Do not judge me by my appearance. Yes, I cover up because God told me to, and yes, I am proud to be a Muslim woman.

I am currently pursuing master’s degree in Architecture. I am also married and a mother of beautiful 4-year-old daughter. I respect my husband, and he respects me, too. He takes care of our daughter and me financially, and I manage the house. We share our responsibilities inside and outside the home. My husband is financing my studies as well. And as commanded by God, I wear the hijab and an outer coat when I leave the house. The hijab and a coat do not impede my interactions with others.

I could have been apologetic and started defending the persona of Muslim women that is propagated by the Western media. Women in certain Islamic societies are persecuted and live as second-class citizens. However, this treatment of women has more to do with the culture of male dominance in those societies and has little association with Islamic teachings.

Islam, since its emergence, has done much more for women of the whole world. At the time of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings to him) women of Arabia were considered property of men and had no rights. Fourteen centuries ago, Islam instructed children that respecting their mothers would guarantee them a path for salvation. Islam also gave women rights of inheritance, provided equal opportunities for men and women in spiritual advancement, commanded men to take care of women both financially and emotionally and encouraged all to pursue education — regardless of their gender. Alongside this, consider the status of women in the rest of the world centuries ago; in most cases, the feminist movement started in Western societies during the 19th and 20th centuries.

Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony are the prominent names associated with the women’s rights movement in the 1840s. They, alongside some other feminists worked hard and fought against discriminating regulations against women, making the path easier for the future generations of women. Today women have numerous rights.

However, some evidence of discrimination against women still exists in Western societies — especially when it comes to employment. Comparing this to early years of Islam, women were very accomplished. The best examples are of the wives of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him. Khadija, the first wife of Prophet Muhammad, was known for her business acumen and high intellect in spiritual matters. Prophet Muhammad himself had sought her council numerous times in the matter of the faith. Aisha, another of Prophet Muhammad’s wives, is known as the scholar of religion, who taught both men and women during her life.

Women in the early years of Islam participated in all aspects of life. They were scholars, businesswomen, homemakers, nurses and even warriors in the battles. Present-day Muslim women are also very active in getting higher education and doing important jobs in science, technology and the arts.

For people living in Western society, we have a choice. We can buy into the idea that all Muslim women are oppressed and their choice of “covering themselves” is a result of their oppression. Or we can respect the freedom of religion of the women in Islam. I am not asking to condone the way some societies treat their women; we need to help these women come out of suppression.

Let’s all work on getting these women out of this suppression regardless of their religion, race or country of origin.

Namoode Khokher,

architecture graduate student