thefeeloffree:

mehreenkasana:

It’s about time I shared this personal information.

I wore the hijab - full face covered except my eyes - for four years of my life as a personal choice. As absurd as it may sound to many Muslims and non-Muslims, I wished to venture into that realm of Islam where women found comfort in being covered from the public eye. I wanted to know if it assisted them in conjuring this sense of protection from the gaze of men. The irony was that my family wasn’t even glad about this decision I took. My father believed that a simple dupatta modestly spread is enough to indicate a hint of conservatism. My mother opined that clothes stitched modestly can do a fine job at showing “haya”.

I still wore the hijab wherever I went. College, the mall, parties, family dinners. If you think that it is only the French government that eyes the veil with such intense negativity, you’re wrong. I was judged in all sorts of ways. I was instantly expected to be an ill-informed, horrified-by-my-surroundings orthodox from a remote village. When I spoke, people would stare. It wasn’t easy.

I spoke to many young girls and adult women about their decision to take up the hijab. Several confessed that indeed it was forced upon them by tradition or by family members. Plenty openly stated that it was their personal choice and that donning the hijab provided them a sense of “comfort” and “easiness” in terms of movement in public places and other matters. They felt “naked” and “hurt” when they were told to take it off. Summarily put: The majority chose to keep it on. Relativism played in here as well. What seemed suffocating to one person, was completely comfortable and even protecting for the other.

When I ended my personal “experiment” with this side of religion, I went through another phase of hurtful judgement from people I expected better of. My “pious” image was ruined by the blatant display of my hair, my throat and my arms. That too is another dilemma faced by women who choose to take it off. Once again it is the people’s judgement that oppresses a woman’s choice.

France’s policy on women is only propagated under the guise of “liberty” and “security” for their country. You do not force liberty on someone. And there are plenty of sensible ways to maintain national security while safeguarding a citizen’s personal choice.

Fuck France for this. 

That is all.

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I heard my coworkers talking about this yesterday, and I was a bit repulsed. they are in favour of the ban. They claim that these middle eastern people are coming and forcing their cultural and religious values on france. “leh dem keep da in dem own place.”

They said, that it was a guise by which crime was escalating because they didn’t know if men were pretending to be women under the hijab. And they talked about muslim persons forcing things on people. These are Christian people. Who are the conversion whores? the evangelicals. I meant to do a post on this yesterday. 

The first thing i thougth about was gif that I saw on here comparing a muslim woman wearing the hijab, to a nun in her habit (i believe that’s the term). I wonder how they would respond to nuns who came here to this island. probably with opened arms, as they are “sisters in the faith.” 

hmm