http://www.jannah.org/sisters/feminism.html
Dr. Lois Lamya' al Faruqi writes about Islamic traditions and the feminist movement.
"A third Islamic tradition which affects
the future of any feminist movement in an Islamic environment is that
it specifies a differentiation of male and female roles and
responsibilities in society. Feminism, as represented in Western
society, has generally denied any such differentiation and has
demanded a move toward a unisex society in order to achieve equal
rights for women. By "unisex society," I mean one in which a single
set of roles and concerns are given preference and esteem by both
sexes and are pursued by all members of the society regardless of sex
and age differentials. In the case of Western feminism, the preferred
goals have been those traditionally fulfilled by the male members of
society. The roles of providing financial support, of success in
career, and of decision making have been given overwhelming respect
and concern while those dealing with domestic matters, with child
care, with aesthetic and psychological refreshment, with social
interrelationships, were devalued and even despised. Both men and
women have been forced into a single mold which is perhaps more
restrictive, rigid and coercive than that which formerly assigned men
to one type of role and women to another.
This is a new brand of male chauvenism with which Islamic traditions
cannot conform. Islam instead maintains that both types of roles are
equally deserving of pursuit and respect and that when accompanied by
the equity demanded by the religion, a division of labor along sex
lines is generally beneficial to all members of the society."