Women's rights in the Middle East have always been a controversial issue. Although the rights of women have changed over the years, they have never really been equal to the rights of a man. This poses a threat on Iran because women have very limited options when it comes to labor, marriage and other aspects of their culture. I believe that equal treatment for women and men is a fundamental principal of international human rights standards. Yet, in some places like Iran, discriminatory practices against women are not only prevalent, but in some cases, required by law. In this essay I will explain to you the every day life of an every day Islamic woman living in Iran. You will be astonished by what these women have endured through the …show more content…
Not only are women not allowed to choose how they dress, they also aren't allowed to choose where they would like to work or go to school. They can't work with men because they are segregated from men in every aspect of public life. They also are barred from taking employment in a large number of occupations simply because these jobs would compromise their chastity. A married woman is only allowed to be employed if she has the consent of her husband. Women are forbidden to choose their own academic or vocational field of study and there are 169 fields of study that are strictly for men only. A recent law that was just made in 1990 forbids women to drive, which made it impossible for them to transport themselves independently.
Iranian women have to depend quite frequently on men to survive. Women aren't even allowed to travel unless they have permission of their husbands or fathers. Marriage also is a crucial element to an Iranian woman's life. The legal age of marriage is nine years old and most women are not allowed their husband of choice. Women are also not allowed equal rights to divorce. It is only under extreme conditions, such as insanity of their spouse, that they are allowed to file for divorce. Even in the event of the divorce, the father has legal custody of boys after the age of two and girls after the age of seven. It is also crucial to have a husband because if women are involved in any other voluntary sexual
To many Westerners, the overall plight of females in Iran appears tenuous. It is illegal for females above the age of 9 to appear in public with out their heads veiled and bodies entirely covered. Women cannot serve in certain occupations, such as the military. It is difficult for a married woman to divorce her spouse, yet for men the right to divorce is unquestioned and done with ease. Married women in Iran who wish to leave the country for any reason must first obtain the permission of their husbands.
Muslim women in Iran got treated very badly, they didn’t have no rights. They weren’t really free, they were forced to marry men, they were forced to do things out of their will. women got arrested for basic things like not wearing their veil, or robe that covered their body, or certain amount of makeup. A Muslim woman got arrested for wearing red socks.
There are many ways in which Iranian cultural expectations are different from the western cultural expectations. They are different in regards to citizens’ rights and gender norms.
She writes that in Tehran women have to obey rules< and if they don’t they are arrested and taken to prisons where they are put to work and are humiliated. In Tehran, the buses are segregated in which the women have to sit in the back and have to enter through the back of the bus. Women also worry about their clothing if their wearing it correctly. If the don’t, they are taken to prison by men who guard the streets. As you can see, women had no freedom, and if they acted as a rebellion, they would get
For three and a half decades, the Islamic lifestyle has evolved to become the cultural norm of what used to be the Iranian Kingdom (Parvaz, 2014). Muslim political commanders have persecuted the human rights of liberty and justice inherent in the Iranian nation (HRW, 2014). The freedom of women to express themselves culturally, socially, and politically has been, and still is, neglected within the Islamic society due to the radical ideology held by the fundamentalists of the leading regime (IranHumanRights, 2015). Culture, gender and political factors principally comprise the distinctive work of Shirin Neshat, as her desire and concern is to, “inspire, provoke, mobilize, and to bring hope to” the people of her homeland (Neshat, TEDtalks, 2011).
Men and women of Iran are segregated in society, such as restaurants, buses, and schools. The whole aspect of defined gender roles relates to the subject of maintaining patriarchy. Islam fundamentals focus on traditional values of Arab society. In this case, men have always been in control throughout time. Historical context before and after the Islamic revolution provides a realization of how Iranian society and ideology was beginning to favor women compared to their traditional role. A society in the aspect of the patriarchy can “survive only by creating institutions that foster male dominance through sexual segregation” (Mernissi 32). Having established gender roles is the epitome of these created institutions, where women are seen as less and oppressed by society. They are seen to have fitna, inducing chaos and disorder amongst men and
Geography is the study of spatial patterns in the human and physical world. The human part of that definition relates to people’s different cultures and activities around the world (White). As a female growing up in America, I have been lucky to have a lot of freedom. However, if I lived somewhere else in the world, such as Iran, I would have a much different life. In America women are considered equal to men and have their basic human rights. However, some countries deny women these rights. In Iran I would be able to go to school and get a fairly good education. Actually, Iran has stated that the improvement of their women’s education is one of their greatest accomplishments. However, I would be limited by what I could major in. Many majors are restricted to men only, such as education, accounting, and
Beset with the unthinkable, the Islamic Revolution defines turbulent times for many Iranians (Tehran). Numerous females including Satrapi were robbed of their social rights due to westernizing and secular efforts (Tehran). In turn, the Islamic Revolution undermined the younger Satrapi’s ability to come to terms with her own identity; nevertheless, she now writes to share her experience with oppression and her later journey towards cultural integration.
