Young Muslim Female Veil

The choices of females are often decided for them. This paper will focus on the young Muslim female and discuss the freedom and oppression attributed to veiling. The hijab is a religious and cultural head covering that post pubescent females choose to adopt to represent their heritage and devotion to Islam through chastity. The hijab has become controversial in Western countries as issues of patriarchy, gender equality, female choice, cultural resistance and racism have become embodied in the veil. The Muslim body has become a symbol, with various cultures forcing differing value and meaning onto the personal choice of being veiled or unveiled. Young Muslim girls are expected to assume an asexual lifestyle that protects and hides them from

men.

When researching the Islamic female body it is obvious to see how problematic and controversial it has been in history. The power the female body has has lead to a constant belittling and extinguishing of women potentiality and therefore impact. Through documented interviews of young Muslim girls in Western settings and the Muslim artist Shirin Neshat this paper will explore the ways the veil can empower or enslave. The paper will study women because in places such as Iran, the women usually manifest political change through the way they dress and behave. As the ones under attack they have always been more abrasive, strong and powerful than the men and often the ones to bring about change (Tenaglia 2002).

The hijab covers and hides women but is increasingly becoming a platform for Muslim female discussion, identity and even power. Although it began as a symbol of female oppression I want to discuss the ways Islamic women are turning that around and findi