Canadian Muslim Women

CANADIAN MUSLIM WOMEN

AT THE CROSSROAD:

FROM INTEGRATION TO

SEGREGATION?

NOVEMBER 18, 2006

FOUR POINTS SHERATON

HOTEL AND CONFERENCE CENTRE,

35 rue Laurier,

Gatineau, Quebec,

Appreciation

Canadian Council of Muslim Women gratefully acknowledges the support of the Department of Canadian Heritage, Multiculturalism and Human Rights Branch

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Guiding Principles & Objectives 4

Executive Summary 5

Welcome:Ottawa Chapter 7

National Board. 8

Session I: Keynote Address:Muslim Women at the Crossroads, Dr. Mai Yamani 9

Q & A 14

Launch of CCMW Publications:Muslim & Canadian Family Laws: A Comparative Primer20

Professor Lynda Clarke and Pam Cross; Engaging Muslim Women: Needs & IssuesDr. Daood Hamdani.

Session II:Introductory Remarks, Salima Ebrahim 25

Balancing Civil Liberties and National Security 26

Professor Sharryn Aiken,

Muslims in the Public Discourse and the Media, 32

Nelofer Pazira,

Q & A 37

Honouring Dr. Lila Fahlman: Scholarship 42

SESSION III:Introductory Remarks, Nuzhat Jafri 43

Disengagement of Muslim Women,Maliha Chishti 44

Family and Youth,Dr. Hamdi Mohamed 48

Re-engagement/Leadership, Dr Khadija Khaja. 56

Q & A 63

Presentation by Equal Voice:Patricia Dumas, Getting to the Gate 69

Q&A 76

Proposed Community Research Papers: Cultural Relativism: Theoretical, Political &

Ideological Debates

ProfessorShahrzad Mojab & Nadeen El Kassem. 79

Consent and Choice: Informed Decision making ofMuslim Women.

Professor Gokce Yurdakul. 82

Yearning to Belong: Development of a CanadianMuslim Identity.

Professor Shahnaz Khan & EmanAhmed. 84

Strategies 87

APPENDIECIES

Bios of Speakers89

Conference Evaluation Summary91

Newspaper Coverage/Articles93

Books of Interest104

Symposium Flyer111

CANADIAN COUNCIL OF MUSLIM WOMEN

GUIDING PRINCIPLES

We are guided by the Quranic message of God's mercy and justice, and of theequality of all persons, and that each person is directly answerable to God.
We value a pluralistic society and foster the goal of strength and diversity within aunifying vision and values of Canada. Our identity of being Muslim women and ofdiverse ethnicity and race is integral to being Canadian.As Canadians we abide by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the law ofCanada.
We believe in the universality of human rights, which means equality and socialjustice, with no restrictions or discrimination based on gender or race.
We are vigilant in safeguarding, enhancing our identity, and our rights to makeinformed choices amongst a variety of options.
We acknowledge that CCMW is one voice amongst many who speak on behalf ofMuslim women and that there are others who may represent differing perspectives.
We aim to be actively inclusive and accepting of diversity among ourselves, asMuslim women.

OBJECTIVES

To attain and maintain equality, equity, and empowerment for all Canadian Muslimwomen.
To promote Muslim women's identity in the Canadian context.
To assist Muslim women to gain an understanding of their rights, responsibilities, androles in Canadian society.

To promote and encourage rapprochement and interfaith dialogue between Muslimsand other faith communities.
To contribute to Canadian society the knowledge, life experiences and ideas ofMuslim women for the benefit of all.
To strengthen the bonds of sisterhood among the Muslim communities and amongMuslim individuals.
To stimulate Islamic thinking and action among Muslim women in the Canadiansetting.
To acknowledge and respect the cultural differences among Canadian Muslim womenand to recognize and develop our common cultural heritage.
To promote a better understanding of Islam and the Islamic way of life in the NorthAmerican setting.
To represent Canadian Muslim women at national and international forums.
To encourage the organization and coordination of Muslim women's organizationsacross Canada.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

n light of the current global attention on Muslims and Muslim women, CCMW’s conference “Muslim Women at the Crossroads: From Integration to Segregation?” provided a chance to openly discuss and share much needed insights into the perceived or real separation of Canadian Muslim women from mainstream society. The conference aimed to increase awareness of the challenges Muslim women face in the process of integration, both from within their communities and from the mainstream, and also to identify strategies to assist in the development of programs related to Muslim women.The conference was attended by approximately 200 people from across the country and was well covered by the national media.

In the keynote address, Dr. Mai Yamani encouraged Muslim women to adopt an open vision of Islam as a way of embracing the modern, as opposed to “a closed vision which daily rejects the reality of our time.” Using her own life journey, she showed how choices made by individuals are guided by their life experiences, but urged Muslims to remember that “collectively, we are at a time in our history when our individual or group choices intimately affect everybody else.” Dr. Yamani explained, Islam is evolving and young Muslims living in the west are becoming agents of this change. She concluded by saying that Muslims, Christians and Jews are all at a crossroads since they share a common humanity.

