College of William & Mary Law School William & Mary Law School Scholarship Repository Faculty Publications Faculty and Deans 2008 Lifting the Veil: Women and Islamic Law Christie S. Warren William & Mary Law School,
[email protected] Repository Citation Warren, Christie S., "Lifting the Veil: Women and Islamic Law" (2008). Faculty Publications. 99. https://scholarship.law.wm.edu/facpubs/99 Copyright c 2008 by the authors. This article is brought to you by the William & Mary Law School Scholarship Repository. https://scholarship.law.wm.edu/facpubs LIFTING THE VEIL: WOMEN AND ISLAMIC LAW CHRISTIES. WARREN * "Treat your women well and be kind to them for they are your partners and committed helpers." From the Farewell Address of the Holy Prophet Muhammad1 I. INTRODUCTION By the end of February 632 and at the age of sixty-three, the Prophet Muhammad believed that his days on earth were coming to an end.2 He announced to his followers that he would lead the hajj, the annual pilgrimage to Mecca, himself that year.3 On March 3, the Prophet delivered his farewell sermon near Mount Arafat.4 Among the limited number of topics he chose to include in his last public speech, he encouraged his followers to deal justly with one another and treat women well. 5 In the modem era, the rights of women under Islamic law have come under heightened scrutiny. Some commentators find the Prophet's farewell speech to be inconsistent with the way women are treated in some areas of the Muslim world. In Saudi Arabia, for example, women may neither drive nor vote.