In being a Muslim woman in any part of the world, social prejudices and political injustices are what it means to bear the weight of having this identity. The two groups of women that both are walking targets because of their identity and beliefs are those of the trans community and those of minority groups, i.e. Afro Muslims and Latino Muslims. To be marginalized because of an identity that is deemed wrong in a social context and due to norms set by society, trans people are often discriminated against because their identity goes against the natural order of life's societal norms—likewise, being a Latino/black woman Muslim and the challenges of being an outcast in your own culture and community due to the fact that there aren't many practicing …show more content…
Looking at the Muslim Latino community in the United States, we can understand the social and cultural challenges these women face. Many come from a background where Islam isn't the main religion, getting outcasted in the process by their own people. The excerpt "Hazel Gomez: "Hazel's a Muslim Name" from Being Muslim by Sylvia Chan-Malik touches on the idea of cultural struggle being an Afro-Latina and Muslim through the personal story of Hazel Gomez. As a convert in her teens, she explains the prejudices she had towards a Muslim student at her school being confused about her identity; she later befriended them because "They're not going to get me into trouble (pg163)". Gomez converted to Islam, and being from a catholic family, she received pushback from her family, "her grandparents were unhappy with her decision but still supportive (pg 164)". Going against cultural norms is what she and many other minority Muslims face in her search for identity in …show more content…
This key pivotal act of family bonding is important when looking at human interactions because it serves "to provide a sense of belonging and identity (pediatric care)." This identity that humans cultivate is what often defines their very essence, So when a person's identity is denied, they are more susceptible to depression and suicidal thoughts(Psychology Today). This is why the invalidation of personal identity is a common ground that both Muslim minorities and trans people face. Another overlap where they slightly contrast that we can look at is from the evidence provided by Delice Mugabo and Asli Zeneigins, which is where the intersections of social-political effects affect the Muslim minorities and trans people. Specifically, trans women in a social context are being ostracized by their people (Muslims), and in Turkey, the laws that Islam has influenced impose prejudice. What remains the same is the abandonment of the people, the abandonment of black Muslims because it's easier to cast off one's discrimination towards a historically discriminated group in Quebec, and the refusal to acknowledge the identity of the trans community in Turkey. Dissecting these two affected groups, one can see the intersections in the outcast due to
In society, people have an issue with things that are different. Individuals want to know who a person is and what they are all about. When human beings cannot figure out what a person is they become confused and often times angry. If a person does not fit into any gender category that someone is familiar with that person becomes an outcast. Being a part of a group is essential in society and those who do not are made to commit societal suicide. If a person is not part of society it is extremely difficult for that person to be able reap the important benefits of society. These individuals are forced to belong to a group that shares the same experiences and lifestyle choices. In this essay, I will be discussing this idea in the form of a documentary called Southern Comfort. It is based on transgendered living in a rural area in Georgia. I will discuss summary, main points, and the importance of cohesion of gender.
Ever pass by Muslim woman in a hijab at the mall or park and think how oppressive and restraining her culture must be? Maysan Haydar, a New York social worker who practices the Muslim tradition of veiling, believes otherwise. In her article, “Veiled Intentions: Don’t Judge a Muslim Girl by Her Covering,” Haydar highlights on her experiences as a Muslim living in an American culture, where showing more skin is the “norm.” Haydar speaks specifically to a crowd who unconsciously makes assumptions about certain Muslim practices, in hopes of sharing the truth behind them. Haydar suggests that, contrary to popular belief, not all Muslim women cover themselves strictly as an “oppressive” religious practice, but that some women, like herself, find
Women have always been thought of as something that needed to be controlled in Muslim culture. Their bodies are a source of shame that must be covered during prayer and also in the public (Mir-Hosseini 2007: 3). Veiling, done by a hijab or chador, is when women either wear a headscarf to cover themselves or they wear a veil that covers their entire body, excluding her hands and eyes (Mir-Hosseini 2007: 1; Mir-Hosseini 2003: 41; Berger 1998: 93; Smith-Hefner 2007: 390-391; Brenner 1996: 674; El Guindi 1999: 6). Veiling is used as a tool for oppression. By having women veil themselves, it enforces the control by the male run and male dominated society (Mir-Hosseini 2007: 7). Also, the punishment for women appearing without a veil transitioned as the concept of veiling was addressed, transitioning from seventy-four lashes, to being arrested and held between ten days and two months for being “immodest” women and offending public morality, or fined 50,000 to 500,000 rials (Mir-Hosseini 2007: 8). The oppression of veiling is perpetuated through the thought that it is a woman’s religious duty to wear one, condemning foreigners and women in society if they refuse. Although it is a tool for oppression, there was resistance the oppression. In ...
