When you look at me
all you can see
Is the scarf that covers my hair
My word you can't hear
Because you're too full of fear,
Mouth gaping, all you do is stare.
You think it's not my own choice,
In your own "liberation" you rejoice.
You're so thankful that you're not me.
think I'm uneducated,
Trapped, oppressed and subjugated.
You're so thankful that you are free.
But Western women you've got it wrong-
You're the weak and i'm the strong,
For I've rejected the trap of man.
Fancy clothes- low neck, short skirt,
These are devices for pain and hurt,
Always jumping to the male agenda,
Competing on his terms.
No job share, no baby-sitting facilities,
No feeding and diaper-changing amenities.
No equal pay for equal skill-
Your job they can always fill.
Is this liberation?
A person with ideas and thought,
I'm not for sale, I can't be bought.
I won't decorate anyone's arm,
Nor be promoted for my charm.
There's more to me than playing coy.
Living life as a balancing game- mother,
Daughter, wife, nurse, cleaner, cook, lover-
And still bring home a wage.
Who thought up this modern "freedom"
Where man can love'em and man can leave 'em.
This is not free but life in a cage.
Western women you can have your life.
Mine- it has less strife.
I cover and I get respected
Surely that's to be expected-
For I won't demean the feminine
I won't live to a male criterion.
I dance to my own tune,
And I hope you see this very soon,
For your own sake- wake up and use your sight!
Are you so sure that you are right?




For a Muslim woman who wears the hijaab, she is judged by her mind and
her deeds only...not by how sexy she looks, how much cleavage she's showing
and how much make up she's wearing. when a man looks at her, he looks into
her eyes and his focus is on what she says and the way she thinks and not
anything else. that is freedom.

I understand your stance on this issue and I have had manyconversations with Muslim women (when i was younger) about this very same thing. I know as well as everyone else that men need to learn to keep their eyes on a woman's eyes when they speak but have you ever looked at it this way.

Western people (some) see that you wish to be respected for you mind and your words and that is admirable. However is it freedom to conceal yourself to reach this end. You were created with all of these parts, for this reason they were meant to be seen. However western society has overly sexualised the human body to a point where unless your clothes are extremely baggy, no matter how much is covered westernised men get excited. Is this problem not with westernised men and not with women. I for one can look at an national geographic and not see anything sexual about a naked body for the simple reason that I understand that the human body was not meant to be taken as a sexual object continuously. However some westernised men will get their jollys off by looking at the same national geographic. It is about societal perception of the female body by men, that is where the problem arises. I simply see it as no woman should have to cover themselves up because of the follies of males becausemales arethe reason why they took off so much of their clothes in the first place (showing a lot of skin etc).

Some of us do not see it as a burden forced upon you. I foronesee it as a measure that is not necessary. While women have to cover upto be respected, men get to watch after as many other women as they like, still overly sexualising the female body.

The same thing happens for westernised women and their perception of men (which is why many men are now gainingpathologies such as anorexia and bullimia nervosa) but that is a conversation for another thread.

Just wantedto make it clear that it's not all Western inhabitants that see the Hijab in that way.

The same thing happens for westernised women and their perception of men (which is why many men are now gainingpathologies such as anorexia and bullimia nervosa) but that is a conversation for another thread.


i understand your point and i do knw that not all western women see us muslim women like this but. when ever muslim women are talked about the word oppressed!! IS always mentioned..

Everybody focuses to Muslim women worldwide as oppressed, more specifically the Muslim Women of Afghanistan.

The media shows us how oppressed the Muslim women are there and people start linking three words in their minds: ‘Islam,’ ‘women’ and ‘oppression.’ Therefore, they think that Islam commands oppressing women.

People often fail to distinguish between culture and religion, two things that are completely different. In fact, Islam condemns oppression of any kind whether it is towards a woman or in general.


Now, the Qur'an is the sacred book by which Muslims live. This book was revealed 14 centuries ago to a man named Muhammad who would later become the Prophet. Fourteen centuries have passed and this book has not been changed since, not one letter has been altered.

In surah number 33, entitled Al-Ahzab (Arabic for 'The Clans'), on verse 59, it says: “O Prophet, tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to draw cloaks all over their bodies. That will be better as they shall be known (as free respectable women) and will not be annoyed. And Allah is Ever Oft-Forgiving, Most-Merciful.� This verse shows that Islam makes wearing a Hijab necessary, Hijab is the word used for covering, not only the headscarves (as some people may think) but also wearing loose clothes that are not too bright.

Sometimes, people see covered Muslim women and they think oppression. This is wrong. A Muslim woman is not oppressed, but she is liberated. This is because she is no longer valued for something material such as her good looks or the shape of her body. She compels others to judge her for her intelligence, kindness, honesty and personality. Therefore, people judge her for who she actually is.

Women cover their hair to be modest. When they wear loose clothes, they are trying to be modest. In fact, nuns cover their hair out of modesty. Also, when we see frequent pictures of the Virgin Mary, she is covering her hair out of modesty. Therefore, Muslim women are doing the exact same thing as righteous Christian women.

