By Trish Lamberti
My reflection on hijab:
I find it absurd that the world thinks of Muslim women as oppressed due to the way Islam tells us to dress.
Putting religion aside for a moment….what is the definition of oppression? It is “to burden with cruel or
To imply that hijab or niqab (choosing to cover your body and/or part of your face with loose clothing which doesn’t reveal it’s shape) is oppressing we would need to say that it is cruel or unjust or is a burden on Muslim women and as a collective, we would like to tell you that this is certainly not the case.
Myself, and most (but not all, of course) of the Muslim women who choose to wear the hijab do so because of the way it makes us feel. The hijab gives me and many other women, the confidence to be ourselves, say what we think and actually demand to be taken seriously because it is not our bodies and beauty on display but our mind, our personalities, our intelligence and that which we choose to share with people.
There’s nothing more liberating than being covered. Women in Western (and non-Western) film, music, and media are constantly portrayed as sex objects and women all over the world are paid to be naked or scantily clad! Talented or educated women such as sports stars and even politicians are scrutinized based on their appearance above other things and the (so – called) feminists who claim that liberation comes from removing your clothing only aid this patriarchal society in ensuring that women allow themselves to keep being objectified!