OBITUARY Women Rights Activist
Sarwat Malik 1943 – 2013
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r. Sarwat Malik, M.D., F.A.C.P., died July 7 after a long battle with lung cancer. She was cofounder of the Global Partnership for Women and Girls (GPWG). Malik, who completed her MBBS (MD) at the age of 21 in Pakistan, came to Rochester, N.Y. in 1967 to begin her pioneering medical career. She did an internship in pathology at Rochester General Hospital and subsequently completed her medical residency at The Genesee Hospital. Her path of activism for women's rights began in 1974, when she learned that her employer, Genesee Health Service was discriminating against its two female physicians. She single-handedly challenged the all-male hospital board and helped reverse its policy. Also during these years, despite a thriving practice and a growing family,
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Sarwat became the founding president of Fatima Jinnah Medical College (Lahore, Pakistan) North American Alumni Association and founding president of Medical Women’s Association of Rochester. She also served as vice president on the board of the Islamic Center of Rochester and the Pakistani American Association of Rochester. Malik was a champion for women’s rights. A few years ago, she and her daughter, Nadia Malik, founded the GPWG (www.global-
partnershipforwomenandgirls.org) to invest in the education and economic advancement of Muslim women and girls around the world. GPWG currently invests in projects in Senegal, Egypt, Afghanistan and Pakistan and continues to grow. Two years ago, Malik established the Malik Lecture Series at the State University of New York Brockport in honor of her husband, Salahuddin. The lecture series has an ambitious vision of promoting broader understanding among faith communities. Malik was a professional Muslim woman before it was fashionable. She was a lifelong advocate of equality, women’s rights and social justice, not just through her words but also through her actions and organizational affiliations. She helped countless patients, mentored students and residents and was a beloved and respected member of her community. Malik is survived by her husband of 47 years, Dr. Salahuddin Malik—a former president of the Association of Muslim Social Scientists, her two daughters Sumaiya Malik Wood and Nadia Malik, and her son-in-law Scott Wood.
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Islamic Horizons September/October 2013