The lives of the people who accepted the Qur'an changed drastically. It had a tremendous impact on so many people, especially women. It was the first time openly declared that the souls of men and women are equal. They would be bestowed the same obligation as well as the same rewards.

In addition to being equal to men, women get economic independence. The money they bring into marriage is theirs as well as the money they earn. A woman is allowed in Islam to choose their own husbands and in extreme cases, divorce. A woman has the right to be educated, contrary to what the contemporary world might think. The responsibility is of the person who is raising her.

Now picture this: Fourteen hundred years ago Islam allowed women to vote for a leader. It was recently, in 1925, Canadian women became allowed to vote. Worst, in Quebec, the law became final in 1940. Muslim women got rights before Western women got any.

I understand and agree with everything you have said. It is liberating. i just think it shouldn't have to happen.

Picture this. 6-8000 years ago, African womencould walk the street in any way shape or form they pleased and be respected. They had the right to education and often were he highest officials in Africans societies. Many African societies were matriarchal including in their religious practices, down to their inheritance being recieved through the matrilinial line. It is not inconcievable that a naked woman and a naked man could stand in each others presence and have nothing sexual going on, not even a sexualised glance at body parts because it has happened and still happens to this day.

All I was trying to say is there is something wrong with a society that raises men to look at women in that way in the first place so we could liv without women having to cover up to be free. They could be free of all things and be free. Maybe i'm just being idealistic. Just some thoughts.

Question

If I wore a wig and make up to look white or hid away under a sheet, so nobody could see my black skin would that be an example of me being liberated and valued for my mind on equal terms?

The Watcher wrote: WELL WHAT ARE U REPRSENTING? IN DOING THAT,

WHEN MUSLIM WOMEN COVER UP THEY DONT ONLY COVER UP TO BE VALED FOR THEIR OWN MIND. THEIR COVER UP TO REPRSENT ISLAM.. WHEN U LOOK AT HER YOU KNOW SHE IS A MUSLIM NO MATTER WHERE SHE MAY COME FROM OR WHAT COLOUR HER SKIN IS... SHES SAYING YES I AM A MUSLIM WOMEN..



dress is not just a matter of covering the head alone, but also of covering the bosom, which is attractive to men, and of lowering the gaze and walking in a way that does not attract attention. Note that the order to lower the gaze was addressed first to men…

You can also read the other verse about the same point, which is verse number 59 in Surah 33. It may be translated:

[align=left]*{O Prophet! Tell thy wives and thy daughters and the women of the believers to draw their cloaks close round them [when they go abroad]. That will be better, that so they may be recognized and not annoyed. Allah is ever Forgiving, Merciful.}*[/align]

This indicates that one of the reasons for hijab is to distinguish the believing woman from the non-believing. This relates to SO WHATS THE logic behind hijab.

Ask yourself, or ask the next person who asks you that question, if a female judge walked into the courtroom wearing a tight miniskirt and low-cut blouse, would you take her seriously? Who would you respect more, a woman dressed like that or one dressed modestly? The Qur’an was revealed for all times, and though circumstances change, human nature does not. The fact is that men do like to look at women’s bodies, so a woman who covers herself is more likely to be respected as a person than looked upon as a piece of meat!

Up until the end of the nineteenth century, a Western woman who had any self respect covered her head—though perhaps not all her hair—in public. Your audience may argue that a woman who does not cover her hair is no longer looked upon as a loose woman. That may be true, but women still know that men look at them. Otherwise, why would they spend millions of dollars every year to style, color, and treat their hair?


[*]It is true that men don’t have to cover their heads, but there is a dress code for them, as well, although it is not so widely publicized as the women’s dress code. Men must at least be covered from the navel to the knees with loose fitting clothing. The rules for men are different because women are less likely to ogle men than the other way around. ... AND WE ALL KNOW THIS IS TRUE

AVE READ WHAT YOU HAVE SAID,. BUT I STILL DONT UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU SAYING,. IF YOU TRYING TO COMPARE HOW MUSLIM WOMEN DRESS TO CHATTING OUT OF A LETTER BOX.. THEN YOU CHATTING AIR..

They stand there with shorts, so short, excessively short,
shorts that so deceptively capture from them all they know
of modesty...

...and I proudly pull my scarf over my hair

They stand there, face lost in a sea of make-up,
make-up that so ruthlessly captures from them all they know
of freedom...

...and I proudly pull my scarf over my hair

They stand there, hair raining with gels, colors -
chemicals that so menacingly capture from them all they know
of purity...

...and I proudly pull my scarf over my hair

They stand there, so close, so very close to their "lover",
devoted to them, the devotion that so mercilessly captures
from them all they know of individuality...

...and I proudly pull my scarf over my hair

And they stand there, talking of getting new shorts, new gels
and colors, new boyfriends, materialistic things
that so wrongfully capture from them all they know
of God and love...

...and I proudly pull my scarf over my hair

For my scarf is my protector, my lover, my devotion,
my pureness, my beauty, my rememberance of God,

And I proudly pull it over my hair knowing that when I wear it,
I so rightfully thrust away all the things that the devil
brought about,

And when I put it on, I am

Free...