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Chill Out About the Hijab
Imagine you’ve had knee pain for a long time, and have been referred to an orthopedic surgeon for a consult. She walks in, and looks like this:
What would you think? The men might think, “Gaaaah … she is smoking hot! Best. Doctor’s. Appointment. Ever.” While the women might think, “Yeah, I’ll bet I know how you got through residency…”
It is exactly this issue that Muslim women say they are trying to avoid by wearing hijab. While covering is as common place as hummus in the Middle East, women who cover in the West face more scrutiny, and therefore must be readily able to defend their position. The often recited reason is something like this: “Hijab is a choice every woman must make for herself; I chose to cover my hair so that people know I’m Muslim, and will take me seriously and respect me as a person, not just a sexual object.” If we stop there, I actually have no problem with this argument.
Conservatives have long denounced the skimpy, revealing clothing that has become de rigeur in our society. Among evangelical Christians, modesty is heavily encouraged. As a professional, I’m cognizant of looking nice but not too nice when seeing patients, because I don’t want patients to discount my abilities and assume I got by because of my looks. Many professional women struggle with this balance, since being extremely attractive is not a desirable feature in certain professions. The focus on emphasizing inner beauty rather than outer is not unique to Islam, and neither is head covering.
In our dismay over the increasing threat from Islam on Western Judeo-Christian values, it’s easy for us to see the hijab as a symbol of all that Islamic extremists represent — oppression, hate, murder. But we forget that women have been covering their hair for a long, long time, and head covering is still seen in Christian and Jewish communities in America.
Until the creation of Vatican II in 1959, women were expected to wear a lace veil while in the church, and women attending Latin Mass today often still wear a veil. A friend’s mother once told a story in which she was at Mass as a little girl and forgot her veil at home; a nun came by and put a Kleenex on top of her head. Even in Protestant churches, women historically wore hats to church, though this fell out of favor after the 1960s as hats became distractingly large and elaborate. Martin Luther himself called for women to be veiled, as did John Calvin and John Knox. So where does the Christian tradition of hair covering come from? Easy — the Bible.
1 Corinthians 11:
5 But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head—it is the same as having her head shaved. 6 For if a woman does not cover her head, she might as well have her hair cut off; but if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, then she should cover her head.
7 A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man. 8 For man did not come from woman, but woman from man; 9 neither was man created for woman, but woman for man. 10 It is for this reason that a woman ought to have authority over her own head, because of the angels. 11 Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. 12 For as woman came from man, so also man is born of woman. But everything comes from God.
13 Judge for yourselves: Is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? 14 Does not the very nature of things teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace to him, 15 but that if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For long hair is given to her as a covering.
While head covering is not popular among most contemporary Christians, there is a growing number of women that are choosing to cover their hair — just do a quick YouTube search and you’ll see for yourself — and Amish, Mennonite, and Catholic nuns all still engage in this practice.
Christians aren’t the only ones. Orthodox and Hasidic Jews also practice head covering. The mitzvah of kisuy sa’aros commands married women to cover their hair, keeping their beauty (their hair) only for their husbands. For this reason, observant Jewish women wear a snood or tichel. For a married ultra-Orthodox woman to show her hair would bring shame and distrust on her and her household.
So, slow your roll, Loretta, and chill out about hijab — it is not the problem. The real problem is all the other stuff: female genital mutilation; honor killings; throwing homosexuals from rooftops; those that treat women and non-Muslims like animals; and those that see their own fellow believers as an expendable commodity. The scarf is just as scarf, part of a long history of women’s modesty spanning many centuries and different religions.
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See, this one is mentally ill, and has found a rationalization that sounds sane to people who accept a bunch of progressive claptrap. It sounds distinctly like nonsense to the rest.
We are no obligated to accept the ramblings of the insane at face value.
They may be mentally ill, but to them it’s very real. I’m not saying it’s right, but everyone has their own reality.
You know what? I don’t. I think it is very cool to strut your stuff in a tasteful manner that doesn’t include tattoos or midriff tops. I can wear a fab Chanel little black mini-dress with high heels, tasteful make-up and feel like I own the room.
My two biggest fans when I do this are my husband and my father.
I think there’s often a disconnect between dressing modestly and being fashionable. Just because you cover yourself doesn’t mean you have to look like frump girl. I think you can strut your stuff without having your theez hanging out.
My point indeed.
?
I must have missed the chapter in Bio class.
Back of the knee. It’s OK, not many people know about it.
I hate to disillusion you, but my reaction, after waiting for days or weeks for an appointment and enduring a waiting room where me being there on time is critical, but being seen on time is mythical, is the following.
“Do you have a clue on what you are doing? Show me, quickly.”
It is the same attitude no matter how they look or what gender they are. If I am at the doctors , it is reluctantly and usually means something is causing screaming pain.
If they are a doctor , they have been granted a license by the State to charge me for expertise, and they charge a lot. So do I. Every minute I am there I am not charging someone else.
My doctor just retired. She was from eastern Europe and was, shall we say, not as good looking as your photos above. However, she knew her stuff cold and respected my time and intelligence. I was sorry to lose her.
It’s Arabic for “ass”. I’m guessing at the anglicized spelling.
Thanks. Will store that one for future use.
Well then, can I add multilingualism to hair, heels, and clothes in the list of what makes women attractive?
I feel like you’ve heard me speak some Arabic on the AMUs before…
Ok, VC, I have to disagree with you yet again.
You’re living in the wrong culture!
Men (and even fashionista women) like to see what a man or a woman is wearing. It can be one of the many “tells” that we look for when analyzing a stranger. It’s an important part of personal identity which is exactly what extensive covering attempts to dispel.
A classy woman is gorgeous because of how she carries herself and talks, and connects with people – not because she is displaying her body like ripe fruit for sale.
Agree, but we need to see her in all her glory to make this determination in the first place!
Ha! I’ve been tempted to respond to the OB-GYN’s spurious apology about the temperature of the speculum with a husky “oh no… I like it.”
And a good friend of mine had a very pretty medical student asking him to turn his head and cough, and he found himself asking whether anyone else thought the room was awfully cold?
Clothing is absolutely a part of what someone projects, though not the entirety. And clothes matter to some people more than others, so perceptions of how someone is dressed will vary person to person.
What constitutes as “all her glory”?
Or my favorite icon:
Though someways argue that sleeveless is too revealing, those women are dressed modestly. Oh to have that be the standard again.
Or my very favorite of all:
You endorsed the illness in the way you related it as fact. Since you neglected to point out the distinction, I did it for you. You’re welcome. There is only one reality, although everyone has his own perception.
Yep, the throwback to the 7th century just screams competence. Particularly when the men from the same culture take “liberties” with women not wearing the Hijab.
Sorry, #2 and #3 are particularly nauseating and again, I won’t tolerate this in my community. Ever.
Great post. Concentrate on what matters. When I was a kid, Catholic women often wore headscarves. It’s no big deal. Orthodox Jewish women still do, as the OP points out.
I once saw feminism in the workplace described as an “armed truce”. There’s some truth to that. In professional or interpersonal settings, we’ll pretend we don’t notice how attractive a woman is and will keep our mouths shut about it. On the other hand, the deal is women in the workplace won’t dress for a date, or the beach.
A headscarf is no more a sign of oppression than an engagement ring, which even unattached women sometimes used to wear to keep wolves at bay.
Gary, a niqab or a burka is no head scarf!
I feel like there’s the potential for you to end up on the news at some point… ;-)
So what if y’all saw this walking down the street?
Is it all that different from this?
I
Yes, one says scarf and one says “I am not part of your culture”. I would notice the difference. Won’t effect my behavior.