But in case you have, or maybe you were too smart to not get jettisoned into the maddening frenzy that you were being tossed into… this is what most of the world thought of us back then (as in the men who unleash such torment on the women of their race/religion). It’s not a pretty picture, is it? But is that what Islam says—to incarcerate a woman in her clothes… ? Or is it something that helps a woman overcome the obstacles that she might be faced with, and not overburden herself with even more.
Of course, there are many women who wear it (another form of the veil that is called the Niqab) because that is what they feel secure in (it’s like a burqa, only your eyes are visible) and they do it of their own free will, and not because it’s something that some “man” has told them to… I would like to provide links here, but wouldn’t want to run the risk of ramming my ideas down anybody’s throat, so please—search and find. And this is what some women wear in the Middle East by the way, where they do reveal their faces.
I have a whole slew of these youtube links, and what I’ve come to realize is that the poor helpless souls that I assumed these people to be ((like the ones in Afghanistan)) are anything but… these are strong, independent women who live in countries like Britain, and France, and Germany… and yes, even the good old US of A.
Except over there in the US, what they wear is a slight variation of the dress and is called a Hijab (head covering) which covers their hair basically, but the one thing that is common to all of these forms of clothing, is that they are used to give women the upper-hand, so to say… but do they, do they really… yes and no, I think; it depends on the type of society she’s lucky enough to live in, where she’s free to express her own feelings—about whether she’s comfortable wearing one, and if it is something that enriches her life in anyway? Because I’ve heard from women born over there, women who’re not only muslims by birth, but choose to be because they are satisfied with what it offers them—an escape from the rigmarole of unbridled consumerism that the world is obsessed with nowadays, where women are used for nothing more than to sell the latest product.
But it’s not all like this, it’s not all doom and gloom, because I’ve been able to see the other side as well… my sisters for example, my aunts, my cousins, even my own mom—none of them wear it, but does that make them any less than those who do… no. And what about those women who are of a different faith, who may dress more casually than you do—what about them… here's what I know, I showed up here, at Mecha a couple of years ago, and met some of the most welcoming and giving women I'd ever come into contact with, and not once did they misjudge me, or mistreat me, or made me feel anything less than… now if we can just extend that to more people around the world—maybe we can start creating the change we want.
(((Maha’s new post, enjoy!)))
