Thursday evening, January 16th 2025, we – the group of the book club “Youth voices” – gathered for the first pilot-test meeting of our book club to discuss “Do Muslim Women Need Saving?” by Lila Abu-Lughod. The discussion was profound and thought-provoking, allowing us to reflect deeply on the themes raised by the author regarding the Western view of Muslim women.
At the heart of the book is a critique of the common narrative that all Muslim women are victims in need of “saving” from a backward culture and a patriarchal system that oppresses them. Abu-Lughod deconstructs this view, urging us to take a closer look at the stories of these women and consider that they are not all uniformly “oppressed” or “submissive.” Often, Western policies and interventions, presented as “salvific” actions, ignore the reality on the ground and end up making things worse. We discussed this point at length, with some of us highlighting how, too often, Western policies end up addressing only the problems imagined by those who propose them, without ever truly engaging with the complexity of Muslim women’s daily lives.
The discussion then expanded to the general condition of women, addressing the theme of patriarchy and sexism, sharing everyday experiences that were deeply revealing of a system where male dominance is not only accepted but institutionalized and regulated by norms of general conduct. Contrary to what should happen, the deeply ingrained culture of assigning predefined roles based on gender leads to inequalities and conflicts, which are difficult to resolve unless through careful study and a global and unified change of current practices.
Overall, the evening was incredibly enriching. Each of us had the opportunity to reflect more deeply on how the stories of women are often simplified or distorted, and how it’s necessary to look beyond stereotypes to truly understand their experiences. The book prompted us to confront the dominant narratives in the media and politics, which too often lead us to believe that the West must be the “savior” of the rest of the world. It became clear that, while concerns about human rights are legitimate, they should never be used as justification for imperialistic actions that only serve to ignore the plurality of local identities and experiences.
This event was hosted as part of the EU4YOUTH2ACT (P.Nr.: 2023-1-IT03-KA220-000154855) projects, co-funded by the European Union through the Erasmus+ program.
