Islam in Africa South of the Sahara
Essays in Gender Relations and Political Reform
Edited by Pade Badru, Brigid M. Sackey
Not available to order
Publication date:
23 May 2013Length of book:
428 pagesPublisher
Scarecrow PressISBN-13: 9780810884700
Islam in Africa South of the Sahara: Essays in Gender Relations and Political Reform draws together contributions from scholars that focus on changes taking place in the practice of the religion and their effects on the political terrain and civil society. Contributors explore the dramatic changes in gender relations within Islam on the continent, occasioned in part by the events of 9/11 and the response of various Islamic states to growing negative media coverage. These explorations of the dynamics of religious change, reconfigured gender relations, and political reform consider not only the role of state authorities but the impact of ordinary Muslim women who have taken to challenging the surbodinate role assigned to them in Islam.
Essays are far-ranging in their scope as the future of Islam in sub-Saharan Africa falls under the microscope, with contributing addressing such topics as the Islamic view of the historic Arab enslavement of Africans and colonialist ventures; studies of gender politics in Gambia, northern Nigeria, and Ghana; surveys of the impact of Sharia law in Nigeria and Sudan; the political role of Islam in Somalia, South Africa, and African diaspora communities.
Islam in Africa South of the Sahara is an ideal reader for students and scholars of international politics, comparative theology, race and ethnicity, comparative sociology, African and Islamic studies.
Essays are far-ranging in their scope as the future of Islam in sub-Saharan Africa falls under the microscope, with contributing addressing such topics as the Islamic view of the historic Arab enslavement of Africans and colonialist ventures; studies of gender politics in Gambia, northern Nigeria, and Ghana; surveys of the impact of Sharia law in Nigeria and Sudan; the political role of Islam in Somalia, South Africa, and African diaspora communities.
Islam in Africa South of the Sahara is an ideal reader for students and scholars of international politics, comparative theology, race and ethnicity, comparative sociology, African and Islamic studies.
Recent times have witnessed greater Islamic political expression and sub-Saharan Africa has also experienced its version of greater political Islamic influence. This book’s intent is to focus on gender relations and Sharia law in sub-Saharan Africa through a collection of essays. The first part consists of four essays that explore the historical spread of Islam in sub-Saharan Africa, including one that traces the multiple views on slavery in Africa. The second part has five essays that focus on the status of women and the role some of the women organizations are playing in politics and religion. The next four essays explore the intersection between gender and Sharia law. The last section has three essays that are case studies of Islamism in Somalia, South Africa, and one on the Nation of Islam in the United States. Each of the 16 essays has extensive notes, and some have a bibliography. However, there is a selected bibliography section at the end as well as a glossary of common Islamic words. The addition of an index is helpful to find areas of interest quickly. This book covers primarily Central and Western sub-Saharan Africa (although there are a small number of essays that cover other areas). . . .The essays are useful for students interested in case studies of women organizing to reinterpret traditional Islamic customs and renegotiate their space in sub-Saharan society.