CONTEMPORARY DEBATES ABOUT VEIL AMONG MUSLIM WOMEN AROUND

THE WORLD
SECTION- 1
1. AN HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF HIJAB
1.1 Etymology of Hijab
The Arabic word for "veiling" is hijab. Lexically it means "cover", and in Islam it means two
things:
Woman's clothing such as the head-to-toe garment specifically called jilbab and khimar.
Separation of the places where men and women respectively congregate.
Mernissi, goes on to explain the three different dimensions of hijab: The first being the root word
Hajaba meaning to hide. The second dimension is more spatial: to separate or mark a border.
The third dimension is ethical: belonging to the realm of the forbidden, that is, a space hidden by
a hijab is a forbidden space (Mernissi, 1991).
1.2 Historical Overview of hijab
The study of Hijab will be incomplete without an historical overview of this aspect. The question
arises as to who were the first people who adorned the hijab and why did they do so? How has
this evolved over time and what is the current situation?
Adorning of hijab goes as far back as the time of the creation of mankind. When Adam (A.S.)
and his wife Hawwa (R.A.) tasted of the tree and disobeyed Allah (S.W.T.), their shameful
became manifest to them and they began to sew together the leaves of the Garden to cover
themselves (Quran 7:22).
Adam (A. S.) and Hawaa (R.A.) used the only material available to them to conceal their naked
bodies. This was an attempt at making themselves feel less exposed and ignominious. Clearly,
from the beginning of time, covering the body has a significance that goes beyond the visual,
physical and aesthetic realm it is usually seen in. It is evident that though Allah (S.W.T.) has
created mankind perfectly, He has also created him with a very thin skin as a form of protection.
Human beings need clothes not only for protection from the environment, but also to give them
self-respect and dignity. An attractive appearance makes one feel proud of oneself and it is
human nature to feel elated when one dresses attractively.
1.3 Hijab in the Light of Quran
The beginning of seclusion in Islam can be traced to the occasion of the Prophet (S. A. W.)s
marriage to Zainab bint Harsh (R.A.) in the year 5 A. H. The revelation received by Muhammad
(S.A.W.) on that specific night is a verse of the Quran that is often referred to as the Hijab

verse. This verse provides the first guideline regarding the separation of Prophets wives from
the rest of the community and their seclusion.
Oh you who believe! Enter not the Prophets houses until leave is given you for a meal (and
then) not (as early as) to wait for its preparation but when you are invited, enter: and when
you have taken your meal, disperse, without seeking familiar talk. Such (behavior) annoys the
Prophet: he is ashamed to dismiss you, but God is not ashamed (to tell you) the truth. And
when you ask (his ladies) for anything you want asks them before a screen: that makes for
greater purity for your hearts and for theirs. Nor is it right for you that you should annoy
Gods Apostle or that you should marry his widows after him at any time. Truly such a thing is
in Gods sight an enormity (Quran. 33:53)
The above verse presents the first guideline on the etiquettes and manners which Muslims must
display before the Prophet (S.A.W.) in his home and in society. Soon after the revelation of the
Hijab verse, the following verse was revealed: Oh Prophet! Tell thy wives and daughters and
the believing women, that they should cast their outer garments over their persons. That is
most convenient, that they should be known (as such) and not molested. And God is OftForgiving, Most Merciful (Quran. 33:59)
In the Quran, ALLAH SWT states: "Say to the believing men that they should lower their gaze
and guard their modesty And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and
guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and adornments except what
(must ordinarily) appear thereof; that they should draw their veils over their bosoms and not
display their beauty except to their husbands, their fathers (a list of exceptions)" [Chapter 24,
verses 30-31]
1.4 Hijab in the Light of Hadith
Among proofs for the veil in the Sunna are the following authentic hadiths (traditional reports) of
the Prophet PBUH:
"Ayesha (rad.i-Allahu `anha) reported that Asma the daughter of Abu Bakr (rad.i-Allahu
`anhu) came to the Messenger of Allah MHMD while wearing thin clothing. He approached
her and said: 'O Asma! When a girl reaches the menstrual age, it is not proper that anything
should remain exposed except this and this. He pointed to the face and hands." [Abu Dawud]
According to the Hadith, "My Lord agreed with me ('Umar) in three things... (2) And as regards
the veiling of women, I said 'O Allah's Apostle! I wish you ordered your wives to cover
themselves from the men because good and bad ones talk to them.' So the verse of the veiling of
the women was revealled" (Bukhari, v1, bk 8, sunnah 395).
Narrated 'A'isha radi Allahu anha who said, "The riders would pass us while we were with the
Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). When they got close to us, we would draw
our outer cloak from our heads over our faces. When they passed by, we would uncover our
2

