system
A chat on subreddit /r/NoStupidQuestions
human
Genuine question - the mosques I’ve visited in Istanbul - all of them had the women at the back behind a screen to pray, and a couple had a separate entrance for women who were there to worship. Why is that?
gpt
I do find it kind of egregious by todays standards, cause it does make it feel like by segregation there is an inherent air of inequality. Which is fair. I do think that looking back at 1500 years ago, culture was entirely different. 

I’m no authority on this, so this is my uninformed guess. But I do know that Islam *was* a very progressive concept to the communities that it was introduced to, especially the women’s rights portion that were undoubtedly much worse before. By separating men and women, the *idea* I think was that women would feel safer and more comfortable with others. There is also the idea that on both sides, any temptations, gazing, or distractions would be eliminated, allowing you to focus on worship. 

Just my guesses though. And those cultural traditions just continued.