O mankind! Be careful of your duty to your Lord Who created you from a single soul and from it created its mate and from them twain has spread abroad a multitude of men and women. Be careful of your duty toward Lord in Whom you claim (your rights) of one another, and toward the wombs (that bore you). Lo! Lord has been a Watcher over you. (The Quran 4:1)

On 8 March 1857, women garment and textile workers in New York City staged a protest against inhumane working conditions, the 12-hour workday and low wages. The marchers were attacked and dispersed by the New York police. Two years later, again in March, these women form their first union. 

It took many generations of battered women since 1857 to continue their struggle in making the world recognize their suffering.  More than one hundred years later, the nations of the world (under United Nations) recognized in 1975, March 8 as International Women's Day. The United Nations General Assembly, documents two reasons for such recognition: (1) the fact that peace and social progress require the active participation and equality of women, and (2) to acknowledge the contribution of women to international peace and security.

The same agency also records in a recent report that "women continue to be among the poorest overall: the majority of the world's 1.3 billion absolute poor are women. On average, women receive between 30 and 40 per cent less pay than men earn for the same work. And everywhere women continue to be victims of violence, with rape and domestic violence listed as significant causes of disability and death among women.

All powers combined could not reinstate all that is robbed of women. The primary reason seems to be that the post-modern society has yet to understand and recognize the 'right' place of women in the society. And, the notion of learning from the past or history is not hip!

Our post-modern times have almost altered the history!  We have made the "Mother" a Single person, the "Wife" a Husband and the "Daughter" an early-unwed "Mother". It is the greatest tragedy and shame of our times. All of us share equal responsibility: institutions for perpetuating this crime and individuals for not asserting their right to stop the crime.

The materialistic society today has driven the woman to give away the self that they have known, and pretend to become the person they have never been. The unpaid or under-paid woman worker and over-abused lady is at the mercy of everyone at work and home, both. "Nearly one in two marriages (in USA) ends in divorce and 50% of all divorcing parties have been married under seven years" (Still Unequal: the Shameful Truth about Women & Justice in America, 1996, Lorraine Dusky).

The Islamic lens offers a radically clearer picture. It offers rich examples in Hagar (Hajra), Khadijah, Fatimah (may Allah be pleased with all of them), the noble women who epitomized the roles of a Mother, a Wife, and a Daughter. The contributions they had made to their families and society at large are unmatched. In them, one can find models of optimism, realism and sacrifice that continue to remain unparallel. Mankind may never experience such exemplars. They must be the role models.

Muslim world (rightfully) does not sanction the permissive and promiscuous culture of the modern woman of the West, but yet they are not too far away from their peers in the non-Muslim world on other issues. Women are not only barred from entering into the Mosques but are also discouraged to pursue higher education, let alone engage in an intellectual discourse on important matters of society. 

No civilized society can establish harmony, equity and fairness unless exploitation, persecution and oppression based on race, ethnicity and gender is completely eradicated. 

May we be blessed to understand and recognize the unique gifts bestowed by our Creator on each one of His creations ... men, women and children --- black, white, brown and everything in between, speaking from Albanian to Zulu!