WISE - Women's Islamic Initiative in Spirituality and Equality

In recognition of International Day Against Female Genital Mutilation, February 6,  the Women’s Islamic Initiative in Spirituality and Equality (WISE), reaffirms its commitment to advocate for the elimination of the cultural practice of female genital cutting (FGC)* and calls on all decision makers around the world to take a lead in establishing renewed efforts to eradicate FGC.

How mothers and sisters and wives can prevent killing in the name of God by reminding men in their lives just how far they have strayed.

A quiet Muslim community known as the Hui that has long been buried among China’s Buddhist majority has recently been receiving attention for its nu ahong - female spiritual leaders. While the spotlight is new, the concept is not. As early as the late Ming dynasty (around the 17th century), the faithful set up Muslim schools catering exclusively to young females and by the arrival of the late Qing dynasty in the 19th century, these schools had transformed into mosques operated by and serving women. In the coming decades, the practice of female Imams, if you will, permeated all Chinese Muslim societies.