Shehnaz Haqqani

This project explores Muslim American women’s marriages to non-Muslims, a phenomenon that contemporary Muslim theologians view as a “crisis” and which may come with consequences for those who partake in it. This is because Islam is claimed to permit only men the freedom to intermarry while denying it to women. The project addresses the question of how women renegotiate unjust interpretations of sacred texts and what their choices reveal about female agency, religious authority, and gender injustice. Through an analysis of contemporary and pre-nineteenth century Muslim theological and legal debates as well as through semi-structured interviews with over fifty Muslim women in interfaith relationships, this research demonstrates women’s marital decisions challenge inegalitarian interpretations of Islam and highlight intersections of marriage, religion, and personal autonomy. This research shows how these marriages contribute to broader discussions on justice and interfaith relations in the US and in Islam, particularly amid Islamophobia.