By: AMEARA DITSCHE, Executive Editor
Islamophobia has run rampant in the United States since 9/11. A large fraction of this is aimed towards women, specifically over traditional dress.
The hijab is a headscarf worn by many Muslim women while in public or around men they do not share specific familial relations with. The belief is that by limiting vanity, they bring themselves closer to Allah. Some countries with a strong Islamic state legally require the hijab or other coverings, like the full coverage niqab. The Quran enumerates modesty for both men and women, mentioning cloths covering woman’s head and bosom. The actual meaning in today’s language is debated amongst Islamic scholars. Amongst modern Muslims, especially women, the most important part of the hijab is that it is a choice.
Mahsa Amini, a woman in Tehran was recently killed in Iran after being detained by the “morality police” for an infraction in how she was dressed. Protests have erupted in response, with marchers chanting mantras like “women, life, and freedom”.
By contrast, in some western nations, like France, the hijab and other religious coverings are banned. The racism that permeates the public view of Islam has labeled the hijab an act of oppression. But the women who wear it proudly disagree.
The most important tenet of feminism is that of choice. Feminism is not about laying out the most progressive way to be a woman. It is about laying down your own path of being a woman. By defining feminism too narrowly, you create a slippery slope that transcends the Muslim community.
Telling women what or what not to wear has strong economic implications. Clothing items are objects that need to be purchased. If women aren’t allowed to choose which objects, they buy, their financial freedom is being limited. Where does it end? Will women be told they can’t buy certain groceries? Will broccoli be banned because healthy food promotes disordered eating? If the oppressors are the ones deciding how to fix the oppression, it dulls the point of revolution.
The hijab is a one piece of cloth tied and pinned to stay put during the day. It is not a hassle to remove one, meaning that if a hijabi changes her mind, all she has to do is take it off. Gender reassignment surgery or hormone therapy are also forms of expression that are often restricted. Usually under the guise of how it may be difficult to reverse, should the recipient change their mind one day. There are many issues with this, like the assumption one could ever know a person more than they know themselves, or the incredibly low rate of people who have actually reversed the process. The sentiment operates under the assumption adults need to be protected from their own actions, which robs us of choice. If the only reason these methods of health care aren’t readily available is because they may be hard to reverse, what is the justification for banning hijabs? Both the banning of hijabs and limited access to crucial healthcare for trans people, are rooted in discrimination.
Like gender affirming healthcare, many ways we express ourselves have nothing to do with our religion. Like I said before, once you start restricting expression, you open a slippery slope for more limits on freedom. If wearing a hijab is banned, theoretically wearing pants could be banned. Then backwards we would go into the era of women having to wear everything in a skirt.
Mahsa Amini’s death was preventable, it was wrong, terrifying, and tragic. She should not have been punished for wearing her clothes “incorrectly,” because there should be no correct way at all. These needless deaths are symptomatic of a larger issue at play. One where we are all at danger of being restricted, then punished. Minorities are at an increased risk for this oppression. So, it is our duty as Americans dedicated to freedom, to ensure the power of choice is always at the forefront of our priorities.