faces. (Hadith - Recorded by Ahmad, Abu Dawud and ibn Majah, Narrated Hazrat 'A'isha. [In
his work Jilbab al-Marah al-Muslimah, al-Albani (p. 108)].
1.5 Hijab in Pre- Islamic Era
Hijab was present in ancient societies well before Islam. In ancient Mesopotamia, veiling was the
sign of respectable, upper class, free women while slaves and prostitutes were not allowed to veil
and were actually penalized if caught illegally veiling. Overtime, successive invasions of the
Mesopotamian region, Syria and other areas of the Middle East by Alexander, Parthians, and
eventually Muslims, led to the slow fusion of local communities with the culture and customs of
their conquerors. This continued on to the first Christian centuries where the seclusion of women
and veiling became part of upper class life in Mediterranean Middle East, Iraq and Persia
(Ahmed, 1992).
1.6 The Veil during the middle Ages
The adorning of the veil became more common during the 10th century. Many laws were passed
emphasizing the importance of veiling. The Mamluks in Egypt issued many decrees that
encouraged veiling and seclusion. When Ibn Battuta, the famous Arab explorer, while travelling
through Turkey in the 14th century was surprised to see that the Turkish women were unveiled.
The elite ladies and merchants wives did not cover their faces
Mernissi accuses the Abbasid dynasty of imposing the hijab on women. This period, referred to
as the Golden Age, during the 8th and 9th centuries, witnessed the implementation of stricter
laws regarding the seclusion and veiling of Arab Muslim women. The Arab woman was
completely marginalized. She had lost all her freedom and pride. Then she began to be treated
with contempt. She was imprisoned behind locked doors and windows (Mernissi, 1991).
1.7 The Concept of Hijab in the Nineteenth Century
In 1923, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, leader of Turkey, denounced the adorning of the veil. He stated
that it was demeaning and a hindrance to a civilized nation, but he did not outlaw it (Mernissi,
1991). Thereafter, Reza Shah Pahlavi of Iran instituted a total ban on the veil in an effort to
modernize society. Due to the suddenness of his decree, most women were too afraid to adopt it.
Thus, they stayed within the home - deeper in seclusion - out of fear of having the veil removed
forcefully by the police and governmental enforcement.
In 1967, after Egypts loss to Israel in the six-day-war, there was an asserted effort to apply
Islamic laws, which had been abandoned. Modernization was construed negatively, while
wearing the hijab symbolized superiority and piety (Stowasser, 1994).
1.8 Current Concepts of Hijab
Today, with the renewed interest in reviving or creating Islamic movements, women have
continued adorning the hijab throughout the world. However, this issue still remains a point of
debate within various groups. Some liberal groups, like the Womans Action Forum (W.A.F.) in
Pakistan does not allow imposition of the dress code on women, while the more conservative
womens groups insist on adorning the hijab.
3

1.9 Reason behind the Veiling of Muslim Women

The reason is that a covering of cloth is supposed to keep the sexual appetites of passing men at
bay when women travel outside the home. This can actually save a woman's life, since she is
usually assumed to bear the responsibility of unlawful sexual encounters.
1.10 Factors Influencing Muslim Women to Wear Hijab

