Burka or Bikini - her wardrobe doesn't define her freedom, her right to choose it does!

Burka or Bikini - her wardrobe doesn't define her freedom, her right to choose it does!
This post was published on the now-closed HuffPost Contributor platform. Contributors control their own work and posted freely to our site. If you need to flag this entry as abusive, send us an email.

The fight over who can control women’s wardrobe better has been going on since perhaps before the dinosaurs. Too bad that mankind survived whatever killed the giant lizards just so this issue could remain for all of us to bark over even today. Like, what an actual disgrace!

The worst part about this entire shitshow is that nobody cared to ask the women in question what they want.

Whether it’s a ban on burkini in the name of liberty or a ban on bikini in the name of modesty, it is an assault on a woman’s right to choose what she wants to wear.

Since the burkini ban just happened, there were about just as many arguments in favor of it as were against it. Few were my faves!

But burka is childhood indoctrination!

No.

You need to understand that a child being dressed in shorts is just as liberated or oppressed as a child being dressed in a hijab. In both cases, it’s the parents’ choice, not the child’s own. Even if she’s picking out an outfit out of her own closet, it’s still something that one or both her parents bought for her. Unless a 6 year old is going out shopping all by herself and buying stuff all on her own, don’t tell me she wasn’t being told what she should wear by someone else since she was a baby. And yes, mom will always have an influence with regards to what she wears no matter what she does or does not say about it.

But funny thing about human beings is that we’re curious and we explore and learn and unlearn and can very well choose a path that might be different from what we were taught as kids or it might very well be the same. And no matter how much you approve or disapprove of the path taken, it’s still a bloody choice. Respect that.

But burka is a symbol of oppression!

So is skimpy lingerie.

Have you ever looked at pictures of victims of forced prostitution? Ever looked at their blindfolds and stripped, half-naked bodies clad in skimpy outfits? Ever think about the plight of these women when you dress in similar clothing that sure spells nothing but oppression for them just then? Shouldn’t you cover yourself to raise a voice in protest for these women who are forcibly being stripped? Or since their plight isn’t as mainstream as of the ones being oppressed by Taliban or ISIS, it’s okay to ignore them and hail showing of skin as nothing but freedom the world over?

Burka or bikini – both can be symbols of oppression depending on the circumstance. We’re not talking about unhealthy oppressive scenarios or regimes. We’re talking about educated adult women in the free world who can choose their own clothes. Quit being an ass.

But why would you follow lifestyles of seventh century goat herders and make a fool out of yourself?

Because fuck you.

If I’m not forcing you into a burkini, it’s none of your business why I want to wear one on my own body. Secondly, what’s with insulting the goat herders or following their lifestyle? It’s a perfectly noble profession and you sound grossly pompous talking ill of it. *Yes, I do get the reference. Yes, you’re still a moron.*

If you’re chronically anti-burka, you must be seething right now and that’s fun because I’m not really siding with anyone in this – neither with the anti-burkini brigade nor with the anti-bikini mob. All arguments by everyone are flawed and up for rebuttal here except for one: a woman has the inalienable right to choose for herself. And if you disagree with that, you need to go stand in a corner with a dunce cap over your head.

Whether it is the rules and norms of religion, society or culture, the woman is always told what she should follow and how. It’s like she’s handed down an instruction manual and expected to totally submit to it. No questions asked.

Slavery much?

If the rules are man-made, why don’t the women get a say in it by virtue of being the other half of mankind? And if the rules are divine, why aren’t women trusted to possess the intellect to understand what God is saying to them especially when the instructions are about them?

I’m not well versed in Christianity or Judaism but I do know for a fact that Islam includes women in its conversation. Allah has addressed the women just as He has addressed the men. Then, why should a Muslim woman need a man to tell her what God wants from her and what He means when she can read that in the Quran and Hadith and other relevant books just like the man can? Why aren’t women allowed to establish their own relationship with their Creator and see how that journey goes? I don’t think there is any sinning in that. Nope. None.

I thought this entire burkini premise was a good time to ask what real Muslim women thought of the entire debate. So, I asked a few.

