Me without my hijab

la times ^ | June 8, 2008 | Zainab Mineeia

[rocksblues]

When I came to this country, I took off my hijab. It wasn't an easy decision. I worried at night that God would punish me for it. That's what I had been taught would happen, and it filled me with fear.

I was 27, coming from my home country of Iraq to study in California. I hoped that by taking off the hijab I had been wearing for eight years, I would be able to maintain a low profile. In Baghdad, you keep a low profile to stay alive. But in the United States, I merely wanted not to be judged.

snip

But even as the hijab kept me safe, it became a burden for many others. After the fall of Saddam Hussein, there was a dramatic increase in the number of women wearing the hijab. Since then, as religious groups have gained more power, it has become dangerous to be spotted without one -- so much so that even Christian women now wear the hijab when they go out. To me, that signified that something was wrong with my country.

snip

At the same time, I was disappointed. We shouldn't have to hide the fact that we're Muslims in order to be treated like everyone else. In some ways, it's as bad to feel pressure to take off the hijab in the United States as it is to be pressured to keep it on in Baghdad. It's sad that people here do not always accept you for who you are.

[gitmo]

Be honest — how many of you clicked on this thread to see if there was a picture posted of an un-hijabed Iranian hottie? :-)

I gotta admit. Perhaps the most beautiful woman I've seen was from Iran. Alas, she was married to a friend of mine.

[weegee]

"Don't lump us all together..."

[Zhang Fei]

In some ways, it's as bad to feel pressure to take off the hijab in the United States as it is to be pressured to keep it on in Baghdad.

That's horsepoop. Some women get killed in Iraq for not wearing the veil. I seriously doubt she runs the risk of getting killed in America for wearing it.

[gitmo]

Proof positive that these people don't believe God had the slightest idea what the hell He was doing when He created the universe.

Uhhhh ... Christians and Jews kind of think clothes are important in public. And I'm pretty sure God did have the slightest idea (actually more) when He created the universe. In fact, He did a better job at it than anybody ever has.

[Zhang Fei]

Now that I’ve reflected on her essay, I think she feels oppressed because American women don’t wear the veil. She’ll only really feel comfortable when all of the women around her wear it. There’s a solution to that - move back to Iraq.

[Psycho_Bunny]

You missed the point......entirely.

[BenLurkin]

No woman in a free country should wear that degrading clothing.

As free people, of course Americans look at her funny.

[JimRed]

We shouldn't have to hide the fact that we're Muslims in order to be treated like everyone else...It's sad that people here do not always accept you for who you are.

Sorry, but you are NOT like everyone else. Your so-called religion wants everyone else converted, enslaved or dead. Even if you speak out against violent radical Islamics, you are saddled with the taquiyah problem. It is your duty to lie for the advancement of Islam, so nothing you say can be believed if you profess to be a true Muslim.

That is who you are, and you should expect to be treated as such.

[primeval patriot]

Be honest — how many of you clicked on this thread to see if there was a picture posted of an un-hijabed Iranian hottie? :-)

*Raises hand*

[BenLurkin]

I’ve got news for you friend, those are not hijabs.

[quark]

“Me and my hijab, walkin’ down the a-ve-nue...”

[BenLurkin]

For some reason that makes me think of the Beatles (I'm turning into an old coot)

"She's not a girl who misses much
She's well acquainted with the touch of the velvet hand

[AlaskaErik]

After some months, though, she moved to Massachusetts. One day, she called me, and we talked again about her hijab. This time she talked about the discomfort and sometimes even hostility that people seemed to feel when they met her and saw how she was dressed. "They try to hide it, but it's obvious," she said. She said that although real estate agents were positive over the phone, no one would rent her an apartment once they saw her in person. She explained that a woman from the student housing office had had the audacity to explain to her the way toilets are flushed, "As if my hijab was an anti-intelligence sign," she said. "I spent two days crying."

It seems to me that racism is at its worst in the "enlightened" blue states.

[JLS]

Should she be allowed to enter a bank or a convenience store, places that are frequently robbed at gun point, with her face completely covered?

1. As I said in my first response she should obey the laws about wearing masks in public.

2. Banks and convenience stores are privately owned so they should determine if they allow entry by people wearing masks. [FDIC, ie the government, might choose not to insure deposits at bank that allow masked people to enter.]