Ever since September 11, Islam have become the face of terror and this has brought a lot of attention and victimization towards average Muslims. Many people are just looking for a reason to bash Islam, so they pick on controversial topics that Muslims differ from. One controversial topic is the hijab and it what it symbolizes, to many non-Muslims conservatives. The hijab and/or burqa is a veil that covers the head and body and is a form of modest attire worn by Muslim women. This form of attire has been linked oppression, voiceless, or religiously conservative by the mass media.
Certain media outlets like fox news and other conservative outlets have been the spearhead of these stereotypical views and insults. These brave women choose to use a veil just like any other woman would chooses to wear a bikini at the beach, or a Jew wearing a kippah. The only difference would be that they are doing it in a since of modesty and respect for their own faith. Muslim women are portrayed in the mass media as voiceless, submissive, passive, and oppressed victims, based on how they look and lack of knowledge.
Throughout the years of conflict between the “West” and “Islam”, the media has strongly altered the minds of non-Muslims by unfavorable exploitation of Islam, and Muslims, specifically on Muslim women. Misconceptions comparable to, “Are you bald underneath” “Do you fall asleep with that on? ” to the association of “terrorism” that contrasts to what Muslim ladies consider the Hijab represents. It’s seen as an act of non-conformity and defiance by conservative Western political opponents and even portrayed as a terrorist threat in itself because of its potential use by suicide bombers to disguise their intentions.
Public expression of hijab is a very controversial issue. It is, first and foremost, an act of worship among Muslim women. In the United States, wearing hijab clothing is a right guaranteed by the First Amendment—as freedom of speech and freedom of religion. However, hijab clothing has also become a potent indicator of identity, with many non-Muslims viewing it as a political statement. Some communities interpret hijab as a sign of Islamic fundamentalism, the refusal of immigrants to integrate into mainstream society, or the oppression of women.
Insert reference- In 2004, France passed a law banning the hijab in state schools and in 2010 it passed a law banning the full Muslim face veil. Many saw it as an attack against freedom of expression and religious tolerance, while others saw it as a move aimed at promoting gender equality. The bill also penalizes, with a fine of €30,000 and one year in prison, anyone who forces (by violence, threats, or abuse of power) another to wear face coverings; these penalties may be doubled if the victim is under the age of 18.
This is a portrayal of victimizing Muslim women, automatically presuming that they are forced by anyone else. Would anyone think twice if it were a nun dressed in a veil, walking in the streets? According to some feminist groups, as well as some human rights advocacy groups, wearing the scarf can symbolize a woman’s submission to men. [14] It is feared that permitting the veil in schools risks opening the door to other practices that exist in the Muslim world. Some people are paranoid when it comes to Islam nowadays, afraid that it might change their way of living.
In shows and movies that include muslims, most likely portay the wives in this manor. Among the films that represent Muslim women as voiceless and oppressed, no film does so more explicitly than the Hollywood blockbuster Sex and the City 2. In this chick-flick, Muslim women are represented as imprisoned women who are struggling to unshackle themselves from the evil abaya (loose over garment) and burqa (face veil). In one scene of the movie, for instance, Carrie, the main character, stares at a veiled women in pity, implying that this women has no free choice and that she was forced to wear the burqa.
Carrie in disapproval states “ the veil across the mouth freaks me out as if they don’t want them to have a voice. ” Through this scene the director instills two false perceptions in the minds of Americans, firstly that Muslim women regardless of background are forced to wear the head veil. Viewers are left with the idea that women who cover their faces do not do so out of their own free will but are coerced to dress a specific way as a result of what is thought to be a sexist religion.
In movies like zero dark thirty and American sniper, it portrays the Western hero coming to save the day. All the muslim women are in the background covered in full burqa voiceless and powerless or in the homes staying out of the way. This stereotype may be due to the Islamophobia currently happening in the west after September 11. People think that Muslim women are oppressed because Muslim men are portrayed as violent and controlling, so the women are vulnerable and cannot speak for themselves. This gives the Islamophobes an area to exploit to the neducated listeners and conservatives.
Muslim women are being bullied and harassed in streets because of stereotyping and being misunderstood. For example, a young Muslim woman was punched in the face in broad daylight as she walked through a city center apparently because she was wearing a hijab in Birmingham. Muslim women have been prohibited from wearing their head coverings in a number of contexts. They have been harassed, fired from jobs, denied access to public places, and otherwise discriminated against because they wear hijab.
Because of their visibility, Muslim women who wear hijab face particular exposure to discrimination and have increasingly been targets for harassment in the aftermath of September 11. While it is difficult to obtain accurate statistics about discriminatory incidents, reported instances of discrimination appear to be on the rise. According to Aljazeera, the US Supreme Court ruled I favor of a 17 year old Muslim women who filed a lawsuit after she was denied a job at the Abercrombie & Fitch clothing chain because she wore a headscarf for religious reasons.
The media is victimizing Muslim women to harassment and false branding, when spreading this misrepresentation. Provide examples of Muslim women and countries that prove all muslim women aren’t oppressed. Reza Aslan states on CNN Touch upon examples like Turkey and Indonesia that don’t oppress and share equality. The hijab is a symbol of empowerment and women reclaiming their body image from men and from being objectified. While these Hollywood biases may apply to some regions of the world, they place Muslim women, regardless of background into a single homogenous group with specific characteristics.
They imply that all Muslim women are oppressed, voiceless, and confined in cages that are believed to be made up of burqa’s and black veils. They imply that Muslim women are either dressed in black veils or are the exotic belly dancers found at harems. These biases fail to address the diversity of the Muslim world and in failing to do so result in the in the stereotyping of American Muslim women who lives completely digress from these images.
