Excerpt:
The first women's mosque in Northern California opened today in Berkeley with a dedication ceremony and prayers at its home at Starr King School for the Ministry, a graduate school and Unitarian Universalist seminary on LeConte Avenue.
Perhaps fittingly for a place of worship that is breaking with tradition, its founder is not a faith leader but an activist.
Rabi'a Keeble, who describes herself as a writer, speaker and poet, as well as an activist, says it is time for Muslim women to step up and challenge the patriarchal norms of the Islam faith.
"Just like Rosa Parks said she couldn't take one more day on the back of the bus, we need to bring women's lib to Muslim women," said Keeble, who lives in Oakland.