the girl with kaleidoscope eyes

half of what i say is meaningless...
notacomplexperson: (Photo via the New York Times) I was reading through the comments posted by readers in relation to this New York Times’ article about American Muslims wearing niqabs and it struck me as that half-hearted sort of acceptance that people use. You know, “I know a Muslim person, so I can say X, Y, and Z; even though X, Y, and Z are all slightly irrelevant points that I use to rationalize my utterly irrational fear.” Here it is, verbatim: “It’s a free country” and if women want to wear this attire they may. I personally think it is demeaning. It implies that men are not to be trusted at all, nor women either for that matter. It does look sinister- not because of any feelings I have about Islam but because masked faces are creepy in our culture. I don’t think that “mary”, the poster, quite understands the nature of the niqab. I make no pretense to being any sort of Muslim scholar and while I understand the cultural connotations of being masked and robed (cf. plague doctors and the personification of Death in Western art), but there’s also a long tradition of using masks and face coverings in events like Carnival to explore liberated and free social interaction. But as far as the religious purpose of the niqab, my Muslim friends have always explained it to me that it is a personal humbling of the self before the eyes of their god. A Catholic may choose to confess his sins to a priest and a Muslim woman may choose to demonstrate her faith by valuing modesty in dress. I hardly think it speaks to the Muslim mentality towards men. When I was in high school, I often went to camps with Muslim girls and they would ask me to turn away when they had to adjust their hijab or otherwise reveal themselves. And because they communicated to me very clearly the personal importance of being covered, I was honored that they felt comfortable enough to ask me to turn away rather than feel like they had to retreat from my presence to maintain their religious vows. Hijab, niqab, burqa: they offend neither my sensibilities nor my own religious beliefs (which ought to be completely immaterial in your opinion of what I’m saying) and I applaud women who make a conscious choice to wear a niqab and make themselves ambassadors of their culture, history, and religion in America. My parents were never overtly religious or patriotic people, but they always reminded me that the reason our family moved to America was very simple: freedom. They never tried to idealize it or turn it into some grandiose notion. For them, freedom meant opportunity in its rawest, most fundamental form. If I am uncomfortable because someone chooses to exercise their religious freedom in a manner that I would not, is it simply for a lack of imagination on my part — I just cannot personally comprehend their expression of faith. Now, I’m not saying you excuse anything that anyone wants to do in the name of Allah/Jehovah/God; you can’t try to take matters of faith to their supposedly logical conclusion. There’s no logic involved! It’s faith! What I am saying is that maybe you should look at this less like someone trying to force an aspect of the outside world upon Americans and more like someone trying to open America to an aspect the outside world. And by doing so, aren’t we making “freedom” just a little freer? (Full disclosure: I did add this as a comment to the article.) thank you! it is so nice to read this articulate and well thought-out response from a non-muslim perspective. makes me feel happy :0))

notacomplexperson:

(Photo via the New York Times)

I was reading through the comments posted by readers in relation to this New York Times’ article about American Muslims wearing niqabs and it struck me as that half-hearted sort of acceptance that people use. You know, “I know a Muslim person, so I can say X, Y, and Z; even though X, Y, and Z are all slightly irrelevant points that I use to rationalize my utterly irrational fear.” Here it is, verbatim:

“It’s a free country” and if women want to wear this attire they may. I personally think it is demeaning. It implies that men are not to be trusted at all, nor women either for that matter. It does look sinister- not because of any feelings I have about Islam but because masked faces are creepy in our culture.

I don’t think that “mary”, the poster, quite understands the nature of the niqab. I make no pretense to being any sort of Muslim scholar and while I understand the cultural connotations of being masked and robed (cf. plague doctors and the personification of Death in Western art), but there’s also a long tradition of using masks and face coverings in events like Carnival to explore liberated and free social interaction. But as far as the religious purpose of the niqab, my Muslim friends have always explained it to me that it is a personal humbling of the self before the eyes of their god. A Catholic may choose to confess his sins to a priest and a Muslim woman may choose to demonstrate her faith by valuing modesty in dress. I hardly think it speaks to the Muslim mentality towards men.

When I was in high school, I often went to camps with Muslim girls and they would ask me to turn away when they had to adjust their hijab or otherwise reveal themselves. And because they communicated to me very clearly the personal importance of being covered, I was honored that they felt comfortable enough to ask me to turn away rather than feel like they had to retreat from my presence to maintain their religious vows.

Hijab, niqab, burqa: they offend neither my sensibilities nor my own religious beliefs (which ought to be completely immaterial in your opinion of what I’m saying) and I applaud women who make a conscious choice to wear a niqab and make themselves ambassadors of their culture, history, and religion in America. My parents were never overtly religious or patriotic people, but they always reminded me that the reason our family moved to America was very simple: freedom. They never tried to idealize it or turn it into some grandiose notion. For them, freedom meant opportunity in its rawest, most fundamental form.

If I am uncomfortable because someone chooses to exercise their religious freedom in a manner that I would not, is it simply for a lack of imagination on my part — I just cannot personally comprehend their expression of faith. Now, I’m not saying you excuse anything that anyone wants to do in the name of Allah/Jehovah/God; you can’t try to take matters of faith to their supposedly logical conclusion. There’s no logic involved! It’s faith! What I am saying is that maybe you should look at this less like someone trying to force an aspect of the outside world upon Americans and more like someone trying to open America to an aspect the outside world. And by doing so, aren’t we making “freedom” just a little freer?

(Full disclosure: I did add this as a comment to the article.)

thank you! it is so nice to read this articulate and well thought-out response from a non-muslim perspective. makes me feel happy :0))

  1. ellakamal reblogged this from notacomplexperson and added:
    thank you! it is so nice to read this articulate and well thought-out response from a non-muslim perspective. makes me...
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    I was reading through the comments posted by readers in relation to this New York Times’ article about American Muslims...
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  9. renurenu said: Belgium recently almost had a voting on the law that would ban veils of this kind (don’t know if they actually voted on it in the end), which, in my opinion, goes so against the idea of freedom of expression, independently of any feminist issues.
  10. notacomplexperson posted this