United States
Human Rights
Hijri - Unknown-Present (AH); Common Era - Unknown-Present (CE)
Azizah al-Hibri began an impressive career by breaking boundaries when she became the first Muslim woman law professor in the US at the University of Richmond in 1992. Since then, she is best known as the founder of KARAMAH: Muslim Women Lawyers for Human Rights, an internationally known organization promoting research and tools for Muslim women around the world to improve their own political and social opportunities. Dr. al-Hibri has published invaluable research on Islam and democracy, gender, and human rights for decades. Her most recent work, Islamic Worldview: Islamic Jurisprudence, An American Muslim Perspective, Vol. 1 (ABA Book Publishing 2014), provides a fresh look at Islamic Law that integrates modern perspectives of family, marriage, gender, and the role of democratic government. For her lasting accomplishments, Dr. al-Hibri has received many awards, including the Virginia First Freedom Award and Dr. Betty Shabazz Recognition Award from Women in Islam in 2006. Her expertise reaches outside the walls of academia, as she has been requested for speaking engagements at the State Department, and was appointed to the US Commission on International Religious Freedom for a two year term by President Barack Obama in 2011.
