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So on my way here,

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the passenger next to me and I
had a very interesting conversation

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during my flight.

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He told me, "It seems like
the United States has run out of jobs,

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because they're just making some up:

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cat psychologist, dog whisperer,
tornado chaser."

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A couple of seconds later, he asked me,

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"So what do you do?"

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And I was like, "Peacebuilder?"

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(Laughter)

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Every day, I work to amplify
the voices of women

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and to highlight their experiences

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and their participation in peace
processes and conflict resolution,

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and because of my work,

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I recognize that the only way to ensure
the full participation of women globally

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is by reclaiming religion.

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Now, this matter is vitally
important to me.

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As a young Muslim woman,
I am very proud of my faith.

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It gives me the strength and conviction
to do my work every day.

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It's the reason I can be here
in front of you.

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But I can't overlook the damage that has
been done in the name of religion,

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not just my own, but all
of the world's major faiths.

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The misrepresentation and misuse
and manipulation of religious scripture

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has influenced our social
and cultural norms,

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our laws, our daily lives,

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to a point where we sometimes
don't recognize it.

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My parents moved from Libya,
North Africa, to Canada

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in the early 1980s,

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and I am the middle child of 11 children.

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Yes, 11.

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But growing up, I saw my parents,

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both religiously devout
and spiritual people,

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pray and praise God for their blessings,

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namely me of course, but among others.
(Laughter)

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They were kind and funny and patient,

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limitlessly patient, the kind of patience
that having 11 kids forces you to have.

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And they were fair.

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I was never subjected to religion
through a cultural lens.

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I was treated the same,

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the same was expected of me.

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I was never taught that God
judged differently based on gender.

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And my parents' understanding of God
as a merciful and beneficial friend

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and provider shaped the way
I looked at the world.

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Now, of course, my upbringing
had additional benefits.

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Being one of 11 children is Diplomacy 101.
(Laughter)

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To this day, I am asked
where I went to school,

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like, "Did you go to
Kennedy School of Government?"

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and I look at them and I'm like, "No,

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I went to the Murabit School
of International Affairs."

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It's extremely exclusive. You would have
to talk to my mom to get in.

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Lucky for you, she's here.

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But being one of 11 children
and having 10 siblings

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teaches you a lot about
power structures and alliances.

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It teaches you focus; you have
to talk fast or say less,

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because you will always get cut off.

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It teaches you the importance
of messaging.

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You have to ask questions in the right way
to get the answers you know you want,

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and you have to say no
in the right way to keep the peace.

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But the most important lesson
I learned growing up

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was the importance of being at the table.

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When my mom's favorite lamp broke,
I had to be there when she was trying

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to find out how and by who,
because I had to defend myself,

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because if you're not,
then the finger is pointed at you,

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and before you know it,
you will be grounded.

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I am not speaking
from experience, of course.

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When I was 15 in 2005,
I completed high school and I moved

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from Canada -- Saskatoon --

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to Zawiya, my parents' hometown in Libya,

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a very traditional city.

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Mind you, I had only ever been
to Libya before on vacation,

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and as a seven-year-old girl,
it was magic.

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It was ice cream and trips to the beach
and really excited relatives.

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Turns out it's not the same
as a 15-year-old young lady.

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I very quickly became introduced
to the cultural aspect of religion.

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The words "haram" --
meaning religiously prohibited --

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and "aib" -- meaning
culturally inappropriate --

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were exchanged carelessly,

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as if they meant the same thing
and had the same consequences.

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And I found myself in conversation
after conversation with classmates

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and colleagues, professors,
friends, even relatives,

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beginning to question my own role
and my own aspirations.

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And even with the foundation
my parents had provided for me,

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I found myself questioning
the role of women in my faith.

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So at the Murabit School
of International Affairs,

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we go very heavy on the debate,

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and rule number one is do your research,
so that's what I did,

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and it surprised me how easy it was

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to find women in my faith
who were leaders,

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who were innovative, who were strong --

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politically, economically,
even militarily.

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Khadija financed the Islamic movement

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in its infancy.