Munir (2014) explored the social and familial factors that affect Muslim womens decision to
wear the hijab. The diagrammatic representation of these factors are presented here as under:

Process of wearing hijab

Influence of family and friends

Institutionalization
Turning
Point in life of Hijab
Conversion
to Islam

Direct
influence
Enforced/co

erced by
family,
friends and
culture
(asked by
parents to
cover, peer
pressure
from
friends)

In direct
influence
Following
the norms
without
coercion
(started
wearing
hijab
because
female
family
members
used to
wear hijab

Wearing the
hijab after
being
encouraged
through
societal
norms and
religious
instructors
(in school
and
mosques)

SECTION-2

Get inspired
by other
Muslim
women to
wear the
hijab

LifePolitical
events

9/11 and
imprisonme
nt of
Muslims in
Guantanam
o make
Muslim
women feel
the need to
show the
world there
are good
Muslims too

Health
issues

Diagnosis
with cancer
brought
respondents
closer to
religion and
start
wearing the
hijab

2. GLOBAL LITERATURE ON HIJAB

2.1 Observations on Hijab across the world
Below is a brief discussion on the issues regarding hijab in various countries in the world.
2.1.1 France
France was the first European country to ban the full-face Islamic veil in public places. France
has about five million Muslims - the largest Muslim minority in Western Europe - but it is
thought only about 2,000 women wear full veils. As President, Nicolas Sarkozy, whose
administration brought in the ban, said that veils oppress women and were "not welcome" in
France. Under the ban that took effect on 11 April 2011, no woman, French or foreign, is able to
leave their home with their face hidden behind a veil without running the risk of a fine.
Headscarves are allowed at French universities - but not schools. The penalty for doing so is a
150-euro (133, $217) fine and instruction in citizenship. Anyone found forcing a woman to
cover her face risks a 30,000-euro fine. The French Interior Ministry said, as of September 2012,
425 women had been fined and 66 had been warned for violating the headscarf ban.
The European Court of Human Rights upheld the ban on 2 July 2014 after a case was brought by
a 24-year-old French woman who argued that the ban violated her freedom of religion and
expression. Most of the population - including most Muslims - agree with the government when
it describes the face-covering veil as an affront to society's values. Critics - chiefly outside
France - say it is a violation of individual liberties.
2.1.2 Britain
There is no ban on Islamic dress in the UK, but schools are allowed to decide their own dress
code after a 2007 directive which followed several high-profile court cases. Many Islamic groups
see a ban on full-face veils as discrimination against Muslims. In January 2010, then Schools
Secretary Ed Balls said it was "not British" to tell people what to wear in the street after the UK
Independence Party called for all face-covering Muslim veils to be banned.
In 2014 UKIP came first in the European elections in Britain, winning 24 seats in Brussels.
UKIP leader Nigel Farage has previously said that full veils are a symbol of an "increasingly
divided Britain", that they "oppress" women, and are a potential security threat.
2.1.3 America
America is supposed to be the land of the free, home of the brave, where dreams come true, and
where religion can be practiced openly. For Muslims this is not true, more precisely Muslim
women who choose to dress modestly and wear a hijab (headscarf).
Hani Khan, worked in the stock room, she worked for a couple of months, and then the regional
manager visited the store. He asked Khan to remove her scarf during working hours. When she
refused she was suspended. This isnt the first time. In two years, the company has had two
5

