Random Thoughts on Feminism

Today I chose a very dicey topic. Let’s see how I handle it!
The merriam-webster defines feminism in the following ways:
1. The belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities.
2. Organized activity in support of women’s rights and interests.
3. The theory of the political,economic and social equality of the sexes.
Personally, I really don’t know what to think. I somehow feel like the movement is not in line with my believes and principles.
Being a muslim, I try as much as possible to live by my religion’s injunctions to the best of my ability. As a result, I have to see feminism through the lens of Islam.
I am no scholar, but I find that feminism and islam cannot be aligned based on my little knowledge and my interactions with scholars. Feminism requires that men and women are treated equally in all respects. This can have numerous detrimental effects including reversing societal and religious believes and established gender roles. It may sound backward to some, but I am a man of faith. My believes and actions are guided by my religion.
I would give certain examples where Islam and feminism part ways.
First is in the Islamic inheritance system. In Islam, women and men inherit properties in a one to two ratio in majority of situations. I would not dwell so much into it. Basically, if a woman inherits a million naira, her brother inherits two million. In most cases. Islamic inheritance is vast and cannot be treated here. Feminism doesn’t agree with this. Feminism challenges this. In this situation, my religion takes precedence. No two ways about that.
Another is in certain rulings regarding how women are expected to behave and dress. Feminist insist that women should have a choice and that islam tramples on women’s rights. Women are expected to dress decently with the hijab, they are expected to have guardians and other rulings of this nature. Other feminists especially the Muslims will say that here feminism and islam are in agreement. They would say that women can choose to abide by such rulings as feminists.
I won’t want to say this as a justification, but from the beginning of civilization upto the first world war, we lived in patriarchal societies. From the Barbilonians to the Mongols and the Ottomans, all had men at the helm of affairs. Some were racists, some had caste and class discrimination, others had different characteristics but all had societies dominated and controlled by men. Even the few times women led societies, men still dominated. An example is during Queen Victoria’s reign, she was the leader but the court, scholars and other administrators were all men. At the risk of sounding antifeminist, but there had to have been a reason men were in charge.
Feminism can only ensure a level playing field for all genders. Men could still come out on top afterwards. Come to think of it, it’s not even a competition between the genders. Life has just become crazy. Society has become so crazy we now have so many genders with people free to identify as whatever they want. I am in no position to judge others but I am finding it hard to navigate in this increasingly complicated world. Things are so confusing. It’s even hard to practice one’s religion in peace. The truth is some are terrified of the kind of world the success of feminism will bring about, I am not afraid of that. I just have an unease due to it’s contradiction with the teachings of my religion.
In the end, it’s a free world. People are entitled to their choices and opinions. They only have to take responsibility for such choices and opinions when they lead to unintended consequences. As for me, if it comes to a choice between feminism and Islam, I would choose Islam all the time. I have to work towards success in the hereafter, while striving for worldly success.