A Brief Conversation With an Offended Muslim
A note from Radarsite: Today I received this email notifying me of a belated comment to Gary Fouse’s informative Jan 2009 article on the hijab and its significance. I went back and read the comments to see if I could figure out which one upset her the most. I think it was the one about the women “not knowing any better”, although I’m sure she took offense to that plea for aid for Geert Wilder. I didn’t comment at that time to Gary’s article but I will respond to this email, as it was addressed to me. Here, then, is the emailed comment and my response. – rg
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“I realize this is an old post of yours, but I happened to stumble upon it in a google search and was sort of horrified by the responses that you got to this.
So here’s an answer from a hijabi (one who wears hijab). Hijab is what we call fard- meaning it is obligatory. That doesn’t mean that it is allowed to be forced on a woman, in fact the Qur’an forbids this (but most so-called “Muslim countries” wouldn’t know real Islam if it did a dance in front of them while shouting at the top of its lungs- but that’s another rant all together). It IS actually mentioned in the Qur’an, but somewhat vaguely so. Within the Qur’an, women are instructed to wear loose clothing that does not show their shape, it explains who a woman should cover in front of and who she doesn’t have to and gives the instruction that a woman should use her scarf (which many Meccans already wore on their heads before Islam) to also cover her chest. It is more elaborated in hadiths (recorded sayings and teachings of Muhammad, peace be upon him). Muslim women are supposed to wear hijab, not just for the sake of modesty, but also so that they will be recognized as believing women as well as Muslim women. The covering of a woman’s hair is a tradition that we inherited from the Jews and the Christians (although many of them no longer practise this). By wearing hijab we are identifying ourselves as continuing that tradition.
I would argue that most women choose to wear hijab or do not mind to (I’ve heard some Iranian women comparing it to wearing a tie to work- in certain situations certain dress codes are required). In “Muslim countries”, most women are more concerned about their general rights and freedoms rather than a piece of fabric. People focus on the scarf but don’t realize that the concept of covering the body is cultural (I mean this in general, not only in regards to hijab). For instance, in the west it has become culturally acceptable for a woman to walk around in shorts- 100 years ago there would be no chance in hell that a woman would do such a thing. On the other hand there are some areas of the world where it is perfectly acceptable for a woman to walk around without a top on, or even completely nude! To suggest that Muslim women simply “don’t know any better” is ridiculous and suggestive of Western supperiority- which is utter bull. I’m a proud Canadian, but I still know that there’s somethings that my country could do better on (just like I know that Saudi Arabia has A LOT of things that it could and SHOULD do better on).
Hope this was helpful to you. Feel free to continue asking questions and sorry for replying to such an old post, but those replies really bothered me. ” (UniMuslimah)
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A response from Radarsite: So, our presumably-western-educated, proud Canadian Muslim woman is “sort of horrified” and “really bothered” by the comments made to that Radarsite article? Well, here we go again, folks. Another offended Muslim condescends to enlighten the ignorant infidel. And I for one am getting pretty damn sick of it.
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Posted by Roger W. Gardner on April 15, 2009 12:46 pm
» Filed Under 9-11, Domestic Enemies, Islam, Islamicfascism, News
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4 Responses to “A Brief Conversation With an Offended Muslim”
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I copied one of the pics and labeled it bamajihad.
He is not a taliban though he is a Kenyan Jihadist.
I am not a Muslim and frankly you sound arrogant. There is the old saying “remove the beam from your eye before attempting to remove the speck from some one elses.”
Americans murder a million of their own children through abortion alone each year and therefore have no business sitting in judgment of anyone.
If anything they should be in sackcloth and ashes begging for God to forgive them before His just wrath rains down on them. Still I have my doubts they will do it and in time His just wrath will rain down on the United States as it has on so many other unrepentant nations. I hope my fears are groundless.
Murder though abortion is probably just a symptom of the corruption that eats away at the United States and the corruption is what must go not just the murder through abortion.
So … is “real Islam” like “true communism” then? Sorry, offended one. What we see is what we get. Either go fix it, quit it or don’t be offended when people call it like they see it.
The vast majority of American women have never had an abortion! A small majority even oppose it! Abortion has nothing to do with being an American. I am an atheist myself, and I am shocked and disgusted that you would bring up such a heinous “procedure”, as if it has everything to do with being an American and with not being a Muslim.
By the way, I would like to complement Muslims on their choice of attire. I think much of it is pretty. I have done just enough research on Islam to know that the modest clothing is not a cause of oppression. Most Americans sympathize with women living in Muslim countries, because there is a tendancy for them to lack education (especially in rural areas). It is not always their fault, but these countries might advance a little more if education and careers took precedence over the insignificant laws that sometimes create challenges. The idea that segregating everybody by gender will help keep everyone modest and whatnot sounds very good, very pious. As Americans, we tend to oppose this, because we tried separating black and white people with our “Separate but Equal” doctrine. From it, we learned that separate is not equal-far from it. Black children suffered from poor educations, despite frequently having parents pushing them to do well. Even with a decent education, there was little chance of ever finding a job matching their qualifications. In the United States today, white men still out earn white women, black women, and black men. It is through no fault of their own. This is all changing to a certain degree, but men still have a better foothold than women in all the industries they have traditionally occupied (Remember, before most women entered the workforce, the ones working had jobs considered too tedious for men). With race, there are white people who resent that some groups have developed their own cultural identities, since living in America. I think this is really more of a misunderstanding, as some groups want to stand out and be proud. Corporate America demands that everyone similate into the mold and share “white” values. Failure to do so can be percieved as ignorance. Again,this is why I consider it a misunderstanding, because there is a different cultural experience from one town, one neighborhood to the next. People embrace the one that makes them most comfortable. The sort of “white” culture ties in best with corporate culture (probably because white men have worked in corporations for so long). America’s push for political correctness, color-blindness, and nonsexism causes people to overlook the factors holding groups back today.
Hopefully, Muslim countries bounce back from segregation effectively. Once girls decide they deserve a future, let’s hope they make sucessful efforts. In the US today, a woman still earns only .70 to a man’s dollar. This alone makes women (especially the least finacially & educationally mobile) in America more likely to stay in an abusive or unfaithful relationship. In some cases, it seems easier to remain an abused housewife than to work and still not be able to leave. The women in the strict muslim countries would proably have a hard time earning enough money to support themselves. Even if they can, laws and cultural factors (such as the family ties) make it difficult (or impossible) to escape the wrath of a frustrated husband, trapped in an arranged marriage.