Muslim Human Rights Activist Sets A Shining Example For All

[kaur_khalistani_lioness]

Muslim human rights activist sets a shining example for all

Sun Feb 24, 2008

It can be hard to hear some truths, especially when most of us are secure and comfortable in the cocoon of our middle-class, suburban, Canadian lives.

But every so often a remarkable person like Raheel Raza comes along to shake us out of our assumptions and make us see the world through different eyes. Even if it's only for a little while.

Ms. Raza is a Muslim human rights activist who has spent years fighting for the rights of Muslim women. She knows of what she speaks.

Born in Pakistan, Ms. Raza is an award-winning journalist and broadcaster who has taken a tough journey to raise the profile of women who must often live under the rule of husbands, fathers and brothers.

She's brash about her goals and fearless about where she stands and what she stands for.

"I have been sued for calling extremists 'extremist' and I am listed on the 'World's Most Hated Muslims' list. I'm No. 6. I hope to be No. 1," she told a congregation of Durham Unitarians at a speech in Brooklin last weekend.

It's not so long ago that a female Muslim icon from Pakistan, Benazir Bhutto, was assassinated in Ms. Raza's native land, so Ms. Raza's outspoken stance is not without risk. But she is pushing on, making it clear she will not give up her fight for equality for Muslim women.

She has written, Their Jihad . . . Not My Jihad: A Canadian Muslim Woman Speaks Out. Ms. Raza makes clear that the Qur'an states men and women are equal and believes that sharia law as practised in the world today, "is not really sharia law. It's not based on human justice or equality. It is a man-made law, only put into place for the sake of power and control."

Ms. Raza is determined to see changes in the Muslim world and is fighting to make it a more equitable place, one where men and women are treated equally in all aspects. By standing by her principles and standing up for what is right, she has shown us it isn't enough to sit back and merely listen. Action is vital. She's living proof of that.

http://www.newsdurhamregion.com/news/opini...s/article/94231