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We wouldn't be here if it weren't for her.

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So why weren't we learning about her?

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Why weren't we learning about these women?

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Why were women being relegated
to positions which predated

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the teachings of our faith?

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And why, if we are equal
in the eyes of God,

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are we not equal in the eyes of men?

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To me, it all came back to the lessons
I had learned as a child.

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The decision maker, the person
who gets to control the message,

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is sitting at the table,

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and unfortunately,
in every single world faith,

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they are not women.

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Religious institutions
are dominated by men

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and driven by male leadership,

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and they create policies
in their likeness,

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and until we can change
the system entirely,

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then we can't realistically
expect to have full economic

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and political participation of women.

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Our foundation is broken.

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My mom actually says, you can't build
a straight house on a crooked foundation.

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In 2011, the Libyan revolution broke out,
and my family was on the front lines.

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And there's this amazing thing
that happens in war,

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a cultural shift almost, very temporary.

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And it was the first time that I felt
it was not only acceptable

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for me to be involved,
but it was encouraged.

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It was demanded.

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Myself and other women
had a seat at the table.

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We weren't holding hands or a medium.

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We were part of decision making.

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We were information sharing.
We were crucial.

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And I wanted and needed
for that change to be permanent.

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Turns out, that's not that easy.

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It only took a few weeks before the women
that I had previously worked with

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were returning back
to their previous roles,

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and most of them were driven
by words of encouragement

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from religious and political leaders,

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most of whom cited religious scripture
as their defense.

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It's how they gained popular support
for their opinions.

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So initially, I focused on the economic
and political empowerment of women.

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I thought that would lead
to cultural and social change.

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It turns out, it does a little,
but not a lot.

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I decided to use
their defense as my offense,

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and I began to cite and highlight
Islamic scripture as well.

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In 2012 and 2013, my organization
led the single largest

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and most widespread
campaign in Libya.

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We entered homes and schools
and universities, even mosques.

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We spoke to 50,000 people directly,

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and hundreds of thousands more through
billboards and television commercials,

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radio commercials and posters.

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And you're probably wondering how
a women's rights organization

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was able to do this in communities
which had previously opposed

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our sheer existence.

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I used scripture.

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I used verses from the Quran
and sayings of the Prophet,

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Hadiths, his sayings which
are, for example,

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"The best of you is the best
to their family."

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"Do not let your brother oppress another."

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For the first time, Friday sermons
led by local community imams

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promoted the rights of women.

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They discussed taboo issues,
like domestic violence.

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Policies were changed.

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In certain communities,
we actually had to go as far

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as saying the International
Human Rights Declaration,

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which you opposed because it wasn't
written by religious scholars,

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well, those same principles
are in our book.

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So really, the United Nations
just copied us.

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By changing the message,
we were able to provide

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an alternative narrative which promoted
the rights of women in Libya.

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It's something that has now
been replicated internationally,

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and while I am not saying it's easy --
believe me, it's not.

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Liberals will say you're using religion
and call you a bad conservative.

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Conservatives will call you
a lot of colorful things.

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I've heard everything from, "Your parents
must be extremely ashamed of you" --

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false; they're my biggest fans --

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to "You will not make it
to your next birthday" --

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again wrong, because I did.

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And I remain

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a very strong believer that women's rights
and religion are not mutually exclusive.

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But we have to be at the table.

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We have to stop giving up our position,
because by remaining silent,

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we allow for the continued persecution
and abuse of women worldwide.

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By saying that we're going
to fight for women's rights

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and fight extremism
with bombs and warfare,

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we completely cripple local societies
which need to address these issues

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so that they're sustainable.

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It is not easy, challenging
distorted religious messaging.

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You will have your fair share
of insults and ridicule and threats.

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But we have to do it.

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We have no other option than to reclaim
the message of human rights,

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the principles of our faith,

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not for us, not for
the women in your families,

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not for the women in this room,

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not even for the women out there,

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but for societies
that would be transformed

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with the participation of women.

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And the only way we can do that,

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our only option,

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is to be, and remain, at the table.

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Thank you.

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(Applause)