The case of women's rights (or the lack of such rights) under Islam is very poorly handled among Western liberal feminists.

The reasons are quite complex, but they include a) a fear that what one critiques will be used to add more anti-Muslim bigotry in the West, b) the idea that feminism is viewed as a Western value and that if Western feminists write about, say, hijab, they are told that they are white colonialists and that what they say will make things much worse for women wearing the hijab, and c) the argument of cultural relativism about human rights, including women's rights (i.e., that each culture must decide for itself how much equality it desires and other cultures should not interfere).

I have met all of those many times, but I also think that many white liberal feminists writers don't want to be accused of racism if they cover issues from previously oppressed non-white cultures, and some also use oppression hierarchies where women's issues never come on top.

I have always felt uncomfortable with all those arguments, though I strongly agree that it is much better if the women directly affected can lead the movement that fights for their rights and if outsiders then support them with funds and write only if requested to do so. I also agree that someone should not write about a culture that person knows nothing about, but I also think that we can learn at least something by research and reading.

Still, I think Western liberal feminists have failed the women who fight against the oppressive systems inside Islam by staying so very silent, and perhaps have also failed all other women who are struggling under misogynistic religious rules of various faiths.

The cultural relativism argument is particularly bad, in my opinion. A truly oppressive and misogynistic culture will not let women in it have any say about how many rights they should have. That decision will be made by the patriarchs of that culture. In any case, I believe that the basic human rights, including women's rights, are universal rights, though the best way to fight for them depends on what is happening in each culture. Local women are the experts on the latter, though in the most extreme conditions they may not have the space to act without outside help.