On September 11, 2001, since the terrorist attacks, many American Muslims have been stereotyped negatively in the United States. Salma, a Muslim woman, says that the way Muslims have been recognized in the media has played a big role in the antagonisms directed to her. “I don’t know how many time I heard my classmates accuse me of being al-Qaeda or a terrorist” (Mayton 2013). Salma, along with other Muslims, even after a decade, are still struggling with trying to find their “American” and “Islamic” identities, while facing verbal attacks for their ethnicity. Too often, the general Muslin population gets lumped in with the immoral acts of a few because of the lack of knowledge about their culture.
Many transgender people lived in dysfunctional families when they were young. The support becomes vital for the wellbeing of kids. In her book Redefining Realness by Janet Mock, recaps the importance of support from Michelle his cousin, who kept in secrets of gender dysphoria of Charles (Keisha) by saying “‘Pinkie –swear you won’t tell your mom’…She’d keep the secret my secret because I was her favorite cousin” (Mook 76). Michelle, kept Keisha’s secret by allowing her to use her swimming clothes. Michelle shows the importance of support from relatives. This is a fundamental factor that might help with the development of her gender identity. Many transgender people may feel a relief at the time to disclose their identity. When transition is in progress the support from friends and families becomes important because, many transgender people might suffer if they lack support. Many transgender people seem depressed because they are rejected by society. Janet Mock, relates how Wendi, support Charles, by making him feel comfortable, saying “Wendi and I grew inseparable trough middle school, a bond that would link us for the rest of our lives. Through association, my class –mates learned that I was like Wendi-who hadn’t yet adopted any labels to describe her shifting self” (Mook 107). In most cases transgender people’s acquaintances can be referred as transgender people just by friendship. The association makes transgender people to gain confidence about their gender identity. The support from groups or friends makes transgender people feel that they are accepted and not alone. Support from friends might urge transgender people to come out the “closet” and reveal their gender identity to gain respect among society. The support from friends is important, but family support seems to be the most important. When families do not support transgender people it causes a hostile environment that may suppress
Particularly in this video, Kimberle Crenshaw mentioned an employment discrimination case. Emma is the name of the African American woman who was discriminated in her job. Emma who came from a minority group was seeking better opportunities for her family, so she applied for a job in a factory. However, she was not hired because of gender and race discrimination. She is one of many people who come from minority groups which are not only discriminated against because of their gender, but also because of their race. Basically, we always take into account that a person is discriminated against by only one factor, however, in this case Kimberle Crenshaw emphasizes how Emma was being discriminated different compared to the African American males and white women’s working inside the factory. Although the men remained in the same ethnic group as Emma they were not discriminated against at the same level of an African-American woman. Therefore, Emma suffered what Kimberle Crenshaw called double discrimination. Unfortunately not only women are typically those who suffer sexism but also other groups in our society. Such is the case of transgender people. It is here when we can see how discrimination exceeds more complicated levels when compared to the discrimination and inequality that cisgender people face. For instance, society ignore how transwomen
Part of the issue that transgenders face is living in a puritanical society that is ignorant, judgmental, and afraid of their sexual choices. This resulted in how her family ultimately related to her, like Jenner’s and the lecturer’s families did. My patient felt alone because she had little contact with her family, mainly her mother and sister. Her father had not talked to her in a couple of years because of his son being transgender. Perhaps, just the thought of his son wanting to be a woman threatened his sense of his own masculinity. The father may have dealt with his own conflicts by ignoring his
Such an encounter becomes a source of discomfort and momentarily a crisis of racial meaning. Without a racial identity, one is in danger of having no identity" (Michael Omi, Howard Winant, 12). It is obvious when we look at someone we try to get a sense of who they are. We categorize people within our society and place them by gender, ethnicity, race, religion, and even social class. Because one of the first things we utilize is race and gender it is questioned that without racial identity one is in danger of having no identity. Personally, I believe that this is true, for instance, within our society gender roles are very apparent. We utilize gender as a form of identity, because many people now are coming forward with wanting to change their identity there has been ann uproar to try to fight against equality for citizens that identify with a different gender. What is to be considered is the same uproar that is occurring with people who identify with a gender is also occurring with citizens that are identified solely on race. Within our different generations there has been an uprising in mixed races, a person can be
To conclude, I chose this article as I found the discussion point interesting and wanted to bring to more people’s attention some of the underlying discrimination that is embedded in U.S. culture. Although transgender people are in the minority, they are no less than myself. I believe strongly that they deserve the same rights and opportunities that are presented to me daily. This article is relevant to the issues of Cultural Anthropology as it addresses questions surrounding gender stereotypes, gender discrimination, gender performance as well as relationship ties and kinship.
