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Islamic Dress Codes

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Submitted By genet1c
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By Marko *********

07-11-2012

Islamic Dress Codes

Summary of Text 2

Text 2 is written by Arifa Akbar and Jerome Taylor and is a text about the problems that occur when you're "wearing your religion on your sleeves". The headline itself already tells us what the text is all about. It's clearly noticeable that this text is about Islam and Muslim women who wear their headscarves, veils, hijab etc. In the first part of the text we get a short but very clear and accurate summary of the problems and issues of having to wear a veil or any other Islamic dress that is supposed to cover your face, hair etc. Not to mention the questions being raised by the abolitionists. Rahmanara Chowdhury who is a 29 year old woman tells us her story and experiences with the hijab. Rahmanara's sisters and herself were already from a young age taught about hijab. Unlike her sisters she began to understand the spiritual reason behind the veil much more as she grew up. She was the first one in the family who had made the decision to wear a veil, and yet she was accepted by everyone. She thought she would have problems while interacting with people or doing group work in university, but it quite the opposite happened; she discovered that it was much easier to interact with people while wearing the veil. She would get a couple of stares every now and then, but it never bothered her.

Text 1 is a short story about the former British minister and his experience with Islamic dresses. At first he found it very strange to talk "face-to-face" with a person you can't actually see, except their eyes. He felt very uncomfortable at first, but then he started asking women nicely if they could take the covering from their face, because he would feel more relaxed if he could actually see their face. Each time he asks the women if they could uncover their face, they seem more relieved.

Text 2 concentrates more on the common problems that come with the veil, but also the perks and advantages. We are being told by the Muslim woman Rahmanara Chowdhury that she found working and interacting socially with other people a lot easier and less ambiguous.

Text 3 is about fashion around Islamic dresses. A small group of young students of the London School of Fashion have been wrapping clothes on to tailor's dummies. They are experimenting with all kinds of clothes; turning ties into belts and baggy T-shirts into neckwear for an Islamic dress. The idea is to challenge tradition notion of normality in fashion.

The statement "People say the veil is a tool of oppression but I've found it a tool of empowerment. It gave me the freedom to be who I want to be..." might be correct in some ways, but in my own honest opinion I find the idea of wearing any kind of veil or headscarf, because of religion, futile and pointless. Yes, I find the veil a tool of oppression. I wouldn't call it freedom; I would rather call it subjugation. I don't see a reason why you would want to wear a veil. If you ask a woman to remove her hijab she can't for many reasons. The word 'Freedom' should not be thrown around lightly if it can't be followed through.

Article for a school magazine The right to dress as he/she pleases is a subject that is commonly talked about. "Why does Islam degrade women by keeping them behind the veil?" you may ask. This statement is, in my opinion, very true. Why would anybody choose to wear a veil? Not only does it look ridiculous, but people look at you in a negative way because they think you don't really belong here (unless, of course, you're in a Muslim country). This is a biased opinion, because I despise Islam in general. One should be free and not covered in cloth. Not to mention the effects on your health; the main issues arising from Vitamin D deficiency due to lack skin exposed to UV light. You literally get no sun at all, which is unhealthy and can be dangerous once you grow older and you're lacking of Vitamin D. Here's a statement from a woman who gave 100 reasons why she wouldn't want to wear hijab: "Clothes that go with the hijab. I rather just wear what's comfortable, especially when it's hot. In some cultures you can be subjected to punishment or community scorn when you don't oblige. Why?" That is a really good question; why? Why would you get punished for not wearing some ridiculouslooking dress that covers your whole body? It's simply impractical; you can't ride a bike, you can't go swimming, you can't exercise etc.

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