RSS 2.0 - Blog FeedWearing a hijab – is it bad or good for women?
And why do women all over the world show their concerns about the growing number of Muslim women in hijabs? Just recently, I have read an article in The Guardian, speaking about the growing number of young girls wearing hijabs.
Based on what The Guardian writes, girls wear hijabs because the culture and religion in which they live make them behave this way. Looking at the streets of Egypt, more and more girls and women choose to hide their faces from the public. This is why tourists and business people coming from the Western world develop a feeling of discrimination and total obligation haunting Eastern women. Really, even the most beautiful women in the Middle East are often expected to hide their faces behind a hijab. This is not a matter of fashion but a matter of culture and religion. The main reason why the Western world is growing so concerned is because more and more young girls, aged 8 and below, wear scarves and dress modestly. Western people believe that Middle Easterners have a deep fear of exposing their girls’ sexuality, and this is why they are required to wear a scarf.
In reality, hijabs have long been an important part of the culture and religion in the Middle East, and there is nothing bad or unusual for women wearing scarves since an early age. The object of concern is actually nuisance, because it does not constitute any problem for Eastern women but presents a serious problem for Western men? Why are western men so much concerned about women in hijabs? Is it because they cannot see their faces? Is it because it is something that touches their deep fears and anxieties? There is no answer to this question. However, it is clear that women themselves, especially women born and living in the Middle East, have no particular concerns about their hijabs. They look beautiful and do not object to being hidden from the eyes of casual observers.
Moreover, it is at least incorrect to say that hijabs distort women’s beauty and discriminate against their rights. If you have ever been in the Middle East, you will see women wearing different types of clothes, including hijabs. Moreover, if you ever traveled to the Middle East, you can remember that no one asked you or your woman to wear a hijab there. Everyone understands that you are a foreigner and do not have to follow the strict conventions of the Muslim ideology. This is why you should not feel concerned about or demand an Eastern woman coming to a Western country to take off her hijab.
What I am asking here for is tolerance and understanding. We come from different cultures and live in different world. Not being born in the Middle East means being largely unable to grasp the meaning of their traditions and rituals. If we don’t want women to wear hijabs in public places, then we should be prepared to wear them in the Middle East. Otherwise, what fairness and cultural diversity are we talking about?
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