Women, Science and Islam

In an era where more women than men study medicine, dentistry, molecular biology, biochemistry, and medical-technology related degrees, it is peculiar to see a significant decline in female authorship in medical journals. If 64% of postgraduate medical science students are female, how can this sudden decline be explained? Unfortunately for us female scientists, it is not a simple case of gender bias. The problem lies much deeper, in the sexist roots of our employment procedures, in our grant-allocating processes, and in the tumultuous roads that precede the temporary happy-ending of a scientific publication.

Scientific research careers predominantly operate on short-term contracts and thus offer little job security. Therefore, when women are at a stage in life when they want to start having children, they are often postgraduate researchers stuck on a fixed-term contract and face difficult decisions before tenure, with little to no support from their institutions. Why do women still have to choose between having a family and making progress in their scientific career? Why do male scientists not face the same obstacles? The answers are simple; European social science research has proven that male and female scientists have different types of partners. While male scientists often have stay-at-home partners, female scientists are more likely to have a scientist spouse which obviously leaves the responsibility of taking care of the children with the female scientist who is left with no option but to sacrifice her career just to have her basic rights of motherhood. This is usually how females get lost in the leaky ladder of scientific research, yet we are still trying to inspire more girls to study STEM subjects- knowing that their efforts will be wasted due to the nature of the system which is inherently against them.

A woman's choice to have a family is not the only hurdle in the way of her achieving success. One simply needs to look at the struggles faced by Rosalind Franklin in the not-too-distant past of 1940s England to see that avoiding marriage and motherhood would not suffice. Described as being 'alarmingly clever' by her own father, Franklin was a single woman who should have married and had children of her own, but was 'too bright for most of the men she knew' (Rosalind Franklin: The Dark Lady of DNA by Brenda Maddox). We can turn to James D. Watson's' "The Double Helix" to witness his defaming and maligning of a talented woman who could not defend herself because she died of cancer in 1958, years before the book's publication. According to the picture painted by Watson, Rosy is an incompetent scientist who hoarded the data that she could not comprehend and treated men like naughty little boys. Despite Crick admitting to having adopted a patronising attitude towards her, Rosalind was to blame for her 'hot anger'. If she had felt confident and supported by the scientific community, she might have had the means to make leaps of findings. Instead, she had to proceed with care in a hostile environment where her part in the great discovery was obstructed by a series of manoeuvres made behind her back by her male colleagues. Although Rosalind's work was key to the discovery of DNA, she was not consulted on its use. Her boss, Franklin Wilkins had the audacity to share her data with the Cambridge pair without consent- as if his constant condescending attitude was not enough. How ironic to think that the only recognition this talented woman got for her contributions to science was for King's College London to name a building after her, adjacent to the name of the despised individual who branded her forever as 'the dark lady of DNA' while he undeservedly shared the Nobel prize with Watson and Crick.

Being a female muslim scientist makes one mindful of the setbacks which await in the world of academia, but also those imposed by the muslim community. Despite the teachings of prophet Muhammad (pbuh) which emphasise the acquisition of knowledge as bounden duties of each muslim from the cradle to the grave, and that the quest for knowledge and science is obligatory upon every believer, some people sadly attribute their gender-based prejudices to the teachings of Islam. While there is definitely an upwards shift in the British muslim population’s conception of the role of women, the pressure and responsibility of raising a family are still mostly on the shoulders of young women. If every muslim man was as understanding and supportive of the aspirations of his spouse as the noble prophet was, the weight of household duties would be shared out between a couple and we would have healthier, longer-lasting relationships where both the male and female could reach their goals in life.

I have recently been getting into debates with people about women in Islam more often than ever before. How we should dress, how we should conduct ourselves, how we should act in public, how good we should be at cooking- as if it is only a woman’s job. Perhaps it is because I am more exposed to different ideas from different people, or because I recognise more that is wrong in the way that society operates, or because I am just growing to become a frustrated young woman. Islam is a plurality of voices, and young women are asking some crucial questions. We need to bring these questions into the public sphere using our cognitive flexibility. The kind of political activism we need is the re-establishment of core human values, and that can only happen if men bring women into the conversation, and vice versa. The ayah ‘Your wives are a garment for you, and you are a garment for them’ (2:187) is just one of many highlights in the Quran of the equality men and women have in the eyes of God. Thus, gender inclusivism is not a western inspired phenomenon, but a faithful interpretation of the Quran.

From its very advent, Islam liberated women from a society that abundantly restricted their rights. Women were given rights of inheritance, property ownership, divorce, and education. These rights were empowered by the prophet himself, whose wives are the perfect examples of ambassadors at the forefront of developing their societies. The awesomely fierce Khadijah bint Khuwaylid (may God be pleased with her), the first and only wife of the prophet during their marriage, was not only an incredibly successful business woman, but also one who never compromised her modesty or integrity in the male-dominated world of trading. She used her wealth to provide for the poor, orphans, widows, and the sick. While she did not need a husband to support her financially, and Muhammad did not have the means to seek a wife, she asked the prophet (who was 15 years younger) to marry her. If Khadijah’s story doesn’t break stereotypes about women in Islam, or gender stereotypes in general, then I don’t know what does. Khadijah is one of history's most remarkable women, and a timeless example of what a pious, courageous, and clever woman can achieve.

Returning to my earlier question of why there is a gender gap in science professionals, societal barriers seem to be the answer. While there is no solid evidence to suggest that either males or females are better at science, there is a difference in how they choose to use their scientific ability. Statistics which highlight the prevalence of women in the medical sciences demonstrate that more females choose to use their strong scientific ability to help and understand people, whilst males often use theirs to understand inanimate systems. Compassion towards others is vital in all human beings, but in women this attribute is doubled, even tripled, which may explain the stronger interest females have in people. While there may be underlying scientific factors behind the choices of the sexes, both parties have their strengths and weaknesses, so neither sex is superior overall. It is also wrong to assume an 'average' for all men and women, as every individual has a unique disposition. What is certain, however, is that this loss of female talent to science has a detrimental impact on economic prosperity and makes women ill-equipped to participate in some of today's increasingly important knowledge-based industries. Rather than trying to recruit more women into science, we need to talk about how to retain female scientists after graduation. Muslim or not, leading male scientists and politicians must be looked in the eye and asked: 'Why have you allowed this to continue for so long?', and of course, this must be done by women.

"The Prophet once said, 'Women all control

Intelligent men, those who have a soul,

But stupid men rule women, for they're crude

And hold a simple, bullish attitude.'

They lack all tenderness and can't be kind-

Their animal soul still controls their mind:

Tenderness is a human quality,

While lust and rage show animality,

A ray from God is that one whom you love,

Creative, uncreated, from above."

-The Masnavi, Book one, by Rumi