The status of women in Iran not only holds them down but it affects their children. “Children born of Women in Iran are treated as second class citizens and can be rejected from getting their citizenship.” Men have all authority over women in Iran. If a woman is married, her husband has the authority and if not it is her father. “The father is the natural guardian who can marry off his daughter; even if the girl is an adult, she cannot marry someone on her own.” Muslim men can marry women from other religions but women can not marry non Muslims unless the man converts to Islam. The tamkin law is a law that is the full accessibility and sexual availability of the woman to her husband. Sexual availability is considered a woman's duty and a man's right. The husband can prevent his wife from an occupation or technical profession.. In family law and inheritance rules women only receive half as much as their brothers or other male relatives. Even if a husband dies, the wife will receive only one - eighth of the inheritance if she has a child. The law also prevents women from being judges. Women are not allowed to leave the country without permission. They can not even obtain a passport without the consent of their husbands. They have no control over their bodies and a man can divorce his wife whenever he wishes.When it comes to criminal law in Islamic law of Iran, girls can be held criminally
The main marriage custom implemented in Iran along with other Middle Eastern countries is the custom of arranged marriages. When women do not pursue furthering their education
Most Islamic women would agree that they are one of the most oppressed groups of people in the world. This is because of the way they are treated and the strict laws that they must follow. The Islamic woman in the picture stands for all women in Islamic countries and emphasizes the oppression they face is unacceptable by raising awareness to the problem. As this problem became well known, the International Society of Human Rights has been trying to stop the oppression of women in Islamic countries.
Gender equality is one of the important issues in the Middle East and Iran is among those countries that has been battling with it constantly. “Traditionally girls and women in Iran have been in a disadvantageous position with reference to education and employment as elsewhere in the world”( Iravani,Reza, 2010). It has become part of its culture to put men before women which causes misrepresentation or a very low representation of the female population in the society. Women’s rights in Iran is important or relevant because employment, education, marital rights, and child custody are constantly an issue in the Iranian society despite the active and visible women's rights.
Women in Iran have many more rights compared to the other countries I have talked about. However when traveling to other places, they still need permission from their husbands. The latest news for traveling restrictions was a female football player wanted to go to an international tournament in Asia, but her husband refused to sign a document to renew her passport so she was not allowed to leave. One major inequality is if a women dies in a family that the family will only receive half of a legal compensation compared to a male. Women in Iran have some freedoms like, driving and allowed to have primary and secondary education. Women in universities are now the majority of students. However, engineering and technology are majors banned for
In the Hughes’ text, Women in World History: Volume 1, the chapter on Middle Eastern women focuses on how Islam affected their lives. Almost immediately, the authors wisely observe that “Muslim women’s rights have varied significantly with time, by region, and by class” (152). They continue with the warning that “there is far too much diversity to be adequately described in a few pages.” However, I argue that there is essential information and insight on said topic that the authors have failed to include, as well as areas of discussion with incomplete analyses. I will use Leila Ahmed’s book, Women and Gender in Islam: Historical Roots of a Modern Debate, as
In today’s vast, democracy-fueled world, the concept of feminism has gradually taken on a significant role when it comes to modernity. The advocacy for equality of all women proves effective and boasts an undying faithfulness from women everywhere. Within the boundaries of the United States of America, feminism has grown since the establishment of the nation and continues to grow today, an issue that has especially risen in light of the recent election. However, beyond this great nation’s borders, feminism does not die in even the slightest way. Women all over the world are fighting for their equality and right to complete and total fairness. Despite the worldwide movement, it’s often overshadowed by other issues going on. Iran, the focus of Jasmin Darznik’s The Good Daughter: A Memoir of My Mother’s Hidden Life, played (and continues to play) host to perhaps one of the greatest flawed societies when it comes to feminism. Through her powerful, poignant memoir, Darznik brings us into the midst of a particular lifestyle and the reality behind treatment of women in Iranian society.