Muslim Reproductive History & Culture
A Muslim Peoples' Timeline of Reproductive Justice
Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Rahim // In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
This timeline is an offering to both the mainstream reproductive justice (RJ) sector and our beloved Muslim communities. It was created at the Auburn Seminary Muslim Reproductive Justice Cohort Opening Retreat in June 2023 and supplemented by HEART staff, consultants, and community members. This is an offering and creation for and by our communities. The timeline integrates stories related to reproductive justice from the Quran, Islamic history, life of the prophets, movement history, and our personal experiences.
This timeline is not a comprehensive history; this is a work in progress. While we are proud of the labor of love and community contributions that went into this timeline, we know that this timeline doesn’t capture all of Muslim history. As our work grows, this timeline will grow.
Stories of Historical Figures
Experiences and Activities to Note
Milestones in History
Personal RJ Histories
Honoring Discomfort
The stories of historical Islamic figures are being shared with an emphasis on reproductive justice. Centering the sexual and reproductive decision-making of our beloved Islamic figures is not common for many of us. At times, the ways the stories are shared may cause discomfort. We ask for grace and openness as you read the stories. We ask for our readers to bear witness before reacting. Notice what is coming up and let those emotions be. Sit with them. We hope these stories and grounding in our collective histories softens our hearts and deepens our rahma, or compassion, for Muslims navigating sexual and reproductive decisions.
Pre-Islamic
Prophet Yusuf (AS) was gifted with extreme beauty and wisdom. Zulaika, the wife of his employer, became obsessed with him and tried to sexually assault him. She then falsely accused him of sexual assault. He was incarcerated not for the crime but because Yusuf (AS) prayed to Allah that he would rather be imprisoned than be romantically engaged with Zulaika.
Prophet Lut (AS) was sent to Sodom to bring the people to Islam. They regularly engaged in nonconsensual sexual acts and harassed visitors. Angels disguised as visitors came to the land and were targeted and assaulted. Allah (swt) punished the people of the Sodom by flipping the land.
Yūkābid trusted Allah's command to place her baby, Prophet Musa (AS), in a river to protect him. Musa (AS) was then rescued by Asiyah (RA), the wife of the Pharaoh. Allah reunited Musa (AS) and Yūkābid, as she became his wet nurse.
Devotee of Allah (swt) who miraculously became pregnant with Prophet Isa (AS) without being intimate with a cis man. Despite the stigma she knew she would face from being an unwed mother, she chose to continue with the pregnancy. During her pregnancy, Maryam (AS) expressed suicidal ideations because of the pain of childbirth. She was held and validated through this pain. Maryam (AS) is honored as one of the greatest women by God, particularly in Surah Maryam which is an entire chapter of the Quran dedicated to her story.
A Black woman who was the wife of Prophet Ibrahim (AS) and gave birth to Prophet Ismail (AS). She was left upon divine instruction in a barren valley where she ran from Mount Safa to Mount Marwa looking for help so she could feed Ismail (AS). Her son kicked the earth and it is said that an angel came to create the sprouting well of ZamZam which still flows until today. Allah (swt) sent the miracle fountain of ZamZam to help replenish her milk supply. Because of the well of Zamzam, people settled in the area resulting in the city of Makkah being founded there. Muslims perform their required pilgrimage in Makkah yearly. A nursing parent whose struggle to nourish her child is honored every year at Hajj. To this day, Muslims from around the world, including notable figures like Malcom X, travel to Makkah to perform Hajj and Umrah.
Has always happened and continues through time, especially self managed abortions.
The wife of Prophet Ibrahim (AS) who experienced infertility for many years and grieved the inability to have a child until she conceived Prophet Ishaaq (AS). She also didn’t get pregnant until late into her adulthood; in modern terms, Sarah (RA) had a geriatric pregnancy.
The first woman created and Adam’s (AS) wife. Given the ability to birth and experience the first process of menstruation, pregnancy, and childbirth. Unlike Christianity where the womb is given as a punishment, Hawa (AS) is given the womb as a mercy. Rahm, the Arabic word for womb, shares the same root as Ar-Rahman (the Most Merciful) and Ar-Rahmeen (the Most Kind), two names for Allah (swt).
