France's Ban On Headscarves

With the recent interest of the media on the topic of hijab and the oppressive symbol that it is portrayed to be, I have decided to write my paper on the hijab and what it means to various Muslim women. This topic is important and worth studying because most of the information that is relayed about the hijab by the media is not based on the opinion of Muslim women who actually wear the hijab in North America. Currently, feminists around the world have started a campaign for a “#nohijabday.” Although this movement initially began in order to speak out against the Iranian government for forcing Iranian women to don the hijab, it quickly spiraled out of control on social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook. This event has led to an influx

In the article,” comment”,Pat Lancaster, an editorial writer, argues let them discard that they should have the choice to do so but a personal one,as well as needing to uphold personal freedoms. She believes that without liberty,egality and fraternity France wouldn't be the same. She or he supports the claim by giving evidence about equality and emancipation. People culture and who they are being taken away by the government and people of the same culture supporting the ban. She follows this with reasons why they shouldn't ban the hijabs and how other ethics including muslims contribute leading european power .

Some Muslim women believe that although the principles of modesty are clearly outlined in the Qu’ran, they perceive the wearing of the headscarf as a cultural interpretation of these scriptures. These women sometimes believe that the values espoused by the wearing of the headscarf can be achieved in other ways. Some women believe that while the hijab allowed women in the past to engage in public society without garnering attention, the headscarf in contemporary Western society brings more attention to women and is thus contradictory to its original purpose. Others believe that the hijab and other external practices have become inappropriately central to the practice of Islam, and instead choose to focus on their internal and spiritual relationship with God.While some women might choose not to wear the hijab, most Muslim women agree that it is a woman’s choice whether or not she wears the hijab. Many Muslim and Arab women who have chosen not to wear the hijab are often staunch advocates of a woman’s right to choose to

A nun can be covered from head to toe in order to devote herself to god. But when a Muslim woman does the same she is being oppressed. It may be argued that wearing a burqa benefits only a few and brings more harm than good to society. The real question is who does it harm? That should be the basis for banning this piece of clothing, not one based on fear or an arguably feeble argument that the women do not have a choice. To say that a ban on a specific item like this is undemocratic is an understatement. Following the French senate’s unanimous vote in favour of banning the burqa in late 2010, many European and western countries including Belgium and Spain have made the decision to take the

“A Christian guy came in at work and asked why I wear the hijab. I said because Mary, the mother of Jesus is my role model.” --Fatima a young Muslim tweeted. Wearing the hijab and the niqab was something that started long before our time. Yet it is currently a heated debate in many countries. The niqab and hijab Muslim women wear on their heads is making headlines around the world (Stacey). The niqab or the hijab is not worn for tradition belief nor is it worn by force; it is worn for religious beliefs and on a women’s own will. For the past few years countries like Canada, United States and France are trying to stop Muslim women from wearing the niqab. However Muslim

As a result of past governments led by fundamentalist Muslims, Western feminists have taken the issue of the headscarf into their own hands. The feminist movement regarding Islamic head coverings began in response to their belief that Muslim women are being oppressed. Although many people have been convinced that all women are continually being forced to cover their bodies and faces, this belief is far from the truth. Throughout the worldwide Muslim population, a majority of Muslim women who wear any kind of head coverings do so out of their own will. There have been select governments that have enforced headscarves, but today women have the choice left to themselves. Even though many Muslim women have spoken out to Western feminists to ensure

If I would have been in a situation like many women’s in France wearing headscarf I would probably follow the law and believed why us women can’t were headscarf. In other words, I won’t like it if other people would consider me as danger to the foundation of the secular state as she mention. As in for girls going to schools and not have the rights to wear headscarf is a much more problem for them to keep their more protected. I strongly disagree with not letting girls wear headscarf even if they are good students, with no discipline records. Although this was a problem for poor families who really had to follow the law because they had to make sure they Childs attend classes. Finally, not all French people followed up the rules and the law, which cause it more to the Muslims because it connected them with the law that many French people didn’t

Around the world the hijab, niqab, burqa, and other veils Muslim women wear are being criticized and made into news stories and or debates about whether Muslim women should be allowed to veil. Muslim Women are taking a stand against Western critiques of veiling by breaking down the critiques positioned by the West and Western feminists; in addition Muslim women are expressing autonomy and their self-determination for their right to choose to veil which leads to critiquing power of the state. (Ferrero)This essay will first outline the critiques of veiling and their historical context, then move to discuss how specific Muslim women see their lives and express their self-determination and finally the essay will conclude will an overall view of how Muslim women are critiquing the power of the state in order to control decisions regarding their

