The veil as a site of struggle: the Hejab in Quebec

ID:	HARP-465
Title:	The veil as a site of struggle: the Hejab in Quebec
Source:	Canadian Woman Studies , v.15(2/3) Spring/Summer, 1995 pg 146-152
Parties:
Dispute Resolution Organ:
Year:	1995
Pages:	0
Author(s):
Keywords:	Canada, colonial/colonialism, gender equality, human rights, non-discrimination, religion, woman, Muslim, sexism, civil and political rights, visible minority, education, terrorists/terrorism, minority rights, self-determination
Abstract:	I teach a Women’s Studies class at McMaster University where I asked the students what they know about Islam and/or about Muslim women. From their comments it appeared they knew a great deal and it was all negative. For example, they said Islam is a “fanatical,” violent, rigid religion which promotes terrorism, sanctions the sexism of men, and enforces the oppression of women by means of compulsory hejab. Their response is indicative of stereotypes about Islam and about “the Muslim Woman” in particular. Such assumptions often present certain features from the lives of some Muslim women as stereotypically representative of all Muslim women. The hejab is one such feature. The hejab is the open target of colonial and now neo-colonial attack. It is ironic, that the hejab, which is not one of the mandatory requirements in Islam, has become for many Muslims one of the most visible symbols of the “authentic” Muslim woman and for many Muslim women, not only a spiritual response but also a personal statement about their identity as Muslims.
Secured:	False
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