Life of the Prophet (SWT)
Prophet (PBUH) lost three sons in infancy during his lifetime.
The Prophet (PBUH) had a structure to engage in sexual intimacy with all his wives. He was known to give pleasure related gifts to his wives.
The year that Khadijah (R) passed in 619 CE was also the year the Prophet (S) lost his beloved grandfather. This is known as the year of sorrow where his grief was documented as was his depression.
Prophet (PBUH) receives first revelation while meditating in the cave of Hira 610 CE from the Angel Jibrīl. The Prophet (PBUH) was told repeatedly “iqra,” or “read,” even though he was illiterate. He was shaken to his core, and went to his wife, Khadijah (RA). She modeled how to respond with rahma; she offered comfort, believed him, and took him to her cousin to help.
The Prophet (PBUH) was married to Khadijah (RA) in 595. He had 6 biological children with Khadijah during their 25 year monogamous marriage. Khadijah (RA), a successful business woman, was 40 years old with children from her previous marriage when she married the Prophet (PBUH), who was 25 years old and worked for her. Their marriage set a precedence of empowered decision making around marriage, disrupting cultural norms regarding age, class, and status.
The Prophet’s (PBUH) mother Aminah passed away from illness in 575 CE. Now as an orphan, he was under the care of his paternal grandfather Abdul Muttalib until he also passed in 578. At this point, his uncle took over care for him. All the caretakers treated him as kin and protected him. Through the Prophet’s (PBUH) life, we can see the varied and expansive ways kinship show up, beyond just biology.
The Prophet (PBUH) is born 570 CE. His father passed before his birth so his mother, Aminah, raised him with support of wet nurse Halimah. Aminah, the Prophet’s (PBUH) mother, made the intentional decision to prioritize the health and wellness of her child even if that meant being separated from him for a period of time. She died when the Prophet (S) was 6 years old.
Marriages in the Life of the Prophet (SWT)
Each marriage was with a purpose and was on the basis of fair and equitable treatment. A limitation of 4 wives was established during his prophecy for the ummah.
A Coptic Egyptian woman who birthed a son by the Prophet (s.a.w.) who died 2 years later.
Her marriage marked the Prophet’s (PBUH) first visit to Makkah after Hijra.
She converted to Islam from Judaism and married the Prophet (PBUH).
A divorcee from Abyssinia, modern day Ethiopia.
The ex-wife of Prophet’s (PBUH) adopted son Zayd. Zayd (RA) and Zaynab (RA) divorced due to incompatibility.
She was raised Jewish and was held captive after war. The Prophet (PBUH) married her as a pathway out of captivity.
A widow who provided political consultations to the Prophet (PBUH)
She married the Prophet (PBUH) for political assurances to widows from war and beyond Quraysh tribe.
A widow and daughter of Umar (R)
She is known for her contributions to Islamic knowledge and history. She never bore children, but is known as the mother of believers. She taught the companions of the Prophet (PBUH) and scholars and transmitted the most hadith.
A wealthy widow, she was the first Muslim in her family and she played a vital role in her first husband coming to Islam.
The Prophet’s (SAW) first wife and the first Muslim.
Early Islam
Sakina (SA) was a young child at Karbala who witnessed unimaginable violence and the massacre of her father Imam Husayn (AS).
Bibi Zainab fought in the battle of Karbala alongside her brother Imam Hussein (AS). When she was captured by Yazid's army, she trusted her own moral agency. Guided by Allah (swt) she spoke out against their leaders and condemned the oppression and injustice they had inflicted upon the people.
A Christian monk prophesied that he would find the corpse of Prophet Muhammad's (PBUH) grandson. He saw Yazid's army with the head of Imam Hussein (AS) and offered his life savings in exchange for one night with the head, in order to clean it and offer prayers. The next day, he returned the head to the army along with the promised money. When the soldiers opened the bag of money, it had all turned to ash. This story teaches us about the sacred inviolability of the body.