complainants against them; both complainants from Muslim, hijab-wearing women. She has
since filed a lawsuit against the company for wrongful termination and discrimination of
religion.
Imane Boudlal was hired in 2008 to work at a hotel restaurant within the resort. When Boudlal
was hired she did not wear the hijab. She was scared to wear the scarf when she was only a green
card holder because she did not want to be discriminated against, but when she finalized her
citizenship she decided to wear her hijab.
2.1.4 The Netherlands
Plans to impose a ban in the Netherlands under the country's previous centre-right coalition were
shelved in 2012 when the government collapsed and was replaced by its left-wing rivals.
2.1.5 Belgium
A law banning the full-face veil came into effect in Belgium in July 2011. The law bans any
clothing that obscures the identity of the wearer in places like parks and on the street.
2.1.6 Spain
Though there are no plans for a national ban in Spain, the city of Barcelona announced a ban on
full Islamic face-veils in some public spaces such as municipal offices, public markets and
libraries. At least two smaller towns in Catalonia, the north-eastern region that includes
Barcelona, have also imposed bans.
2.1.7 Turkey
For more than 85 years Turks have lived in an officially secular state founded by Mustafa Kemal
Ataturk, who rejected headscarves as backward-looking. In 2008, Turkey's constitution was
amended to ease a strict ban at universities, allowing headscarves that were tied loosely under the
chin. Headscarves covering the neck and all-enveloping veils were still banned.
2.1.8 Italy
Several towns in Italy have local bans on face-covering veils. The north-western town of Novara
is one of several local authorities to have already brought in rules to deter public use of the
Islamic veil.
2.1.9 Germany
Governments have discussed extending the law to impose penalties on Muslim face coverings,
but these have not yet been enforced nationally. Half of Germany's 16 states have gone on to ban
teachers from wearing headscarves and in the state of Hesse the ban applies to all civil servants.
2.1.10 Russia
Russia's Stavropol region has announced a ban on hijabs - the first of its kind imposed by a
region in the Russian federation. The ruling was upheld by Russia's Supreme Court in July 2013.
6

2.1.11 Switzerland
In late 2009, Swiss Justice Minister Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf said a face-veil ban should be
considered if more Muslim women begin wearing them, adding that the veils made her feel
"uncomfortable". In September 2013, 65% of the electorate in the Italian-speaking region of
Ticino voted in favor of a ban on face veils in public areas by any group. It was the first time that
any of Switzerland's 26 cantons has imposed such a ban (BBC News, 2014).
2.1.12 Iran
In 1936 Reza Shah banned the veil as part of his modernizing crusade. Veiled women were
arrested and had their veils forcibly removed. After Reza Shahs abdication in 1941 the
compulsory element in the policy of unveiling was abandoned, though the policy remained intact
throughout the Pahlavi era. Between 1941 and 1979 wearing hijab was no longer an offence, but
it was a real hindrance to climbing the social ladder, a badge of backwardness and a marker of
class. In March 1979 hijab became compulsory. In 1983, appearing in public unveiled became an
offence, punishable by the Islamic penalty of up to seventy-four lashes (Afshar, 1996).
2.1.13 Egypt
Sayed Tantawi, the Grand Sheikh of al-Azhar, Cairo's 1,000-year-old Islamic university. While
touring one of hundreds of girls' schools that al-Azhar also runs, he happened to spot an 11-yearold student wearing the hijaband lost his famously short temper. Not only did he order her to
remove it on the spot. His university issued a blanket rule banning the hijab in all its girls'
schools, on the ground that the full face-covering is an innovation that represents too extreme an
interpretation of Islamic modesty (The Economist, 2009).

2.2 Peoples perception regarding hijab

2.2.1 Positive views on hijab
They have to endure stereotypes connected to the hijab and the religion of Islam. One of these
Stereotypes is that others feel these women are forced into wearing the hijab and are oppressed
by their male relatives among other assumptions but this is not true (Mernissi 1991).
Muslim women often find that their hijab grants them a status of pious and pure and
somehow just good in general (Alvi et al. 2003).
Newman & Newman (2001) assert that the role of the families and the degree of support
provided for the girls in their homes help explain both their decisions to wear the hijab, as well
as their perceptions that the hijab provided them with a safety net against existing pressures.
Also, it was noted by the participants that their families helped them cope in times where they
felt discriminated against or picked on in school.
Wearing the veil is also related to the concept of sacred privacy, which is linked to ideas of
identity and cultural pride. In that context, far from disempowering Muslim women, the veil
7

