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Muslim Women capabilities should not be underestimated. |
Integration is definitely a dilemma facing Muslim women in any European country, a fact agreed on by all the Muslim women interviewed herein about their situation in Italy. There is a lack of communication and a language difference causing difficulty for Muslim women engaging in the Italian life, as expressed by Ornella Bider, an Italian woman speaking for her fellow members. Other Italians see that the main idea dominating the Muslim female image is that they are stigmatized and oppressed. Generally, Muslim women in Italy seek equal rights and opportunities with men on family and social levels.
Some General ideas just pop up once we discuss the Muslim women status in Italy. Unfortunately, most of them, if not all, are misconceptions deeply rooted and falsely attributed to Islam. What really encounters an ordinary Italian Muslim woman is a common belief that the Islamic Shari'ah law has some discriminatory principles against woman. The Italian consciousness has automatically and in an unintended way developed all those negative ideas about Islam. The problems cited above reflect the status of the Italian Muslim women. However, these are not the only obstacles in their integration into their community.
Cultural-Misconceptions
Bider, who works for a project devoted to immigrant women, has her own view on the issue; she believes that this negative attitude is not related to religion by any means, but to education, which sees a woman's interest is only family-related. "Actually I think the Italian community underestimates those ladies' capabilities," she adds. Bider thinks that the misconceptions about Islam are all cultural-related with all culture sources (schools, home, social gatherings).
While she defends Islam and accuses culture, Asmae Dachan, a mother of two children, a writer and poet, raises another important issue. Dachan believes that Muslim women in Italy seek equality in every field in their lives (same salaries, equal opportunities, holding higher ranks in the society). She also thinks that this step would protect them from any kind of power misuse, exploitation and violence.
Italians & Muslim Women
When asking Ouejdane Mejri, the President of the Tunisian Association in Italy, about what do Italians think about Muslim women? She answered that it is a common phenomenon in Italy that people do not distinct between Arabs in general and Muslims. The Italians identify a woman wearing the veil as an Arab Muslim woman, regardless of her origin. The Italians also do not recognize that some Muslim women do not wear veil. Mejri sees that Muslim women have to work on a better representation of themselves in the Italian community. "We have to destroy stereotypes and demolish prejudices. We have to start by our neighbors until we reach higher institutions. Our challenge is to be well known and recognized.”
There are many people who absolutely agree with what Mejri has just mentioned as a way for integration. Souheir Khatkouda, the president of Muslim Women Association in Italy (ADMI) and a mother of seven children, says: “Our purpose is to be a reference point for Muslim women in Italy. We try to improve the internal communication with local groups to introduce ourselves within the Islamic realities and to invite Muslim women to join our association to encourage them to make relationships with the Italian society, all this to promote integration.”
Muslim Women Categorization
Asmae Dachan, who was born and raised in Italy of a Syrian origin, distinguishes between two groups of Muslim women living in the Italian society. The first is “the Muslim immigrant woman, who has to face a lack of familiarity with the new home language, customs, and culture. The majority of Muslim immigrant women in Italy have come from Morocco, Tunisia and Egypt; those are mainly mothers, housewives, and workers.
Citizens of Category B
| "We have to destroy stereotypes and demolish prejudices." |
The second group is the Italian women who converted to Islam at a mature age or those born in Italian Muslim families and are often considered as Italian citizens of category B. The major problem facing this group is that they do not get support from the Islamic institutions in Italy. Consequently, they lack the required knowledge about their religion because there is a lack of reliable sources.
Family Challenges
Meeting a life partner who matches with the Muslim woman's criteria for a husband as well as accepting her identity represent another big problem for many of them; trying to balance between being a successful Muslim wife and working woman. Another challenge facing Muslim women in Italy is to communicate with their children, to give them a solid and authentic education, and to inculcate the Islamic moral values in them, especially if this mother tries to keep her offspring psychologically and physically healthy. This problem seems to be the greatest challenge ever for them.
Muslim Women Officially
Despite the major challenges facing Muslim women in Italy, there is a great and positive existence for Muslims there. The official presence of the Muslim women in Italy is represented in different active Islamic groups led by females working under the umbrella of Islamic cultural centers. Some of the main functions of such groups are society-related activities aiming mainly at Muslim women's education. An example of what those groups do is that they supervise some Arabic schools responsible for teaching the Arabic language to improve it and enhance reading the Holy Qura'n.
ADMI
The Muslim Women Association in Italy (ADMI) is a perfect representation for Muslim women in Italy. This organization works on building religious dialogues. It is also a member of the European Forum of Muslim Women .
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| Mrs. Khatkouda on the left |
Speaking about the relationships between the Italian government and the Muslim women representatives, Mrs. Khatkouda, the president of ADMI, says, “The relations are good, they invite us to different activities, conferences, debates and they ask us to explain the role of women in Islam. We have been invited by the Minister for the Equal Opportunity, at the Chamber of Deputies and at the Senate, and then recognized as a favored interlocutor.”
EU Islamic References & More
Though there is a rigid approach by some of the Italian politicians regarding the figure of the Muslim woman, yet the Muslim women in Italy can prove their existence strongly. The most outstanding challenge facing most Muslims is the lack of religious European reference for Islamic issues, especially women-related issues, i.e. the European Council for Fatwa and Research (ECFR). Another challenge is to push Muslim women to become the protagonists of their lives and of their societies. Last but not least comes the challenge for all the Italian Muslim mothers: to raise their children as Muslims with Italian identities.
Are you a European Muslim woman? Do you face the same challenges of Muslim Women in Italy? In your opinion, how can European Muslim women overcome their challenges?
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