When Khawlah disputed the Prophet's (PBUH) advice regarding her marriage with her husband, God sent revelation to support Khawlah. This was God's way of responding to Khawlah, also known as the woman who pleads, to show her that He heard her and that her lived experience and needs were to be centered in this moment.
Saffiyah was the tenth wife of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). When the Prophet (PBUH) married her, she declined to engage in sexual intimacy on their wedding night. The Prophet (PBUH) responded with respect and care for this decision and boundary being set. He did not tell Safiyyah that the angels would curse her or attempt to force himself upon her. The sunnah of the Prophet (PBUH) teaches us about respecting agency, practicing consent, and honoring others’ God-given rights to bodily autonomy.
When traveling with the Prophet (PBUH), Aisha lost her necklace one night. She went out to find it and was left behind. When she was found and returned home, word spread about her and there was gossip insinuating infidelity. She remained patient and put her trust in Allah (swt), who revealed her innocence and saved her from the gossip.
There is documentation of women bringing their stained clothing to the Prophet (PBUH) to ask about ritual purity with regards to the coloring of the discharge. The Prophet (PBUH) is also known for resting his head in ‘Aishah’s lap while she was menstruating.
Sumayyah bint Khayyat was a Black Ethiopian woman who was tortured and killed by Abu Jahl making her the first martyr for Islam. The first instance of gendered Islamophobia, a Muslim woman’s body being targeted with violence because of her faith.
Daughter of Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.), born in 605 CE to Khadijah bint Khuwaylid.
The Prophet (PBUH) received the first revelation through Angel Jibril while meditating in the cave of Hira. He was shaken by the experience and returned to Khadijah (R) who met him with compassion and validation and became the first Muslim to follow the message of the Prophet (PBUH). A woman. A companion. A believer. The blueprint.
1600s - 1900s
In 1892, after three of Ida B Well’s friends were lynched, she dedicated her life to exposing the truth about lynching. Using the Black community newspaper, The Free Speech, she investigated every lynching she heard about.
In 1875, the entry of Chinese women was prohibited, signaling the end of open borders. Additionally, any woman who wanted to immigrate to the United States from Asia had to prove to immigration officers that she was not a prostitute.
At the end of the Civil War, president of the American Medical Association leads a campaign discouraging white women from asserting reproductive autonomy. As enslaved Africans are freed as as immigration increases from Asia and Mexico, he argues that white women practicing abortion and birth control are committing “race suicide,” the foundations for replacement theory.
In 1859, the Landing of Clotilde in Mobile, Alabama led to intense reproductive violence, including children being ripped from mothers, forced abortions, forced childcare for owner's children, poor maternal health. There was no informed consent.
From 1845 to 1849, Dr. James Marion Sims named the "father of modern gynecology” purchased and used enslaved African women for gynecological research experiments.
From 1840 to 1960, the occupation and control in Somalia by the British and Italians.
From 1526 to 1867, European slave traders transported enslaved Africans, mainly from West Africa, to the Americas. In 1619, the first recorded enslaved Africans arrived in Virginia.
1900 - 1940s
In 1948, 750,000 Palestinians were exiled and displaced by Israeli forced during the first Nakba. Too many kept the keys to their houses waiting for the right to return home.
The 1947 partition borders limited grandmother's autonomy and choice.
In 1947, the UN proposed partitioning Palestine into separate Jewish and Arab states. Violence breaks out as Zionist militias attack Palestinian towns.
In 1945, Henrietta Lacks, a poor Black tobacco farmer, passed of cancer. Her cell tissues were harvested against her will. In the scientific community, she's known as the HeLa human cell line.
From 1935 to 1941, members of Alpha Kappa Alpha, a sorority of Black college women, set up mobile clinics on Mississippi plantations to provide basic health screenings, education, and treatment.
After graduating from Boston City Hospital in 1927, Susie Walking Bear Yellowtail works as a nurse at the Indian Hospital on the reservation. She raises objections to the abuse Crow patients receive from white doctors, including frequent sterilization of Crow women without their knowledge.
In 1924, Carrie Buck, a 17 year old unwed mother was diagnosed as “feebleminded” and was the first person to be sterilized under Virginia’s 1924 Eugenical Sterilization Act.