allows them to participate in the public sphere on their own cultural terms, profiting from the
security and the privacy that it affords them (Fadwa El Guindi, 1999).
2.2.3 Negative views on hijab
People in France, the U.K., and Germany say that women who wear the hijab are a threat to
European culture as measured by the Religious Tolerance Index. Within key Western societies,
there are genuine negative perceptions regarding hijab.
Leila Ahmed has pointed out that not all Muslim women across the globe have adopted veiling
and that others practice it differently as there are diverse cultural practices & interpretations of
religion and tradition. So even though the veil pre-dates Islam and can be found in the other
world religions, negative connotations of the veil have become primarily associated with
Muslim women. These have been enabled by Western binary discursive constructions that see
freedom of the body (and especially the female body) as symbolic of liberalism and recognition
of human rights, and its restriction or constraint as indicative of oppression and barbarism.
(Ahmed, 1992)
The images of Muslim women as oppressed or backwards have also been popular depictions
(and continue to be) associated with the hijab. Zine (2001) stated that Muslim women in
particular have become a metaphor for oppression as common perception is that the hijab is
forced upon them despite the fact that many Muslim women wear it as a symbol of religious
identification and modesty, as opposed to coercion.
Bullock (2002) concluded that laws banning the hijab in Canada and elsewhere were usually
enacted in the name of modernity, a modernity that sees Islam as backward, anti-civilization,
barbaric, and oppressive to women (p. 220).
Muslim women in veil suffer both emotionally and physically because of the law banning the
veil in public places and its Islamophobic dimensions. At an emotional level, the veil ban can be
seen as a form of oppression and violation. For Muslim women who want to wear the veil, the
ban results in a sense of imprisonment on the basis that it restricts their participation in society.
Islamophobia, like its sister oppressions racism and other forms of hate crime constrains selfdevelopment and self-determination and disrupts notions of belonging.
This reality of double discrimination leads to their social exclusion from mainstream society
whereby women in veil feel unwelcome and marginalized. In particular, the ban excludes women
in veil from the public sphere by creating barriers to accessing mainstream services. According
to the Council of Europes Commissioner for Human Rights, banning veiled women from public
places including public institutions, hospitals and government offices may simply result in them
avoiding such places altogether, which leads to their alienation from mainstream society
(Hammarberg, 2012).
It is not surprising that, in France, veiled women have been found to experience social isolation
and alienation by virtue of being denied access to the public sphere by the society in which they
live. (Open Society Foundations, 2011).

The University of Birmingham, led by Government advisor Dr Chris Allen, interviewed 20

British Muslim female victims of anti-Muslim hatred for the study, aiming to study the patterns
of racism. Around 58% of those experiencing Islamophobia are women, the report said. Several
of the women interviewed said they had considered not wearing the hijab after experiencing
abuse. Study has found that Muslim women are more likely to be targets for Islamophobia than
men, with 80% targeted for wearing the hijab (Jessica, 2014).
The Western media and feminists often portray the hijab as a symbol of oppression and slavery
of women ([Link]). A theory of Orientalism has been in existence since 1978 which
argues that the Muslim population is deemed backward, uncivilized beings who are outcasts in
Western society. Many feminists, both Western and Islamic argue that the hijab is a symbol of
gender oppression and that the Islamic veiling of women is an oppressive practice. Fadel Amara,
an Islamic feminist and Muslim female member of French government describes the burqa as a
prison and a straightjacket which is not religious but is the symbol of a tyrannical political
project for sexual inequality (Bullock, 2002).

