Islam and gender segregation
In terms of actual practice, the degree of adherence to these rules depends on local laws and cultural norms.
In some Muslim-majority countries, men and women who are unrelated may be forbidden to interact closely or participate in the same social spaces.
[9] Leor Halevi wrote in an article about women and mourning laments that a "novel and unprecedented concern with the segregation of the sexes" took place in Kufa, Iraq, in the eighth century.
[10] Everett K. Rowson discovered that gender nonconforming men in eighth century Medina could move freely between the sexes.
A common consequence of this segregation of the ruler from the rest of the house while in the harem, gave eunuchs the role of message bearers.
[19][20] During Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (2004–2021), a huge number of Afghan men did not have any contact with females other than their own family until going to university.
[22] Baghe-Sharara (Persian: باغ شهرآرا) was a women-only park in Kabul during Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.
[23] This garden was reconstructed by financial support from US, Italy and Switzerland and yearly, on March 8, programs specific to women were held there.
[28][29] During the mid 20th century, movements in Egypt implemented laws regarding public sex segregation.
[31] During Khomeini's rule, limits would be placed on what jobs a woman could possess, these laws would also uphold gender segregation in the workplace.
[34] Gender segregation also impacts the company that people keep; researcher Ziba Mir-Hosseini noted that during her field work, she spent most of her time around women and that in some instances she never met the male relatives of some of these women due to the strict regulation of gender segregation.
Article 13 of the Islamic Republic of Iran allows Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians to educate their followers in whatever way their religion instructs them.
[citation needed] Critics have argued that the restriction of women's rights under Saudi Arabia law, which is based on sharia law, has led to the separation of gender, since women and men are separated in almost all areas, from women-only fast food lines to women-only offices.
[39] Gender segregation also impacts the Saudi education system, as there are more opportunities for men to graduate with a career and find employment.
Scholars have stated that despite these restrictions, changes brought about with the new generations have allowed women more freedom to choose whether they pray at the mosque or in their homes.
[41] On the late 19th and early 20th century European Jewish immigration to Palestine, Norman Rose writes that secular "Zionist mores" were "often at odds with Arab convention, threatening the customs and moral assumptions that lent cohesion to a socially conservative, traditional Palestinian society.
[43] The policy on gender segregation in Kelantan, Malaysia is drawn based on Islamic teachings as interpreted by the state government leaders.
"[50] The second caliph Umar also prohibited women from attending mosques especially at night because he feared there may be occasions of harassment by men, so he asked them to pray at home.
Mosques in South and Southeast Asia put men and women in separate rooms, as the divisions were built into them centuries ago.
In nearly two-thirds of American mosques, women pray behind partitions or in separate areas, not in the main prayer hall.
[54] There is a growing women's movement led by figures such as Asra Nomani who protest against what they regard as their second-class status and facilities.
[55][56] Justifications for segregation include the need to avoid distraction during prayer, although the primary reason cited is that this was the tradition (sunnah) of worshipers in the time of Muhammad.
