In My Hijab
I am a proud American with a mediocre American life. I am 18 years old, going through school, making friends, and planning for a fulfilled life ahead of me. Most people even considered me a normal American with my mediocre life. This hanged forever around the time I was 5, when the date September 11th changed Americans as a whole. I am a Muslim American Women.
My life is just about the same as everyone else’s. I go to Texas State University, participate in various extra-curriculars, like the business fraternity, and have a job at the local Jack-in-the-Box. I am just like you, only I have to work harder to make friends, hold a job, and sometimes even do well in school. Myself and 7 million other Muslim Americans (Haq, 2009) face the problem of being stereotyped as a terrorist. To worsen my situation, I wear the traditional hijab, head scarf, which is comparable to putting a flashing sign over my head saying TERRORIST. Traditionally,
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With recent feminist movements in the Middle Eastern region and history, the hijab has become a symbol for oppression (Haq, 2009). This stereotype and prejudice for Muslim women that wear a hijab has caused people to turn around and walk the other way when they see me in the street and even tremble when sitting next to me on a train (Haq, 2009).
This mentality has posed the greatest difficulty to me. Over my life I had to understand my American culture to comprehend why they didn’t understand my Muslim culture (Question 4). I love wearing my hijab. It brings me confidence and grace. Wearing it symbolizes modesty and segregation between public and private life. People often ask, “Why do you wear that? You’re in America.” To which I can promptly answer I wear it for me and self-esteem as well as to bring some culture into YOUR life (Question
The author of this essay thinks it is ridiculous that women cannot wear their hijab in certain places around the world. Many people think the hijab is not necessary. However, it is part of what Muslim women believe. She explains in her essay, "So next time you hear about a hijab ban think about your best pair of jeans or your faded t-shirt with the logo of your favorite band" (Fakhraie 461). A hijab is just like every other piece of clothing that covers up the body. It can be part of their religion, or they can wear a hijab just because they like how it
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 antagonism directed at her. “I don’t know how many times 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 Muslim population gets lumped in with the immoral acts of a few because of the lack of knowledge about their culture.
Do Muslim Women Really Need Saving by Lila Abu-Lughod describes Western feminist beliefs on Muslim women and their burqa/veil and how focusing on these misconceptions are doing far more harm than good. This causes Western feminists reduce the culture and beliefs of Muslim women down to a single piece of clothing. The burqa is a type of veil worn by Muslim women for a number of reasons such as proprietary and signaling their relationship with God. The burqa is often seen a symbol of suppression amongst the Western world and it was expected for women to throw it off in a show of independence once liberated from the Taliban. The saving of Muslim women is often used to justify the “War on Terrorism” as exemplified in Laura Bush 's 2001 speech. The belief that Muslim women needed saving existed before the “War on Terrorism” as seen when Marnia Lazreg wrote about a skit where two Afghan girls talked about the beauty of the free Christian France.
The burqa affects women negatively and positively, in both emotional and physical aspects, and is seen as a universal symbol of oppression which can arguably be taken to the extreme for the benefit of other countries. The physical effects of Muslim dress can be positive, but mostly negative; Journalists contend that burqas can lessen the hassle when dealing with one’s physical appearance, but can negatively affect health and be very uncomfortable. According to Doucleff, “‘wearing the hijab eliminates many of the hassles women have to go through — such as dyeing their hair,’ she says. ‘For example, you're getting old, and gray hairs, when you wear the hijab, you might not think about dyeing your hair because nobody sees it anyway.’”
The next article I will be analyzing is called, “A Hijab Proper: The Veil Through Feminist Narrative Inquiry” by Sarah Abu Bakr. Abu Bakr wants to dismantle the ideology that the hijab is solely a gendered object that represents Islamic patriarchy and Muslim women having impaired agency. Instead, she disputes that women who wear the hijab come from diverse backgrounds and have numerous reasons for deciding to wear the hijab, not solely because of the Islamic patriarchy. Abu Bakr incorporates her own personal experiences of wearing the hijab and she also interviews an international Muslim woman. She then combines these two experiences to create her performative analysis on the intersectionality of the hijab. In one account, she writes about
“For Muslim women, a headscarf — or hijab — is a visible sign of their faith and identity, and whether to wear one is a big decision.” It also states that being a Muslim woman and wearing a headscarf tends to make it hard for teenagers to be friends with people that did not share their Muslim beliefs and practices. This source connects to my topic because of the fact that wearing a hijab can be a burden to many Muslim-Americans. Asma Uddin is devout in her religious beliefs and had always worn a hijab.
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
Hijab is a choice that some women or girls make for their own security, for more privacy, or because it makes them feel comfortable and confident about themselves. It should be a choice though, and as it is not proven to us that it is obligatory, countries such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Pakistan should remove their laws that insist every girl puts the veil on. Freedom of choice should be given in these countries. It is not required in Islam so it shouldn’t be forced on anyone anywhere. In addition to this, Islam’s beauty is it’s freedom, the choice it provides you with, let it not be ruined.
Because the negative comments and stereotypes received from the society increases the hardship and burden of the headscarf. However, from a positive perspective, they feel that people recognize them as a person with integrity. They noticed that men don’t look at them for their beauty, but more so for their brain. Furthermore, they feel more spiritual when wearing the headscarf. Many of them mentioned that they are keen to understand their religion, Islam, and also respond against Islamophobia.
The counterarguments against the poster brought forward by these Muslim women raise important issues facing Muslim American identity today. Thus, the complex tradition of othering in the creation of American identity must be expanded upon. As explained by Jan Radway, “American national identity is… constructed in and through relations of difference” and that “American [is] always relationally defined and therefore intricately dependent on ‘others’ that are used both materially and conceptually to mark its boundaries.”6 In the current post-9/11 political milieu, the ‘other’ is Muslim, which created the need for a strongly defined American identity that stands in opposition to the ‘dangerous radical’ Muslim. This is evident in the recent proposed
As an American Muslim, I’ve personally faced many challenges growing up with a different culture. At a very young age I chose to express my religion with more pride. A semester into 4th grade, I chose to wear the hijab. The hijab to me was not just a piece of cloth covering my hair for modesty but a symbol of freedom. I not only chose to wear hijab in a sense to bring me closer to my faith but to also help others understand acceptance.
To begin with, the hijab is uncomfortable and impractical in today's modern society. The hijab causes more problems than it solves. Many people either are scared of someone wearing it or they hate the person wearing it. It is very difficult to
Men in the Middle East believe women need help and control from them to be successful. In order for a woman to vote, own a passport, travel or marry, all must be approved by a male family member (Al-Khalifa 2). Not only do they need constant approval for who they are, they must follow strict traditions. Many traditional women presume they must wear a hijab in order to feel respected and because religious requirements tell them to. Radhika Sanghani, a writer for The Telegraph, reported women believe God says wearing the hijab is the appropriate and honorable custom to do (Sanghani 4).