2.3 Hijab Reflection by Muslim Women

I am very proud to wear hijab. I started wearing hijab in the end of sixth grade when I was
eleven and a half. After wearing hijab when I went to school, I could feel all the eyes following
me and asking all the questions. It was just about six months after September 11th, and I knew
that the people were still full of caution. While I was walking down the hall to my class and to
my locker, my teachers went to each other and started pointing and talking about me. Then they
finally called me and asked me what I was wearing. I explained to them that it was part of my
religion, and I would be wearing it from now on. That started the wave of questions; that wave
was a big one. My friends started asking me what it was and why I wore it. I said the same thing
over and over to them until they understood it. I realized I needed to learn more about the reason
I wore it, so I read some books about Islam and women. Lots of people were asking me if my
parents forced me to wear; they said they felt sorry for me. I made it clear that it was not a form
of oppression, but a protection that I had chosen myself (Syed, 2004).
Tayyab Bashart, a feminist scholar and Muslim who teaches in France explains her beliefs A
woman in hijab, who is a functioning member of society, symbolizes an empowered,
independent woman, rather than someone who lacks self-determination and is a puppet of
society. Bashart states in his book that Muslim women carry with them their sacred private
space into the public space by use of the Hijab. In this view of the hijab, the veil is not simply
an article of clothing; or a symbol of oppression it is a tool of spirituality for women. (Basharat,
2006)
In case study conducted by Munir (2014) one woman said, My husband didnt talk to me for 3
days. My mother-in-law and mother were really mad at me, they used the word maid, that I had
become a maid, once my husband used the word too, that I had become the maid, maid servant is
the word. But my sister supported me. My sisters dont wear the hijab but they supported me.
They were in the US and sent me hijabs and supported me all the way (South Asian in Houston,
9

Age 52).
Fadwa El Guindi (1999) says veiling patterns and veiling behavior are.... about sacred privacy,
sanctity and the rhythmic interweaving of patterns of worldly and sacred life, linking women as
the guardians of family sanctuaries and the realm of the sacred in this world".
Mardini said hijab is a mean of modesty, protection and honor, "The hijab is not meant to restrict
or confine a woman, and its a code of modesty".
Haji Mariam said "We live in a society where sex sells and there should be more modesty, a
woman should be treated with respect and dignity and not as a sex object. When a woman is
covered, you begin looking at her as a human being and not a sex object, I think it makes one
more dignified but it doesn't mean that a woman who doesn't cover isn't good or dignified. She
said that covering the head is just one aspect of modesty.
Nisreen said she chose to wear the hijab because "it is more respectful for a woman to cover
herself." (IRFI, n.d.).
Raihan Ismail is a lecturer in Middle East Politics and Islamic Studies at the Australian National
University. She has had some negative experiences in Canberra. "Once in a while, people call me
a terrorist," she said. "My first experience in Australia [involved] two women behind me who
said, 'they are everywhere, and its like a disease'. They pushed me a little bit and started
laughing; I was so heartbroken. Though confronting and upsetting, Dr Ismail said this kind of
experience is in the minority. "In Canberra people are so lovely; sometimes people just smile at
me, and that is just so nice," she said. (James, 2014)
Alem says that the hijab is a part of me it does not define me, but it is one part of me. Every hijab
I wear is heavy not because of the material but because of the experiences belonging only to me
and those experiences that I know are shared by all my sisters wearing the hijab. My hijab is
about me. I do not wear it to stand out in the crowd or to be seen as diverse. I do not wear it to
push my religious agenda down your throat. I know its just a piece of cloth. The scarf is just a
piece of cloth. But my hijab, the one on my head, is mine. I wear it for me. It means strength, it
means comfort, it means sisterhood, and it means empowerment (Alem, 2014).
Pharmersmarket says she started wearing a hijab five years ago in her secondary school, writes:
I genuinely like wearing it. It makes me feel put together and confident in a weird way. Maybe
because it does take a certain level of courage to visibly separate yourself from normal society.
To start wearing a hijab I had to stop caring about what other people thought and now I can be
proud of that. It definitely doesn't stop street harassment, but men do treat you with a bit more
respect. I don't think its right to treat a girl differently because of how she's dressed but it does
happen. When I'm wearing a hijab it's much easier not to care when I'm getting leered at because
what exactly is he looking at? My face? (Radhika, 2014).

