Qasim Amin, the Egyptian Reformer
“If reformers were to wait for the approval of public opinion, the world would be the same as it was at the time of Adam and Eve” – Qasim Amin, Kalimat The recent Arab Awakening gave hope to the world that the Middle East and North African countries were in a state of internal reform—sudden change, a breath of fresh air from the dictatorial regimes now outdated. The change was coming from inside, where for the first time, young Arabs saw light, the beacon of hope that would forever change their futures. This light, stemmed from Western thought, the 17th/18th century Enlightenment that for some reason could not seem to take hold historically in the region, perhaps due to the stubborn and static nature of the Arabs—particularly Muslim Arabs—who associated Western thought with the unveiling of their women and greedy materialism. After all, desiring women's freedom is a recent altruistic concept among Muslims, right? Wrong. No civilization or country at some point or other is free of ...