"What Women Want" was a great movie. This Conference was about "WHAT POWERFUL MUSLIM WOMEN WANT"

In an article titled, “The Power of Muslim Women,” Dilshad D. Ali shares her thoughts and opinions on the first Women's Islamic Initiative in Spirituality and Equity Conference held by the American Society for Muslim Advancement. During the first session that involves Ingrid Mattson, the Islamic Society of North America's first women president, Ali admires Mattson's ability to answer controversial questions on the notion of women-led prayers in manner that does not result in a riotous response. She calls for Muslim feminists from the progressive camp and feminists from the moderate camp to see that different people practice Muslim differently and that differences do not need to cause division, but can be reconciled through an understanding that perfect agreement will never be met and mutual respect is paramount in situations like this. In my opinion, Mattson may be able to deflect a question because she doesn't want to start controversy, but she doesn't ever seem to answer a question or pose real solutions to help foster a greater understanding between the two camps and search for middle ground. “Agreeing to disagree” can keep fires from getting larger, but it does not put any out either. On the session addressing Muslim youth and what can be done to teach them about the Muslim tenants of love and tolerance, Sufi panelists that talked about meditation and calling children to emulate Sufi masters were dismissed as unrealistic. I agree with Fareena Alam that Muslim youth who are taught to be angry and join terrorist groups as a way to deal with their rage are not going to listen to any Sufi scholar and need stronger influencing voices to lead them on different paths. The women at this conference have their hands full and this is an extremely important issue for them to find a solution to because these children are the future of Islam and if they believe that terrorism is the answer to the problems in the world, there will never be peace. For the last two sessions of the conference, the women discussed how women go about doing ijtihad differently and how this results in some Muslim women not wearing hijab because they find they can be modest without having to cover their hair and other women abiding by the Qur'an and choosing to veil themselves, the inconsistencies in the Qur'an and how Muslims can interpret it differently, and the rape laws in Pakistan and how important it is for women to fight against ignorance, apathy, and opression. This conference was merely a stepping stone for what these powerful Muslim women have the potential to accomplish. I think the Muslim world is in dire need of a council like this that is comprised of women who are well educated and searching for answers to bring about positive change.