In the 1920s and 1930s, Black queer women build social networks in northern cities like New York and Chicago. Known as “lady lovers,” they meet, drink, and dance at speakeasies and parties. A popular entertainer included Gladys Bentley.
From 1920s to 1930s, large-scale Jewish immigration to Palestine increases tensions with the Palestinian population, leading to riots and violence.
In 1928, the pap smear was invented, a test to check for cervical cancer. By 1941, cervical cancer went from the #1 killer for people with uteruses to now 14k cases/year.
In 1917, the Balfour Declaration pledges British support for a Jewish homeland in Palestine under British control.
In 1916, Margaret Sanger established the American Birth Control League, currently Planned Parenthood Federation of America. While the creation and promotion of birth control allowed for more sexual agency, it was also tested on Puerto Rican women and used for population and eugenics purposes in Black and brown communities.
In 1916, Angelina Weld Grimke writes Rachel, a play arguing that healthy and joyful Black motherhood is impossible in a racist society. In response to The Birth of a Nation, this play centers Black women in the story, and covers themes of kinship, motherhood, and lynching.
In 1916, a secret treaty between the UK, France, and Russian empires for the partition of the Ottoman Empire
1950s - 1960s
Grandmother's received a forced hysterectomy leading to clinical depression
In 1969, the Stonewall uprising, led by Black and Latinx trans women, sparked the gay rights movement in the United States.
In 1967, Israel captured the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Sinai Peninsula and Golan Heights in the Six-Day War. Around 300,000 more Palestinians are displaced.
Black Panthers Movement is founded in 1966.
In 1965, this case supported the right to privacy for children and contraception use.
Founded in the 1960s in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood as a Puerto Rican turf gang. The Young Lords transitioned into a national political and civil rights movement.
The 1950s to 1960s was a period of conflict between Israel and neighboring Arab states. Palestinians in exile.
In 1951, Libyan gained independence from the UK.
In 1950, radical US women join Asian, Latin American, and African activists in Beijing, China to define “revolutionary motherhood.”
In 1949, my Palestinian grandmother is forcibly displaced in Jordan.
From 1936-1970, Puerto Rican women and their families were promised success and stability, but in reality were forcibly sterilized. This sterilization is known as “la operación.”
From 1899 to 1956, Sudan was a condominium of the UK and Egypt.
1970s - 1980s
In 1985, Asian and Pacific Islander organizers host “Break the Silence,” to talk about domestic abuse as a common form of violence.
In 1984, Iran passed the national birth control policy, endorsing family planning through media and at Friday prayers (jummah).
In 1983, a group of gay men living with AIDS publish the Denver Principles at the National AIDS Forum, asserting their rights.
In the 1980s, immigrants from Northern Sudan arrive as students, mostly young bachelors.
Grandmother passed away in her thirties when my mother was 2 due to the doctor's error during the delivery of my mother's youngest sister.
Gaddafi incarcerates my grandfather.
The Iranian Revolution also known as the 1979 Revolution, or the Islamic Revolution, was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. This led to a restriction of women’s rights.
In 1978, Louise Brown is the first successful birth resulting from In vitro fertilization.
In 1977, a pivotal document in the history of contemporary Black feminist thought dedicated to confronting racism, sexism, classism, and oppression
1970s to 1980s, rise of Palestinian nationalist movements like the PLO and Fatah. Israel begins establishing settlements in occupied lands.
In 1972, this case protected the right to privacy w/ contraception and extends to unmarried couples and people.
In 1971, the Bangladesh Liberation War happened, during which there was of mass rape and sexual violence.
In 1971, the CDC released a study associating IUD to increased rates of spontaneous abortion and related deaths. IUDs removed from market temporarily.
In January 1971, Dalkon Shield created an IUD. An IUD is a type of long-acting, reversible contraception (LARC) that provides birth control for three to 10 years, depending on the type. A small, flexible, T-shaped device, an IUD is inserted into the uterus through the vagina.
In 1971, the Supreme Court decided that the right to privacy implied in the 14th Amendment protected abortion as a fundamental right.
