Islam Unveiled (Religion Documentary) | Real Stories

In his will, Muhammad Atta said he wanted "no women at his funeral. No women at his grave." "Only," he said. "Good Muslims." To the suicide pilot of September 11th, that meant men. Atta was a man, who like the Taliban, used Islam to justify his fear and hatred for women. It's men like these who has convinced many in the West Islam itself is a religion which hates and oppresses women. But I want to challenge that view. I am going to travel across the Islamic world to ask whether a devout Muslim woman can find freedom and equality. I was born and brought up in Britain as a Muslim and I've watched the rise of fundamentalist Islam, the bewilderment. As a journalist, I've reported on its growth. As a feminist, I question whether it was still a faith I could call my own. I want to know if the true teachings of Islam have been distorted. If men are really allowed to beat their wives. If Islam really promotes the stoning to death of women. At the heart of my investigation is the veil. To some it's the uniform of oppression. I want to find out why for many millions of women it's become a powerful symbol of political liberation. The greatest appeal of Islam in submission to Allah is that it's totally without gender. Allah is not a Father like the Christian God. Both women and men pray exactly the same way. There's no hierarchy of bishops and priests. In fact, the first convert to Islam was a woman, Muhammad's first wife (Khadija). But the moment you step outside the home into the public space of the street in the mosque, women are almost invisible. I was about 9 when I first went into a mosque. It was just like this the first time I was being crowded up here. All the women up here. And you realise there's this huge down there, and only the men are allowed. I've never ever been on the main floor of the mosque before. I was up there. Always trying to get a proper picture of what it would've looked like, and this is... This is - it feels like what it was meant to be. I did really talked to my dad about it afterwards saying it was - you know, it was quite a horrible experience for a women's gathering. Not what I expected at all. Even then, at 9 years old, it just didn't seem fair. But at least my generation didn't need to wear the veil. It seemed archaic. Now, girls much younger than me, are taking it by choice. Why is it so important to them now? 25 years ago I started learning to read the Quran. Going to the mosque. It never occurred to me that you'd be in a situation where second and third generation immigrants like myself would be choosing to wear a stricter form of the veil than their parents. My generation was told it wasn't in the Quran but many now feel they have to wear it. The first Friday of Ramadan. Whitechapel Market in London's East End, and the heart of a large Muslim community. Here, it struck me practically that I was the only one not wearing a veil. "Do you ever feel that because you won't dress the way you do that you get given any grieve on the street?" This day so badly. It's horrible. What kind of people stare at you? Non-Muslims really. Exactly. They'd look at us really. Men look at us. How does your Mum feel about the niqab then? Proud. This is a good thing to wear it. Wa alaikum salam (And peace be with you). Insha allah (God willing), I want to watch you on TV. I find it all very strange. They are just school girls, but one of them said she feels naked without her hijab. Feminists of my generation have always fought for the right to dress as they please, but it's a shock that these girls should choose to look like this. I want to find out why young women who were born and brought up in this country are interpreting their religion in this way. Shaista, Sidra, Salwa and Umama are all students are university in Birmingham. Some of you are perhaps even wearing it in such a long time. Do you find that it draws more attention to you initially? What you see is like that you've judged at. They don't see, you know - they don't judge you for your mind. You know, how intellectual you, maybe your personality. The hijab itself is a covering. It comes from the word "To cover". That's the beauty of it, but it doesn't cover your mind. It allows the mind to work on its own terms. So you're more than an image. When I was growing up, I knew

Channel: Real Stories

Views: 4,823,080

Keywords: islam documentary, islam unveiled, documentary islam, islam doku, islamic documentary, muslim documentary, religion documentary, islam religion, Amazing Documentaries, Full Documentary, BBC Three documentary, Channel 4 documentary, BBC 3, Full length Documentaries, BBC Three, Documentary Movies - Topic, islam, Real Stories, Muhammad, Mohammed, Salah, Hajj, Umrah, Madrasa, Muslima, An-Nisa, Aisha, Talaq, Khadija, Abaya, Tarawi, Taraweeh, Iftar, Mubarak, Kareem

Id: uBvFX3xzQbk

Length: 95min 38sec (5738 seconds)

Published: Wed Mar 29 2017