ABSTRACT
Among communities in which honor killings occur frequently, there is a strong sense of the concept of honor along with a shared belief that honor is the most fundamental value in life. For many, honor killings are explained only from the lens of Western media. In a misguided attempt to understand the horror of killing in the name of honor, many people have intentionally or unintentionally tied the cultural acts of honor killings to the religion of Islam as opposed to labeling it as a tribal act, separated from religion. Cultural acts such as honor killings, honor crimes, child marriages, restricted education, and overall oppression of women have become strongly linked to the religion of Islam within Western mainstream media, and the image of the foundation of Islam becomes inaccurately depicted. The concept of honor has changed both socially and politically over the course of time.
