my “loving” male relatives allow me to drive. I am a 24 year old woman. Why do you think that I need a man to tell me when I can drive a car?

We do need help to break this strangle hold these things you want to call men have over us. They will never give up the right to have control over our sexual organs. AS long as oil is so desperately needed by the west. The west will never help us.

If our small minded boys who want to be men feel that by being told that it is wrong to enslave one half of their population is “westoxication.” Then I say to h**l with them. Fatemeh your definition of “conservative” is akin to the west’s definition of conservative.

In the west to be conservative means white men feel that they have the right to be better than their women and any person of color, and they have the right to force their religious beliefs on others.

In the Middle East to be conservative means muslim men feel that they have the right to be better than their women, any non-muslim, and they have the right to force their religious belief on others.

It appears that they have already bought into “Westoxication.” I suppose it is okay as long as it agrees with their aims. But God forbid that it should not.

I quote you. “Change must come from within. We need more female scholars, more female interpretations, and more people to stand up and say, “The Qur’an doesn’t allow you to do this.”

Well we are doing just that here on this forum. We are saying the Qur’an does not allow women to become equal to men. It is a useless cult book of propaganda written by men to control women for their sexual pleasure.

Fatemeh, I do not wish to quarrel with you either. Our struggle is not with you. We understand that you are doing the best you can under the tyranny of islam. We gratefully accept all you are doing for us. But we believe that we need outside help also.

In the western world the great United States of America would not have given up the control they had over their people of color without outside pressure. The white men there were forced to give their people of color equality because of world pressure.

We need the same kind of world pressure to gain our freedom. I for one do not care that these beasts who call themselves muslim men get their egos bruised in the process. Yes, we do have bigger fish to fry. Let’s agree to fire our pots with different forms of energy and still be sisters.

Shir Khan

Speak for yourself. I think that Sar-ePol speaks the truth. your men may be kind to you, So are mine but that is their choice. The law of this land and islam gives them the right to do otherwise as they choose. Is that something that you do not understand?

I am an educated Muslim woman that believes that she has the god given right to be equal to any man. You obviously feel other wise. So do some western women. You have found your sisterhood there. We Muslim women who believe that we have Allah’s blessing to be EQUAL to any man do not need western women to tell us that. We tell ourselves that in private every day. We have to tell ourselves IN PRIVATE or we will be beat or killed.

Why do you lie to the world? You know this to be true. Sar-ePol has risked her life to speak up while the likes of you creep in the shadows of their “good men” so as not to offend them.

Your “good men” will never give you or any woman the right to be their equal. How much does it take to be “wonderful” while shirking their responsibility to Allah to give ALL his children, female and male the same rights. I, for one do not need to “be protected” by islam. That is a lame male’s excuse to dominate women.

You have every right to be “extremely proud to be a Muslim.” We have every right to hate being forced to be a Muslim. How many women do you think would leave this cult devised by men to control us if we did not fear death for doing so. Do you honestly believe that a true religion would punish with death those that found another way to worship Allah?

Why are you so angry to have other Muslim women express our despair? Believe it or not we have not all been brainwashed by our oppressors. Please Sar-ePol continue to speak for those of us who would be beat, shot, or tortured to death for having the courage to speak up against these evil men.

Aybak(not my real name, less my lovable family find out and beat me to death in the name or that foul men’s cult islam)

As a Muslim woman I would kindly ask you to stop speaking for educated Muslim women. Or any Muslim women. I would wager that any Muslim woman who reads what you, or your alter egos, have written here they would be infuriated at your self-righteousness and extremism. You seem just as bad as the men you so hate.

There are so many voices of Muslim women from the Middle East and the rest of the Muslim world who are very proud to be Muslim. In fact, they would be in the majority.

As a Muslim woman I will tell you that I am EXTREMELY proud to be Muslim. And I love my Muslim men. My father, my brother, my uncles, my cousins, my nephews, my friends, all of them. They are wonderful human beings who have treated me with nothing but respect, love, and equality.

Please apg stop speaking for us. Your voice is definitely in the minority and because of your intense hate and filth you spew you damage the cause of the Muslim women who are suffering. Instead of encouraging Muslims to help Muslim women you turn them away. You are no different than the Muslim extremists who push people away from Islam. I guess extremists of all types are the same deep down.

I believe that God’s word has been polluted and twisted by men in order to maintain control over women and children. The Taleban is not Islam.

I object to western feminism that construes all Muslim women as pitiful and pathetic and seeks to “save” us as if we’re helpless puppies. Sisters are doin’ it for themselves, thank you. RAWA, for example.

Do you think that Western women’s help will improve things in conservative societies like Iran and Saudi Arabia? It won’t. They’ll accuse outside agencies of spying or corruption, and they’ll look upon the change they bring as “Westoxication” rather than improvement. This happens in Iran all the time.

Change must come from within. We need more female scholars, more female interpretations, and more people to stand up and say, “The Qur’an doesn’t allow you to do this.”

This is the last time I’m posting on this site; I know who you are and that dialogue with you is not an option. I don’t want to argue with you because I think that both of us have bigger fish to fry.

Allah is Great! But islam is a cult.

Farah