2023 Senior Conference - Ethics of the Civil Person
Convenient Symbols: Understanding the Politicization of the Hijab
Publication Date
2023
Start Date
20-8-2023 1:40 PM
End Date
20-8-2023 2:00 PM
Moderator
Anna Au
Description
Today the hijab means control, submission, oppression, and silence. The niqab, hijab, or any Muslim veil holds very strong meaning, a meaning that is far different than the one I hold as a hijabi Muslim woman. So, before debating and forming opinions, we should understand that the hijab discussed today in politics and social media is a symbol. And no matter what side you are on, whether you support veiling or disagree with it, if you are not basing your opinions on actual Muslim women’s experience, then you are perpetuating harmful discourse that is the basis for laws, is the driving force for deadly protests, and is what dictates what a woman can do with her body. It is this politicized meaning of the hijab that harms Muslim women by using their bodies as grounds for political and ideological debate.
Convenient Symbols: Understanding the Politicization of the Hijab
Today the hijab means control, submission, oppression, and silence. The niqab, hijab, or any Muslim veil holds very strong meaning, a meaning that is far different than the one I hold as a hijabi Muslim woman. So, before debating and forming opinions, we should understand that the hijab discussed today in politics and social media is a symbol. And no matter what side you are on, whether you support veiling or disagree with it, if you are not basing your opinions on actual Muslim women’s experience, then you are perpetuating harmful discourse that is the basis for laws, is the driving force for deadly protests, and is what dictates what a woman can do with her body. It is this politicized meaning of the hijab that harms Muslim women by using their bodies as grounds for political and ideological debate.