During the second session of the conference Dr. Sharryn Aiken, a Queen’s university professor, and Nelofer Pazira, a journalist for the CBC, respectively spoke on Balancing Civil liberties and National Security and on Muslims in the Media and the Public Discourse.Focusing specifically on the issues of state surveillance and Security Certificates, Dr. Aiken’s central thesis was,“the notion that national security and human rights are seen as trade-offs by the government, and in fact human rights [and] civil liberties have been compromised.” She went on to cite that more Muslims and Arabsare subject to surveillance and security visits by state agents than any other citizens, and even other non-citizens.To illustrate the dangers of surveillance strategies with no checks and balances built in, she spoke in detail about the cases of Maher Arar and Liban Hussein. Based on Dr. Aiken’s presentation it would be safe to say that one reason Muslims are becoming more inwards is the discrimination and racism they face.

In her presentation, Nelofer Pazira while acknowledging the discrimination, put some of the responsibility to integrate on Muslims themselves. She divided the media coverage of Muslims since 9/11 into five different categories: informative, appreciative, accusatory, provocative and offensive. She also pointed out the positive changes such as efforts being made by the media to provide a religiously sensitive and balanced picture. Recognizing the persistence of negative portrayals of Muslims in the media, she explained that the Muslim community must learn how to present itself and provide opportunities for the media to cover them in positive ways.

In the third session Maliha Chishti spoke about the “Disengagement of Muslim Women”, Dr. Hamdi Mohammed spoke about issues pertaining to family and youth and Dr. Khadija Khaja spoke about Muslim women and leadership. Regarding the disengagement of Muslim women, Maliha Chishti felt that Muslim women can never be fully disengaged, and for those who ‘have the privilege to be momentarily disengaged’ it is because they need time to catch their breath and re-invigorate. Therefore, disengagement should not always be problematized and is not always negative. Other reasons for the disengagement of Muslim women cited by Ms. Chishti were frustrations with their own community, the dominant culture and politics; lack of support at home; and the processes of exclusion, marginalization, racism, sexism and Islamophobia. Nonetheless, Ms. Chishti warned, more Muslim women are needed in the public domain. Their absence, in the long run, means that they are no longer knowledge producers in their communities and have denied themselves a chance to define the “legal, political and economic contexts which inform their lives”. Dr. Hamdi Mohamed, a professor at CarletonUniversity, while talking about challenges faced by youth, highlighted the need for the education system to reflect the changing demographics of Canadian cities. Dr. Mohammed also stressed that integration is a two way process, and Muslim Canadians should not have to feel that they can be either Muslims or Canadians.Closing the third session, Dr. Khadija Khaja spoke about the importance of Muslim women’s leadership, mentioned prominent Muslim women leaders in Canada and in the US, and defined the traits of a good leader and engager.

Towards the later part of the conference, Patricia Dumas, one of the founders of Equal Voice, presented “Getting to the Gate”, an online course encouraging women to get involved in the electoral process.

CCMW also presented to the audience three community research papers it plans on carrying out in the coming months:Cultural Relativism: Theoretical, Political and Ideological Debatesby Shahrzad Mojab and Nadeen El Kassem; Consent and Choice: Informed Decision making of Muslim Women by Gökce Yurdakul; and Yearning to Belong: Development of a Canadian Muslim Identityby Shahnaz Khan and Eman Ahmed.

At the end of most sessions there was a passionate question and answer period, during which fundamentalism and the rise of conservative Islam in Muslim countries and in the West was heavily criticized. While most of the speakers from the floor acknowledged the challenges faced by Muslims in regards to the larger Canadian society, they were seemingly more frustrated with the challenges and hurdles they faced from within the Muslim communities. Based on the discussions, a number of useful strategies and follow up actions were suggested. These have been divided into four categories: Strategies for Muslim Women, Strategies for Youth, Strategies related to Chapters, and General. These strategies are listed at the end of the report.

CCMW also launched its new publications at the conference: Muslim and Canadian Family Law: A Comparative Primer (Professor Lynda Clarke and Pam Cross), and booklets based on the primer in an easy to compare side-by-side format; and Engaging Muslim Women: Needs and Issues (Daood Hamdani).

HOST CHAPTER’S WELCOME

salaam Alaikum, Greetings of Peace. Bonjour & Good morning.Honored guests and friends: Welcome to Ottawa, and to the 24th annual gathering of the Canadian Council

of Muslim Women.

This has been a tremendously difficult year for Muslims around the globe. The work of CCMW, of the National Board and its chapters across the country, has become all the more urgent due to ongoing conflicts whose social, political and cultural repercussions we still cannot fully predict.