Dilshad D Ali publicized her article "Raising My Kids to Be Unapologetic American Muslims" on March 21st, 2018. With this article, she made known the struggles she went through as a Muslim American and hit the emotions of many who did the same. Dilshad D Ali's main point was to remember not to stray away from who you are but instead be proud of it, embracing it and all the culture that came with it. She advocated for the Muslim audience, successfully using ethos, pathos, and logos to display a beautiful message about the dual identities Muslim Americans shared, how it affected them, and how they can embrace it. By using personal experiences, first-hand accounts of Islamophobia and prejudice, and real-life statistics, she manages to pull in
Intersectionality is a term used to describe a situation whereby an individual has multiple identities and as result, the person feels that he or she doesn’t belong to one community or another. Because of the many conflicts in an individual’s identities, he or she could be a victim of multiple threats of discrimination (Williams, 2017). The discrimination could be a result of race, gender, age, health and ethnicity among others. To give an example, a black transgender woman could be discriminated in the workplace because of being black and also because she is transgender. From an intersectionality perspective, the woman faces multiple threats of discrimination because of the overlapping identities of gender and race and therefore the transwoman faces a bigger struggle (Barber, 2017). Transwomen of color will most likely encounter prejudices in the form of homophobia, racism or sexism in many dimensions of their life. The perspective of intersectionality is not only applicable to women but it can also be applied to males. For example, a gay Latino man could be discriminated based on race because he is an immigrant into
Hard checks, high-impact hits, rough blows, knockouts, crushing tackles; some violence occurs naturally in some sports. Those naturally violent sports (e.g., football, hockey, soccer, wrestling, and boxing) with all that aggression and violence excites audiences and enhance enjoyment. However, aggression and violence in sporting competitions are clearly becoming an issue. Destructive aggression is often deliberate and frequently encouraged by coaches, spectators, and teammates. This aggression in becoming increasing accepted by the public and ever popular in today’s sporting events. Michael Strahan a player in the NFL said in 2007 that, “It’s the most perfect feeling in the world to know you’ve hit a guy just right, that you’ve maximized the physical pain he can feel….. You feel the life just go out of him. You’ve taken all this man’s energy and just dominated him” (Coakley, 2008). Clearly, Strahan’s words show the acceptance of aggressive behavior and even glorify this aggression.
While people in the west think that women in Islam are oppressed, they do not know that Islam liberated women from oppression. There are many people who have opinions about the religion of Islam, but mostly about the women who follow it. Westerners have this idea that women in Islam are disrespected, mistreated and oppressed. In actuality, these allegations are incorrect. Women in Islam have rights and are not oppressed. The veil is widely misunderstood and many do not know what it represents. In many ways, men and women are equal as much as they are not; and this is in every religion.
299). The study consisted of having in-depth personal interviews to share their experiences of being a Muslim American woman (Anderson Droogsma, 2007, p. 300). Veiling to these women was a way of freedom while also having a Muslim identity (Anderson Droogsma, 2007, p. 301). It was also a source of behavior control, to not be sexually objectified, a way of commanding respect from others and even a source of checking their own behavior (Anderson Droogsma, 2007, p. 301). One of the women interviewed said, veiling to her was a way to feel connected to other Muslim woman who veil (Anderson Droogsma, 2007, p. 302). Veiling can be a way to feel connected to your religion and God as well as being connected to those who practice the same faith, it can be considered an act of membership. Many of the women interviewed noted they have been removed from planes, been treated unfairly, and have had strangers shout at them all for just being Muslim and being more visibly recognized from veiling (Anderson Droogsma, 2007, p. 303). This is an example of how media can affect the general population. When the media only shows radicals and compares all Muslims to being terrorist or dangerous they are actually putting Muslim people at risk of being assaulted in public. Muslim woman in particular are more at risk for being assaulted as they are more identifiable. So while veiling can be a source of empowerment and freedom for women it is a double-edged sword because it also puts them at further risk of being
Every day that society ignores this repression and abuse that these women face is just another day that they suffer. These women deserve to have lives, jobs, and families. However, with the social stigma that is placed upon these women the likelihood of them getting the chance to live long successful lives is very low. These women are at the bottom of the LBGTQ community they suffer from mote homicides than any other group in this community. For example, a blog post written by Emily Wedick states "Transgender women of color represent one of the most targeted groups of violent hate crimes and homicide in America.