“Muslim Women in Religious and Civic Leadership”

Call for Proposals |

AbuSulayman Center for Global Islamic Studies Annual Conference, April 25-26, Fairfax, VA

Recent decades have witnessed the increasing presence and prominence of Muslim women in a variety of civic and professional contexts, as well as in charitable, educational, and cultural organizations. At the same time, explicitly religious roles for Muslim women, as religious scholars, mosque leaders, chaplains, and legal authorities also continue to expand in number, scope, and influence. This year, the AbuSulayman Center’s annual conference will bring together. both scholars and practitioners for an extended discussion of the many ways in which Muslim women are leading, shaping, and supporting their communities. It will examine the challenges they face in these leadership roles in a world where Muslim women continue to struggle against both patriarchal and Islamophobic assumptions about their agency and influence. What are the structural and cultural obstacles they navigate in these roles, and how do these obstacles vary across different Muslim contexts? What are the religious, intellectual, ideological, or practical developments that have encouraged or facilitated the expansion of women’s engagement in public leadership roles? How has women’s leadership changed the communal dynamics, social expectations, and cultural landscape of different Muslim contexts? Are there important historical precedents for women’s leadership in premodern Muslim communities, and what is the importance of those precedents in contemporary Muslim contexts?

We invite proposals from scholars and advanced graduate students that explore the leadership roles of women in either majority or minority Muslim communities, engaging the questions and issues raised above. We also invite presentations from Muslim women community leaders, activists, and practitioners currently serving in either religious or civic roles. Those interested should submit: