by MWN Hub Team

The rise of charismatic Muslim influencers disguising their misogyny under the guise of providing self-improvement and religious advice is profoundly insidious. These men often present themselves as embodying the ideal Muslim man following the prophetic way of living. However, what they are really doing is funnelling a secular kind of misogyny.

 

Every so often we hear about certain YouTube influencers and Islamic preachers making disparaging comments justifying abuse. Such examples include Mohamed Hoblos and Mahamed AbdurRazaq – their remarks have wrought misconceptions about abuse being acceptable in Islam. While the likes of Gabriel Al Romaani, Ali Dawah, Asif Munaf and Sneako perpetuate harmful ideologies dressed up in religious authenticity to subjugate and demean Muslim women.  

 

The tendency to distance with the assertion that their views do not represent liberal-minded Muslims will not do. We need to acknowledge the way misogyny is manifesting in Muslim social media spaces. We need to call out those who are wielding Islam to endorse an alpha Muslim male for personal and financial gains. We need to highlight the dangers of these online communities in fuelling gender-based violence as it’s no longer confined to the darker fringes of internet forums.

We need to acknowledge the way misogyny is manifesting in Muslim social media spaces. 

Like Dawah Bros, NikkahGram is another site that needs to come with red flags. The way it promotes virgin Muslim brides and polygamy is not only shocking, but disturbing. This online matchmaking service uses an exclusionary model for determining eligibility. It is selectively biased against women, being free for women converts or virgins below the age of 35, those open to polygyny and ‘neglected’ women defined as widows, disabled and orphaned. In favouring certain types of women shows deliberate targeting of vulnerable women. For instance, women converts who may lack support networks and women with disabilities, their circumstances can be exploited to accepting polygamous marriages.

Not surprisingly, the men are given a wish list – ‘service for those rare Muslims who still value a shy, untouched spouse and remain chaste. They are offered paid membership to an elite mentoring program that provides 1-to-1 support, access to thousands of women, top profile promotion on Instagram and marriage vetting masterclasses. The program bears the hallmarks of cultic manipulation, as the men in those closed spaces receive coaching on leadership, developing a provider-protector mindset and understanding the female psyche.

In recent days this controversial matchmaking site has come under media scrutiny. The CEO of Muslim Women’s Network UK (MWNUK), Baroness Gohir was approached by the Telegraph to share her thoughts on the site. She had described the site as promoting an extreme ideology that does not reflect British Muslim communities. She commented on how the men behind the site ‘appear threatened by Muslim women who are confident, religiously informed and aware of their rights whether that means pursuing education and careers, seeking legal protection through civil marriage, or choosing divorce to escape abuse.Influenced by figures like Andrew Tate, these fringe voices use a veneer of piety and scholarship, but their message is neither authentic nor aligned with the ethics or spirit of Islam’.She added that ‘what they present as ‘family values’ is thinly veiled misogyny, targeting vulnerable women – especially new converts, those with limited religious knowledge, and insecure young Muslim men struggling with identity’.

Since posting on Instagram the Telegraph article about NikkahGram, MWNUK followers have shared their surprise and outrage:

‘How do they even allow this stuff on social media?’

‘This platform needs to be shut down and removed. It’s spreading seeds of corruption. This is not Islam. Don’t they know who Khadija is? What imbeciles they are.’

‘Great, because we need more bad Muslim press! This is awful, why is this not banned through platform filters!’

Another person had commented on how NikkahGram started appearing on their feed last year. She had found their content so distressing and vulgar, adding that they distort a lot of religious practices, promoting toxic red pill and Andrew Tate culture into their ethics and values. For her, the site comes across as a Muslim incel group for men who are looking for vulnerable women.

Essentially, the content this site posts reinforces populist misconceptions of Islam and its oppression of women. There are reels that trivialise the reasons Muslim women may ask for divorce putting it down to simply wanting attention. The vast majority of women contacting MWN Helpline for advice on divorce are not doing this because they want to do something crazy, but for wanting to leave an abusive relationship. Other equally unsettling content is the policing of Muslim women’s looks, depicting those who wear makeup or do not cover themselves as ‘flaunting herself, peacocking for the world.’ Their version of an ideal woman is one who does not wear makeup, is covered, homely, feminine, traditional and chaste – anyone that falls outside of this is unchaste.

Platforms like NikkahGram can seriously further hostility directed at Muslim communities. The misogynistic narratives they populate amplifies negative perceptions of Muslim women putting them at risk of experiencing abuse both from within and outside of their communities. Therefore, it is imperative to raise awareness of insidious social media platforms exposing their exploitative techniques in targeting vulnerable women and even men. We are already seeing the consequences of doing little, as a survey reported in the Guardian reveals 69% of women in England and Wales have experienced sexual harassment, domestic abuse, violence and other offences.

The Muslim manosphere is part of the growing network of online misogyny. It’s not entirely different from other groups within the manosphere, as it similarly endorses toxic masculinity targeting young men, particularly those with insecurities and identity issues. Seeing as two thirds of young men reported to regularly engage with masculinity influencers online, which were found to mainly promote extreme language and sexist ideology[1]warns of an alarming spread of online misogyny. Therefore, remaining silent on the scale of the problem within Muslim communities will only serve to strengthen popularity of the Muslim influencers propagating pervasive gender roles. More ominously, it can also potentially lead to young Muslims, especially adolescent boys to becoming disconnected from true Islamic scholarship, idolising Muslim influencers, reliant on their version of Islam as primary sources and contribute to a polarised Muslim world.

Countering toxic digital environments needs collective response – we all need to take heed of the danger this poses offline and action for change. At MWNUK, we are joining the UN Women in scaling up of efforts to address the rise of online misogyny, this has included exposing the platforms and collecting data on the spread of hate.

For anyone interested in further reading on the manosphere, here are other articles:

On spiritual narcissism and the Dawah Brothers Industry

Why Muslim Men fall into the Red Pilled Pipeline

Heart and Soul: The emerging Muslim manosphere

UN Women sounds the alarm over online misogyny