In recent years CCMW enjoyed the support and confidence of many sister organizations who partnered with us to carry our work forward. Let’s be frank. The same level of support is not evident from Muslim community groups within Canada. This weekend, we need to take a good hard look at the current culture of skepticism and lack of trust between Muslims with vastly differing interpretations and opinions on the role of religion/faith in our lives. CCMW has an established record of affirming the value of the diversity among its own members; now it is time to ask ourselves how we can begin to work through some of those differences. Is it possible or practical to reach out, to open up communication across numerous barriers, to talk about how we can achieve the goals all of our young people urgently need in their future as Muslim Canadians? Especially to ensure our full religious and intellectual freedoms remain protected, under very challenging, indeed unprecedented social and political conditions characterized by war or the fear of an inevitable war. We must passionately affirm the value of critical and moral independence exemplified by many of our role models including the speakers who will be presenting today – the writers, thinkers and activists who are at the forefront of the struggles of Muslim women. Above all, we must each ask ourselves this question: what must I do to make sure my culture, my society, my country remains open, not just for my own safety and freedom, but for the safety and freedom of every individual? I look forward to a stimulating, profound and dynamic discussion today.

I wish to thank all chapter members for their hard work in helping with the planning and organization of this Consultative forum.

Farhat Rahman

President, Ottawa Chapter

NATIONAL PRESIDENT’S REMARKS

salaam Alaikum, and Good Morning. On behalf of the National Board members, Nuzhat Jafri, Najet Hassan, Humera Ibrahim, Solmaz Sahin, Shaheen Ashraf, Khaddouj Souaid, Alia Hogben our Executive Director, Eman Ahmed our Projects Coordinator, I welcome you to this gathering of CCMW. We thank all of you for taking the time from your busy schedules to be with us to frankly discuss an issue that is very much in the news these days–both here in Canada and in other parts of the western world–and that is, Muslim women choosing self segregation and the impact of this choice.

Events occurring around the world have ramifications in Canada. We, as Muslim women are very worried about our children and the effect of world events on them. The issue of youth alienation and its effects on families and their participation in Canadian society is a concern, and we have to seek answers to help alleviate some of these concerns.We are joined by some very prominent and very qualified speakers today who will share with us their wealth of knowledge on the topics to be discussed.

Before we start the proceedings we would like to remind all of us of the Guiding Principles of CCMW. Our brochures, which you will find in your folders, list these. Please take a minute to review them. We are committed to these principles and we ensure that all our work is based on them. We are Canadian, Muslim, women and all that this implies.

We are believing Muslim women and proud of our faith. We are also part of this open and tolerant society of Canada. Within ourselves we value diversity of thought, diversity of our background and of our particular life experiences. At our gatherings we want to create a space for open and stimulating dialogue within a respectful environment. We understand and appreciate that not everyone will agree on all points under discussion yet we want the discussion to happen in a respectful and safe environment.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank the Ottawa Chapter for hosting this conference and for their tremendous hard work to make this a very successful meeting. May I please ask the Ottawa Chapter to stand. Please join me in a round of applause for these wonderful, hardworking women. We thank you all.

We would like to publicly thank our funders and supporters, Donna James of the Department of Multiculturalism and Huguette LeClerc of Status of Women. We are most grateful to our speakers who have taken time from their busy lives to be with us.

Last but by no means least, we acknowledge our husbands and families. They support us, take pride in what we do, they cheer us on and show great patience when we get carried away with the work of CCMW in the middle of the night. They even bring us cups of tea and coffee when we are busy working away. Most importantly they treat us as equals.

Before I end, I would once again like to urge everyone to be respectful of each other and remember that not everyone will agree with what we say or do.

Thank you.

Razia Jafer,

President, National Board

SESSION I: Muslim Women at the Crossroads

KEYNOTE ADDRESS: Muslim Women at the Crossroads

SPEAKER: Dr. Mai Yamani

ood morning. I would like to start with a verse from the Quran. “Oh mankind, note it’s mankind, we have created you of male and female, and of different nations and tribes so that you can get to know each other. The most honoured of you are the ones closest to Allah.

I have been asked to look at Muslim women at the crossroads. What does it mean to arrive at the crossroad? It means to be confronted by a choice of direction. The choice confronting Muslims today is between an open vision of Islam as a way of embracing the modern, or a closed vision which daily rejects the reality of our time. A less familiar way of thinking about the crossroads is to look at the directions as they are, where they are approached from. The directions are an essential part or basis for making the choice. Individuals go on their lived experiences when deciding how to go forward at the crossroads. But collectively, we are at a time in our history when our individual or group choices intimately affect everybody else. We are all at the crossroads, Muslims, Christians, Jews, religious or non-religious and have no option but to face the future together. We all share bonds of commonality, of experience, aspiration and hope. This has been born through the positive effect of globalization.

Ladies and gentlemen, what I want to do this morning is explain to you why the benefits that we have experienced are simply not available to the many people in the Muslim world and to Muslims internationally. To do this, I am going to use aspects of my own journey from an Arabian Muslim childhood to a more international identity.