Ayesha, a practicing physician, was very clear and vocal about where she stands. “I don’t see it as a Muslim or a non-Muslim problem, honestly,” she says. “It’s all about how to control women and how someone else has the right to dictate how women should be in a society. Whether it’s Taliban controlling their women or here in the US where the right to abortion is determined by legislating against a woman’s right to choose. Why is it that every single religion/society’s honor, values, code of ethics, all start and end with controlling women in some way. This is a human rights issue. Women’s rights are human rights. How we dress, how we choose to live and how we choose our birth control should be our right and choice. Each and every human being has the inalienable right to live their life the way they deem fit. So long as that does not encroach on anyone else’s rights, it’s totally legit for them to do so, man or woman. Unless that basic concept is understood and promoted, we will continue to fight over semantics like what my religion says and what your country deems to be appropriate. I will support and stand with anyone or any group that promotes this.”

Looks like she’s had enough of religion and cultural norms being mansplained to her, and she isn’t alone.

But that’s not all that the girls were wondering about.

Hunniya, a physician with National Health Services (England), finds it extremely curious that “Muslims are very happy when other religions are supporting them but fail to extend the same courtesy and love in reciprocation.” She pointed out to the recent Burkini Ban protestors who threw an impromptu beach party outside London’s French Embassy demanding that war on terrorism should not start with women’s wardrobes. “I was thinking this when I posted about the Burkini party in London. Would we have dared to support a western woman in our homelands who was wearing a bikini?”

Yes. Exactly.

I cannot support XYZ because that is totally in conflict with my beliefs and will jeopardize my Jannah if I did but if I’m persecuted for my beliefs, I welcome support from XYZ because I need all the support I can get.

What a truckload of hypocrisy!

Saadia, a lawyer and an active community worker, pointed out another flaw. “What’s confusing is that, if it’s about Islam, then, how can a Muslim woman and a Muslim man go to the beach with bikini-clad women because we are not supposed to see such things. Are we picking parts of our religion?”

Cherry picking.

There is no conflict over what sort of lifestyle Muslims must have if we are to strictly follow religion. The beach image captured in Nice where officers forced the woman to strip off her hijab, there were naked women and men on that beach. To ask a question whether a Muslim woman or man should’ve gone to such a place isn’t wrong especially when Islamic values of modesty are at center stage here.

Cast aside the gender wars, let’s look at Eid greetings and quotes from the Quran put up by churches across the Western countries just for show of solidarity in a diverse society. Warm fuzzies for us Muslims but I yet have to see a mosque reciprocate the gesture.

Fair play?

These are the questions we need to ask of ourselves and of our high on religiosity puffed up judgmental scholars who inculcate this two-faced behavior. This has nothing to do with how devout you are or how seriously you take your religion. This is about living in a diverse environment that deems every life and every individual as equally important. When I see people supporting me in my cause, it does put me on a back foot when I can’t do the same for them.

I’ve heard people argue that we don’t support convicts or criminals no matter how good they were in some other aspect of their life, and with religion – sins are actually crimes in religion so…? Or should the Muslim women strip now in support of non-Muslim women because women should stand together?

No.

Not all of us are crazy extreme here. Some of us can still think rationally even through this mess.

“Until we have a more concerted voice on such issues and remove the facade that our religion is more important than another’s, we won’t get past this issue. Notice I said important, not something else,” Saadia says. “I think the point about France’s law is that it selectively picks out a religion by discriminating against it. We saw many photos of nuns but knew the law wasn’t applicable to them. Some argue that to stand with non-Muslims, Muslims need to remove hijab or clothing because non-Muslims put on clothing. But those wearing hijab is because of a religious direct, so how can you ask them to go against their religion? That reasoning is very weak and illogical.”

In other words, there are many other ways of standing up for each other if we really wanted to.

Mary, a teacher by profession, sure has a foolproof suggestion. “My opinion is that you should wear what you want when you want! How do I justify my stance? God is our only Judge so everyone should worry about their D A M N selves!!!”

Yes, ma’am.

Or you can be like Shamila, a fearless blogger, and say, “You all suck!”

Popular in the Community

Close

What's Hot