Leader of the House of Commons and former British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw recently asserted that he would prefer if Muslim women who come in to his constituency surgery to see him did not wear a veil over their faces. He also said it was his intention to spark a debate as in his view, the veil represents a physical barrier to communication and a symbol of separate identity. While it may be politically astute for Mr Straw to have made these comments, in the wider context, it is UNBELIEVABLY IRRESPONSIBLE for him to have said what he said.
We live in a society where many people are made to feel uncomfortable by scantily clad women and young girls exposing their cleavage, mid-riff and wearing implausibly short skirts. We are not supposed to complain about this and anyone should suggests that these girls may need to cover up is labelled a prude and considered odd. Yet there seems to be a groundswell of support for this move to demonise the veil which is the opposite of everything in this society which seeks to objectify women.
In Islam the veil is meant to preserve a woman’s modesty. In much the same way that not all women are comfortable in low cut tops and mini skirts, some women prefer to be covered up. Not all women are comfortable with being ogled and wolf whistled at. As long as a woman chooses to wear the veil of her own free will then what is the problem? Women should not be compelled to wear a veil but neither should they be compelled to remove it. I think those who claim to be made uncomfortable by the veil are really saying they are uncomfortable around Muslims.
There is not doubt that there has been a rise in anti Muslim feeling in Western Europe and North America since 9/11 and the subsequent terrorist attacks around the world by evil and twisted pseudo-Islamic radicals – the ‘al-Qaeda types’. The reasons for the attacks and the premise of the War on Terror are complex but suffice to say the killing of non combatants is always wrong whether in New York, Gaza, Jerusalem, Sarajevo or Dresden. Violence always begets more violence.
Osama bin Laden and his ilk have been trying to convince disaffected young Muslims that the so called War on Terror is simply a pseudonym for a War on Islam. The government in London and Washington have been trying very hard to refute this saying often that they realise that not all Muslims share the sentiments of al-Qaeda and even if some think their grievances are legitimate, almost none approve of their methods. There are probably more violence prone white racist thugs in the UK or the USA than potential terrorists. Over and over the actions of the British and American governments seem to reinforce the notion that there is a conflict against Islam. I may explore this in detail at a later date but examples are George Bushes choice of the words ‘crusade’ or ‘Islamo-fascist’ and Tony Blair’s assertion that the Muslim community are the ones that need to ‘sort out’ the terrorist threat.
If we are to win the battle of ideas we cannot alienate people to the extent that they are not interested in listening.
