My body, my freedom? Imam Zaid Shakir responds from Oakland from an Islamic perspective.
Zaid Shakir recalled that “We have to stick to the basics.” of religion, and that Islam provides a complete system of morality that does not depend on improvisation or changing values..
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In a sermon delivered in Oakland (United States), the Imam Zaid Shakir questioned the validity of proclamations such as “My body, my freedom”, regulars in feminist and movements of Defence of individual autonomy.
This stance places personal freedom on a subordinate plane, where the divine will prevails over any individual decision. From a critical perspective, this raises questions about the space that Islam, as interpreted by Shakir, leaves for the autonomy of believers—and especially of women., since the slogan has been central to the struggle for reproductive and bodily rights.
Their thesis reinforces the idea that the body It does not belong to the person themselves, but to Allah.. To illustrate this, he mentioned tattoos, piercings or hairstyles: practices which, in his view, cannot be justified under the principle of ’personal choice.“.
Criticism of this approach points out that denying the principle of personal choice can come into direct conflict with modern values such as individual freedom, the right to decide over one's own body and the separation between religion and the private sphere.
Who is Zaid Shakir?
Zaid Shakir (Berkeley, California, 1956) is one of the most influential Muslim scholars in the West. Co-founder and senior professor of the Zaytuna College (Berkeley) also promoted the Lighthouse Mosque in Oakland, where he delivered this sermon.
The Zaytuna College, founded in 2009 in Berkeley, California, is the first accredited college in the United States dedicated to Islamic studies. The institution offers an academic programme that combines traditional religious sciences with modern disciplines, with the aim of preparing students to assume leadership within the North American Muslim community. Among its main objectives is to train Leaders of the future, capable of responding to current social and cultural challenges without losing their connection to the classical sources of Islam.
Shakir converted to Islam in 1977 while serving in the US Air Force. He studied International Relations and Political Science before devoting himself to Islamic training in Egypt, Syria and Morocco. His work combines sensitivity to racial and social issues with a rigorous doctrinal approach.
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