Today, women and men went out on the streets in several cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina. There were two reasons for this occasion. The first one was to celebrate the World Hijab Day and to show support for all Muslim women. As one man wrote: “Today is the day of our queens, princesses and sultanas.” The second reason was to show disapproval to the recent decision of High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The decision refers to the employment of people with some kind of religious marking. In that way, they decided that women with hijab cannot work in any public institutions related to law. We went out on the streets to show that the decision is harming our basic human rights in this country and that the way we dress cannot influence our work. So many people supported our peaceful protest, which included non-Muslim people. With this protest, we fight for our basic human rights and we will not stop until this decision changes.

Stay positive dear people, fight for your rights and support others. Do not let anything stop you in your life!

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I don’t wear hijab. I practice hijab. My hijab reflects in my attire, behavior, and speech. It’s important to practice hijab, rather than make it a part of everyday apparel. It’s common to simply think of a headscarf when a woman states that she wears hijab. The reality is, men and women are under Islamic measure to practice hijab- which translates to “modesty.” It’s belittling to the beauty and grace of Islam to refer to hijab as only the head covering for women. Hijab, for men and women alike, is a blessing from our Creator. He has ordained the most effective way to protect ourselves from the haraam (forbidden things) that this dunya  (world) holds.

Appreciation of the context of hijab in its entirety will bring back the full beauty hijab gives to Muslim women and men. Alhamdulilah, I began to understand the concept of hijab about a year ago. InshaAllah, I hope to stay strong in my imaan (faith) and pray for nothing but sincere piety and faith for my brothers and sisters in deen (religion of Islam) around the globe.

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I have grown up in an area where they weren’t many Muslims at all, from what I can remember from my childhood. The only Muslim family in the primary school I went to was my family. I started wearing Hijab (head scarf more precisely) at the age of 9. At first the children around me were curious as to why I wore a Hijab but never criticised it. By the time I was 11, the bulling kicked in. The other children around me started making small comments such as “Why are you wearing a curtain net?” When I started high school, the bullying got worse. Other pupils started tugging on my Hijab while laughing and made comments such as “You’re not allowed to wear hoodies in school” and “I know why you wear that.  You’re hiding a bomb underneath it.” Nevertheless, I stayed strong and still carried on wearing the Hijab.

By the time I had reached the age of 15, the bullying had stopped but I still felt as if I was excluded because I wore a Hijab. I thought that maybe if I didn’t wear it, I would have more friends etc. But I was wrong.  Wearing a Hijab doesn’t make people turn away from you.  It’s their understanding of the Hijab that makes them turn away from you. When I moved to a different school, I made many friends quickly because the school was more diverse. The pupils there had grown up with more Hijabis in their school life. They understood the meaning of Hijab.

Having said this, the students that studied with me in my first year of University had different views. They thought that the Hijab was a symbol of oppression and tried to convince my that I would be happier if I let my hair loose. I understand it wasn’t their fault on what they believe.  It was due to lack of education about the true meaning of Hijab.

I believe World Hijab Day to be a fantastic event as it allows people to understand the true meaning of Hijab worldwide. Worldwide awareness is essential when people lack education in subjects like this. People worldwide are encouraged to understand that Hijab is not a symbol of oppression but in fact a symbol of freedom. For me, Hijab is my freedom as it protects my modesty and prevents evil eyes from looking my way. It is a symbol of class, honour and dignity.

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