The 'debate' about potentially banning the burqa in Australia is very troubling to me. Many people have jumped on this bandwagon recently in the name of Freedom, Democracy, Feminism, Equality, Civic Responsibility and goodness knows what else. And I haven't agreed with a single one of them on the issue.
I've agreed with a lot of the objections to the burqa. I find the implication that one's appearance can offend your peers or your God pretty offensive. But then, I'm an atheist. And I don't think society is objecting to religion. Just Islam. But an individual objection to something (hello Southern Cross tattoos) is different to banning it. Banning something takes individual values that are acknowledged as having place in society (religious, family, aesthetic) and making them universal. It is handpicking one set of difference and saying that we don't want that here. The arguments being put forward for the burqa being an unacceptable difference are masquerading as libertarian and feminist and democratic. And I posit that they are not, they are racist. So let's look at some that have been prominent lately, and I'll show you why.
One argument is that by covering the hair/face, women are concealing important aspects of their identity. They are not fully participating as citizens. Well tough shit I say. I can walk into a bank wearing sunglasses. Or a hood. When my hair was long I would wrap it up into a scarf to clean the house or simply on hot days. Eastern European and Mediterranean women will wear headscarves. African women will wear headscarves. Indian and Asian and Anglo women will wear headscarves. So why just ban Islamic headscarves? Uh, that would be racism.
A further argument is that the burqa carries a symbolic element that is offensive to women, as exposing the head/hair is considered to offend god and man in Islam. Well I happen to agree that this is a daft notion. Did I mention I'm an athiest? But Jews do it with their skull caps, nuns do it with their habits. So do you want to rip the habit from a nun in the name of her freedom? I don't see anyone ranting about these other forms of religious coverings in the newspapers or suggesting for a moment we should make it illegal for these other groups. Only Muslims. That's racism.
There are people arguing against it on the grounds of feminism. That many women would prefer not to wear a burqa but are forced to by their family and community. In righteous feminist outrage, these advocates want to remove the shackles of this oppression by making it illegal.
Well I put it to you that the people advocating on these grounds are not giving one toss about women in this situation. Because they will only be further oppressed and excluded by a ban on the burqa. They will not be able to leave the house, and their freedom will be further curtailed. Honestly this argument of 'freeing' women by banning the burqa is the most selfish and stupid of the lot. The only people it will make feel better is the rest of us. The white priveleged people who will no longer have to squirm and feel uncomfortable when a burqa clad lady gets on the tram. The ones who refuse to allow that some women are choosing to dress that way as an expression of their ideological conviction. Banning the burqa is not about feminism, and it's not about freedom. It's about one group of people deciding what makes them feel comfortable, and imposing it on another group of people. Again, racist much?
This doesn't mean that I don't think that we, as a society, should try to tackle religious and sexist values that result in women being forced to dress in a way they do not wish. We absolutely should do that. But banning the burqa doesn't do this at all. It doesn't involve any engagement with the people who would enforce it. It only punishes the women who are already oppressed through having to wear it, and punishes those who have freedom and use it to choose to wear it. Discuss the burqa. Discuss with the people who think it's important. There are knotty issues wrapped up in there. Confront them in dialogue. Don't ban it.
And if anyone wants to go down the road of 'how free is the choice of the women who are choosing it?', well good for you, it's a damned important question. But don't pretend for a second that any of us aren't making value-laden peer pressured choices all the time. Of course we are. We have freedoms, but they are not absolute, not for any of us. I've yet to see one commentator acknowledge this fact.
If I had my way, then I wouldn't wear clothes in Summer. At all. I would get my tattoo out at work and in front of my grandmother. How is this different from a young woman who covers her hair in front of her relatives? The outcomes for me might be less severe if I transgressed these norms, but I choose to follow them because it makes my life easier, it makes my grandmother happier. Is it a loaded choice? Of course. Do I wish the conservative people in society could cope with my having a tattoo? Absolutely. Do I wish that conservative Muslims could cope with the exposed heads and hair of their female relatives? Darned tootin. But for society to BAN it? To make it illegal? How is this anything other than a socially sanctioned punishment for a difference that we can't tolerate. How dare we call ourselves multicultural or diverse and entertain such a notion?
Do I have a problem with women being forced to wear a burqa? Yes.
Do I have a problem with a woman freely choosing to wear a burqa? No.
Can I know how free the choice is of a woman I know nothing about, beyond what she's wearing? No.
So what are we left with? The burqa oppresses some women. Undoubtedly. And banning it? Oh wait, that is a problem and will oppress women. Yep.
Let's recap. Burqa = oppressive. Banning the burqa = oppressive. The difference between the two options? White people feel better about themselves.
So why would we ban it, when every objection to it has its counterpart in other religions and social norms? Um, because we're racist?...
NB My friend Beck has pointed out (see comments) that the burqa is a full body covering, as distinct from a hijab which is a headscarf. Thanks for clarifying Becky.
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5 comments:
Good points Tash. Cultural racism is the new racism since the events of 911 etc, and yet it still comes down to fear of the other. I posted about this issue from that perspective a couple of weeks back if you want to take a look. http://mishaloula.blogspot.com/
bloody oath tashy! agree on all points. also, as an aside, living in brunswick I've often seen islamic girls who are all dressed up in heels, full makeup and plenty of bling, on their way to a night out, with a sequinned headscarf. not quite a burqa, but it's interesting that so many people just assume that veiled women are so different to other young women.
Hi lady, I agree with the crux of what you are saying, but I think you may be confusing the burqa with the hijab. A burqa is a full body covering (like women in Afghanistan were forced to wear under the Taliban) and hijabs are the headscarves. Burqas are extremely rare in Australia, which makes this "ban the burqa" campaign not only racist, but a complete mischaracterisation of how most Muslims in Australia choose to dress. x
Thanks for the clarification Becky, I am far from expert on Islamic issues. But I think my arguments hold all the same, as full body covering hasn't really been discussed (and seems less controversial?) than the issue of head covering that media has focussed on.
Your point about the tiny minority of women who wear a burqa in Australia reminds me of the hysteria around asylum seekers, who are also miniscule in number but discussed as though they were arriving in hordes.
Good post Tash - it's all about control and fear and an inability for people to process things beyond black and white categories. Which, of course, is the root of fundamentalism (which is like really really bad).
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