image: Dr. Asma Abdel Halim, associate professor in the The University of Toledo Department of Women's and Gender Studies and director of the Center of the Muslim Woman view more
Credit: Daniel Miller, The University of Toledo
Dr. Asma Abdel Halim's quarter century of research questioning the breach and progress of Muslim women's human rights is personal.
Her own life experience fuels her life's work to protect Muslim women worldwide for generations to come.
The next leg of her journey takes her back to her native Sudan, a place Abdel Halim describes as "a country that has always subjected women to a version of Islamic law that is fashioned according to the political mood of the government."
The prestigious Fulbright U.S. Scholar program selected The University of Toledo professor focused on women's rights under religious laws to travel to Sub-Saharan Africa for the 2019-20 academic year as a Fulbright Scholar.
Abdel Halim, associate professor in the UToledo Department of Women's and Gender Studies and director of the Center of the Muslim Woman, will study the history of gender effects on Sudanese law, produce ideas for reform, and teach a class on gender and the law at her alma mater, the University of Khartoum.
"As a Muslim woman joining other Muslim women in researching Islamic laws and critiquing centuries of patriarchal dominance, I find it necessary to explore women's history, rights and developments because I am determined to address gendered laws and how to combat their effects," Abdel Halim said.
Since its inception in 1946, the Fulbright U.S. Scholar program within the U.S. Department of State has worked to improve intercultural relations and diplomacy through national fellowship. The program in Sudan was suspended in 1992 after the U.S. issued an embargo on relations with the country and was reinstated two years ago after President Trump lifted U.S. sanctions.
"As Dr. Asma Abdel Halim travels around the world sharing her knowledge, insight and experience, she helps raise awareness about problems and protections of women living under Muslim laws," Dr. Sharon Barnes, chair and associate professor in the UToledo Department of Women's and Gender Studies, said. "Her outstanding scholarship consistently brings great prestige to The University of Toledo. While we will miss her at home, we are proud the Fulbright program has recognized her forward-thinking work on international women's issues."
Abdel Halim, a faculty member at UToledo for 15 years, graduated from the Faculty of Law at the University of Khartoum with a bachelor's degree in 1980 and a master's degree in 1988.
"As a student there, I never encountered gender in any of the courses," Abdel Halim said. "My experience studying and teaching in the United States proved that gender as a tool of analysis is vital in studying law."
Abdel Halim, who earned her Ph.D. at Ohio University, said actions of extremists lead many to question the tenets of Islam and the religion's commitment to equality.
"Religious interpretations are being misused to strengthen conservative stances regarding the curbing of human rights," Abdel Halim said. "Old traditions of favoring men because of their participation in war lead to the subjugation of women to the authority of male guardians."
Abdel Halim plans to write a book after accessing old Shari'a sources, such as treaties written by scholars centuries ago and still considered the main source of Islamic rules today. She also plans to delve into the era of Mahdiyya uprisings and older archives.
"The intersection of religion and gender seems to be working against women where legislation is concerned," Abdel Halim said. "Ideological traditions find safety in regression to old traditions rather than in change. I plan to follow the historical events of the recent history of the Sudan and look closely to the history of women in the country and understand why developments in legislation go back and forth. I also will examine how the intersection of gender and religion seems to always end in the defeat of women's rights in favor of archaic religious norms."
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