2.4 Hijab as Providing Identity

10

Muslim women in America often face the question why they would feel the need to cover
themselves in this age and era, while living in western countries where there is no pressure for
them to do so. However, Muslim women can resist this western pressure due to the fact that in
recent years, multiculturalism has become the rage, diversity is considered important and
immigrants no longer feel pressured to assimilate and thus feel freer to display their identities
publicly (Ali, 2005).
In Britain that even though women technically have the right to dress as they please, it still takes
courage and boldness on their part to voluntarily dress different than the common dress code as
opposed to Muslim countries where they are expected to dress modestly. This confirms the fact
that Muslim women are not passive victims but bold and intrepid to wear the hijab in Britain
today (Franks, 2000).
Muslim women find that by wearing hijab, they are using their clothing style to display that they
are their own person, different from what their dominant society or westernized or traditional
parents might want them to be (Williams and Vashi, 2007).

SECTION-3

PERSONAL REFLECTION ON HIJAB

11

Women are taught from early childhood that their worth is proportional to their attractiveness.
We feel compelled to pursue abstract notions of beauty, half realizing that such a pursuit is futile.
When women reject this form of oppression, they face ridicule and contempt.
I started wearing hijab 6 years ago. I didnt start it due to family impositions rather I started it
due to the fact that I feel myself pure, protected and pious. After wearing hijab, I felt more
comfortable with the others in the society, Masha Allah. I found out that when I started to wear
hijab I feel like a protected gem enclosed in my covering. It preserved my dignity. I was no
longer amongst the crowds of women who are subject to the impious looks of men and are thus
posted at a very belittling position. On the contrary, I had become a woman of respect, Masha
Allah. Covering myself properly makes me feel good as there is so much benefit in following the
commands of Allah.
Wearing the hijab has given me freedom from attention of men to my physical self. No one
knows how my hair looks, what is the length and color of my hair etc. and because no one
knows, no one cares. Women are not going to achieve equality with the right to bear their breasts
in public, as some people would like to have you believe. That would only make us party to our
own objectification. True equality will be had only when women don't need to display
themselves to get attention and won't need to defend their decision to keep their bodies to
themselves.
The Qur'an teaches us that men and women are equal, that individuals should not be judged
according to gender, beauty, wealth, or privilege. The only thing that makes one person better
than another is her or his character. So wearing hijab stopped me from getting involved in
immoral activities. Mostly western people think of hijab as a symbol of oppressed womanhood, but I
feel myself more liberating while wearing it. Now I can go everywhere because I would not be
afraid of the impious glances of men, I wouldnt be afraid to get exposed if it comes over blows
or rain etc.
I do face some problems because of hijab. Sometimes I feel inferior in modernized community
because people treat me like a backward being due to hijab. People think that in do not have
intellectual abilities and enough knowledge as I am wearing hijab they consider me less
knowledgeable.

REFERENCES

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Afshar, H. 1996. Women and Politics in the Third World. Routledge 11 New Fetter Lane,
London EC4P 4EE

Ahmed, N. n.d. Islam in Global History. Louisville, USA: Islamic research foundation
International Inc.

Alem, B. 2014. A Reflection on My Hijab. [Link]

Ali, Syed. 2005. "Why here, Why Now? Young Muslim Women Wearing Hijab." The Muslim
World 95(4):515-530.

Alvi, Sajida, Homa Hoodfar and Sheila McDonough, eds. 2003. The Muslim Veil in North
America: Issues and Debates. Toronto, ON: Women's Press.

Bashart, T. 2006. Muslim women carry with them their sacred private space into the public
space by use of the Hijab.

BBC News. 2014. The Islamic veil across Europe. Retrieved from:
[Link]

Bullock, K. 2002. Rethinking Muslim women and the veil: Challenging historical and modern
stereotypes. Herndon: VA. The International Institute of Islamic Thought.

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