In the 1970s, doctors in the United States sterilized an estimated 25 to 42 percent of Indigenous women of childbearing age, including some as young as 15.
1990 - 2000s
In 2006, the HPV vaccine was made available, protecting against genital warts and cervical cancer.
Twitter is launched in 2006 and is used for rapid grassroots organizing.
In 2006, Tarana Burkę launches the #MeToo movement.
In 2004, frustrated that women were excluded from earlier marches, five women’s rights organization announced a national march for reproductive rights.
On March 20, 2003, the US invaded Iraq.
In 2001, attacks on the Twin Towers by Al-Qaeda and Osama Bin Laden. The creation of the Department of Homeland Security and funding + infrastructure for the War on Terror.
In the 2000s, the second Palestinian Intifada erupts. Israel begins building separation wall. Hamas elected in Gaza. Blockade imposed in 2007.
In 1997, after years of discussion, a multiracial coalition of 16 groups representing Native American, African American, Latina, and Asian Pacific Islander American communities come together to create the SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Health Collective.
In 1994, Women of African Descent for Reproductive Justice launched the Reproductive Justice framework. This historic full-page statement was published in The Washington Post with 800+ signatures.
In 1993, the first Oslo Accords signed, establishing the Palestinian Authority and framework for interim self-government.
In 1992, Katrina Heaslip travels to Washington, DC for a demonstration organized by the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP). She brings national attention for HIV-positive women.
Gender based war crimes and sexual violence used in Somalia and neighboring regions.
In 1991, Indian occupying forces committ mass rape in Kunan Poshpora against Kashmiri women and girls. Thirty years after, the survivors have not received justice.
2010s
The brutal conflict since April 2023 has forced millions of people to flee their homes, leaving more than 12 million Sudanese people displaced. The vast majority—over 10 million people—remain within Sudan, representing the largest displacement crisis in the world.
Escalation of Israeli Violence and Occupation: After October 7th, 2023, Israel justifies an escalation of violence in Palestine, especially in Gaza. Israel uses gendered and reproductive violence, including raping Palestinian prisoners, threatening to out queer Palestinians, and severely limiting access to necessary reproductive health resources. Miscarriage rates, unmedicated C-sections, and lack of menstrual products all increase.
In November 2022, Mahsa Amani’s death sparked revolution by women in Iran (women life freedom in english + farsi).
In 2022, The Sex Talk: A Muslim’s Guide to Healthy Sex & Relationships is published by HEART. Co-written by Nadiah Mohajir, Dr.Haddi Ceesay, and Navila Rashid, this book combines public health, fiqh, and anti-violence information.
In 2022, Roe v. Wade is overturned by the Supreme Court, severely limiting abortion protections in the US. As a result, people have to cross state lines for an abortion. There is increased criminalization for terminating pregnancies, including miscarriages.
In 2021, Texas passed the heartbeat bill, banning elective abortions at onset of fetal heart beat (aka after 6 weeks), severely limiting reproductive rights.
In the 2020s, Trump peace plan rejected. Normalization deals between Israel and some Arab states. Escalating tensions in Jerusalem lead to 11-day conflict in May 2021.
Starting in 2020, COVID-19 changes livelihood and family planning. The long term impacts on repro health are still being studied.
In 2020, I reckoned w/ my queer + Muslim identities <3
In September 2000, mifepristone, known as abortion pills, was approved by the FDA. Mifepristone is a drug that blocks a hormone called progesterone that is needed for a pregnancy to continue.
First abortion of wanted pregnancy
Had my first home birth in 2019!
Beyonce talks about her struggles giving birth to her first child, Blue Ivy Carter.
Cancer caused by environmental factors. I had to play the role of a caretaker for my mother during this time in her life.
In the 2010s, Palestine-Israel peace talks were stalled. Settlement construction continues. Sporadic flare-ups of violence and war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
After the Arab Spring in 2011, civil war and unrest in Libya has led to famine and inequality in Libya.
In 2010, HEART was founded in Chicago. HEART begins providing comprehensive sex ed to co-ed groups of youth in mosques and other Muslim meeting spaces.