Who Is She

Personal information

Professor Emerita of Law, Doctor of Philosophy, Founder & Board Member of an NGO
Azizah Y. al - Hibri

Contact information / Work

KARAMAH
1684 East Gude Drive, Suite 302
20850
MD
Rockville
United States of America
Phone: 
+1 202 234 7303
Fax: 
+1 202 234 7304

Education

Education: 
  • Juris Doctor (Doctor of Law), 1985, University of Pennsylvania, School of Law, United States of America.
  • Law student, 1982 - 1985, University of Pennsylvania (USA).
  • Doctorate degree, Philosophy, 1975, University of Pennsylvania, United States of America.
  • Bachelor degree, Philosophy, 1966, American University of Beirut, Lebanon.

Areas of expertise

Expertise: 
  • Islamic Law (especially in the area of family law, and cases in American courts)
  • Islamic Jurisprudence in the context of the American society
  • Human Rights
  • Women’s Rights
  • American Civil Rights (especially with respect to freedom of religion and related constitutional concerns).
  • Logic
  • Ethics
  • Feminist theory
  • American Corporate Law
  • Philosophy of Technology
Languages: 
  • Arabic
  • English

Work history

Jobs: 
  • Professor (Associate, Full, then Emerita), 1992 - present, T. C. Williams School of Law, University of Richmond (USA).
  • Attorney, 1992 - 1987, Debevoise & Plimpton (Wall Street Law Firm) (USA).
  • Attorney, 1987 - 1985, Sullivan & Cromwell (Wall Street Law Firm) (USA).
  • Visiting Scholar, Fall 1985, Harvard Divinity School (USA).
  • Visiting Professor, 1984, Washington University in Saint Louis.
  • Professor (Assistant, then Associate), 1975 - 1983, Texas A&M University (USA).

Honorary office and memberships

  • Founder & member of the board of Directors, KARAMAH: Muslim Women lawyers for Human Rights, 1992-present.
  • Member of the American Bar Association, 1992-present.
  • Member of the Task Force issuing The Report of the Constitution Project on Detainee Treatment, 2013.
  • Commissioner, United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, (Appointed by President Obama), June 2011-2013.
  • Member of Women’s Foreign Policy Group, 2009-2011.

Productions

Publications highlights: 
  • Al-Hibri, A. (2015) The Islamic Worldview. ABA Publishing.
  • Debunking the Myth Series at www.karamah.org.  White papers on important social issues of concern to Muslim women in the USA, such as, ‘’Debunking the Myth that Islam Requires Female Circumcision,” “Debunking the Myth that That Angels Curse the Woman Who Rejects Her Husband’s Sexual Demands,” and “Debunking the Myth that Rape is the same as Zina” (forthcoming), and “Debunking the Myth that Virgins are the Ultimate rewards in Paradise” (forthcoming).
  • Al-Hibri, A. (1999). “Islamic and American Constitutional law: Borrowing Possibilities or a History of Borrowing?” University of Pennsylvania Journal of Constitutional Law, 1, (3), 492 –527.
  • Al-Hibri, A. (2001, Fall). “Muslim women's rights in the global village: Opportunities and Challenges.” The Journal of Law and Religion, (15), 37- 66.
  • Al-Hibri, A. (2003). “An Islamic Perspective on Domestic Violence,” Fordham International Law Journal, (27), 195 -224.
  • Al-Hibri, A. (2005). “The Nature of the Islamic Marriage: Sacramental, Covenantal, or Contractual?” in J. Witte and E. Ellison (Eds.), Covenant Marriage in Comparative Perspective (pp. 182 - 216). Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans.
  • Al-Hibri, A., & El Habti, R. (Eds.). (2006). Chapter on “Islam,” in D. Browning, M. C. Green, & J. Witte Jr. (Eds.), Sex, Marriage and Family in World Religions (pp. 150 - 225). West Sussex: Columbia University Press.
  • Al-Hibri, A. (2006). “Divine Justice and the Human order: An Islamic Perspective,” in W. Schweiker, M. Johnson, and K. Jung (Eds.), Humanity before God: Contemporary Faces of Jewish, Christian, and Islamic Ethics (pp. 238 - 255). Minneapolis: Fortress Press.

Awards and Distinctions

Distinctions: 
  • Delivering a dars on “Arrogance and Its Modern Manifestations,” as part of the distinguished series “Al-Durous al-Hassaniyyah,” held every Ramadan by invitation only at the Palace of King Muhammad VI, Rabat, Morocco (2016).
  • Delivering the first Muslim invocation at the Virginia State Senate, January 1997.
  • Founding Editor of Hypatia: A Journal of feminist Philosophy (1985)
  • Recognized in the official Congressional Record by Hon Deborah I. Dingell, the Congress woman from Michigan for "Azizah al-Hibri's lifetime of Support and Advocacy on Behalf of Human Rights." The Congressional Record of February 2015 contains the Congresswoman's detailed statement.
Awards: 
  • Awarded “The Purple Rose” Award by the Domestic Violence Awareness Center and Health Program of ACCESS, a major Arab-American Community Health and Research Center, February 2015.
  • Awarded a “Life Achievement Award” from the Journal of Law and Religion, 2009.
  • Awarded “The State of Virginia First Freedom Award,” from the Council for America’s First Freedom, 2007.
  • Awarded the “Distinguished Educator Award” from the University of Richmond, 2004.
  • Awarded a Fulbright Scholarship from the Fulbright Commission, 2001.