In my research I want to look at the headscarf in France and how the French government has made it difficult for Muslim women to integrate into society. France has one of the highest Muslim populations standing at almost 8 percent of their nation’s population; that’s almost 5 million Muslims (Caldwell, 2003). France's government strongly supports the term laicite, which doesn’t translate correctly in the English language, but is similar to secularism (Bowen 2007, 2). Laicite means that the French government keeps a neutral space for all people in order to ensure equality for all. Headscarves and ‘conspicuous’ symbols are considered to be disruptions of neutral space (Caldwell, 2003). The headscarf ban in France

The reason behind the new law shows the fundamentalist’s view of women, they must be aware of how men could react to them in public if they reveal too much skin. Basically, the awful behavior of men toward women, is the women’s fault. "They insulted me. They said that women like me should be pushed up against a wall and fucked and then thrown in the garbage." (The Trip 19). This quote perfectly describes the above statement. Just because her mother did not wear a veil, she had to suffer. Some women even covered their full bodies, called a chador. If they don’t they would be seen as the Other within their own society not following the rules, and as a result there will be violence. “… if Others are not rendered invisible, they may instead suffer from hypervisibility, wherein differences between the preferred self or group and the deemed deficient individual or group are highlighted. For example, Muslim women who wear headscarves that hide their hair and necks may be Othered because of their definitions and display of modesty. Although a woman wearing a headscarf may not feel her religious practices are the most important layer of her identity, and instead believes her educational level is the most defining layer of her identity, she will likely be hypervisible in the scarf to others and will be deemed an Other” (Other.The 3). This quote from encyclopedia of identity, leads to the idea that in other societies, despite their believes, they would still be seen as the

Muslim women have been the centre of intercession being utilized as proofs of 'cultural backwardness'. Intervention in Muslim communities by focusing on women as a vehicle for social change has a long history.44 In Europe, the contention over the hijab has been especially extreme with the most grounded rejection happening in France where hijab as a religious image is illegal in state organizations, particularly schools.45.46 Nevertheless, enactments denying female circumcision and arranged/forced marriage have been seen as Muslim practices needing direction, despite the fact that there is no reference to culture in these laws. The attention on Muslim women viably uses them as a measure of Muslim incorporation. The headscarf is by a wide margin

I chose this frame in an interest of where it all began. During 1979 there was a Revolution and later was called "The Islamic Revolution". The veil represented as a religion, people protested against the veil and for the veil at the time. In 1980, schools forced girls to wear them, they didn 't know what it meant or what it was for. Also, they separated boys and girls from each other. One day they decided to shut all bilingual schools since the people who believe that it represented capitalism of decadence, they called this "Cultural Revolution".

Before explaining more about the French veil issue, we need to understand why it is happening. First off, the French veil is recognized as a law that begun in the early 2000s (Crosby). It was also the first major law in a European country to be passed. However, it main goal is to target Muslim women. In France, it is filled with a lot of immigrants; so the governments fear that it will affect their traditional culture. Every year, more and more Muslims come to live in France, as their “numbers increase in the past ten years (Honicker). In this case, they decided to pass the French veil law to ban Muslim women from wear their scarf in public, such as at school, shopping, etc. It made many women felt like their rights were taken, which

Giry argues that French Muslims have displayed true capability and willingness to assimilate, much stronger than acknowledged by elite politicians and the media. However, the problem seems to be that French Muslims efforts towards integration have not been mutually met from the French public. She states that most Muslims have adopted the French cultural norms and provides examples of studies showing that France has one of the highest rates of intermarriage between Muslim women and French men in Europe (2006, p. 93), all supporting the fact that Muslims have succeeded in integrating in various ways. However, there seems to be economic and political disparities

Has one ever questioned why some Muslim women wear that piece of cloth on their heads? Where they forced to wear it or was it a personal choice. That piece of cloth, is actually called a hijab. Muslim sisters wear the hijab to obey God and to show their modesty. The hijab releases a woman from being objectified and perceived for her beauty. By exploring articles on the web, reading books, and magazines; some authors that differed in opinions why the hijab is forced upon and others explained why it was a personal decision. For instance, Leland Ware argues in the Huffington Post how France banned the hijabs and burqas, Valerie Tarico explains in the Huffington Post that the hijab is not a personal choice for women, and Acharya Murdock