to think it's ridiculous for people to be called racist just because....

[mamaLou13]

they feel uncomfortable with people wearing the full burka?

Why would what someone else is wearing make anybody uncomfortable?

Why have another thread on this? there is already a perfectly good one going on right now.

where is that thread is it on AIBU?

Depends on why they feel uncomfortable and what they do about how they feel.

I worry that there are women wearing it (globally) who are being pressured into it and therefore oppressed and lack freedom of choice. There are women who wear it through choice and there are women who would not be safe if they did not wear it. There have been women in some countries who have been attacked or killed for not wearing hijab

That makes me a great deal more than uncomfortable! I would wish dearly for women to make choices that are not based on the rules of the men who control them and who make choices based on their own wishes and not because they fear the consequences of not complying.

Is that what you mean?

manicbmc many people feel uncomfortable because they can not see the person under it as the face is covered. You are not allowed to wear a bike helmet into a shop and the same amount of face is shown with a burka so i ( and many others) just don't understand the logic?

What Hecate said.

I can only think of one other reason I'd feel uncomfortable and that's if they were teaching my Nursery/Reception age child.

That's because I think facial expressions are a large part of communication when it comes to young children.

Justhecate I Agree and alothough many people will say that the majority wear them of their own accord. How do they know this is the case? If they are wearing it through fear then they are unlikley to broadcast that fact!

Possibly because it has become a bit of a rallying issue for actual racists who use it to recruit people to their 'cause'.

I can't imagine wanting to wear it myself, but frankly feel it is none of my business what other women choose to wear.

I don't mind removing my bike helmet- as much as I love my bike, it isn't a religious issue for me, nor do I feel in any way 'naked' without it. Not the same, really.

Mamalou13 - I'm with you all the way on this one. I don't deny their right to wear a burkka if they so wish but I'm not comfortable with not being able to see their faces anymore than i am comfortable with motorcycle helmets being worn with black/ mirrored visors or hoodies pulled down over faces or balaclavas.

You don't know. And that's the problem.

But if you go down the legislation route, as was done in france, you have another group of (mainly!) men telling a woman what she cannot wear, which is just as bad as the first group telling her what she must wear!

I'd like to see all of them butting out and it being her choice, and her being respected whatever choice she makes.

Replacing the rules of one group with the rules of another is just replacing one oppression with another.

Just because you don't understand it doesn't make it wrong.

And to be frank what somebody else is wearing has fuck all to do with you.

But surely 'not being comfortable' is simply due to not being accustomed to it - in countries where this is normal dress people feel perfectly comfortable with it.

Someones' face being covered just wouldn't bother me. It wouldn't occur to me to be uncomfortable about what someone else chooses to wear (although Hecate does have a very good point)

I can think of many more modes of clothing that I find a whole lot more worrying.

I mean not being comfortable with not seeing the face, rather than the issue of whether it is freely worn or not.

It's not unreasonable to be uncomfortable with people covering their faces when that has negative connotations in the UK.

It would be unreasonable to treat people badly because they choose to do this.

I also think that in being aware of discomfort, one should try to ensure it does not have a negative impact one's behaviour, as it were (sorry for the 'ones' but I'm trying not to ascribe the behaviour to the OP or anyone else!)

Having said that, I do not like the Burqa or the Niqab & probably never will. That said, whilst my reasons for disliking them are different, there are plenty of other types of dress that some teens / subcultures wear - completely unrelated to religion - that would also also require me to reign in reflexive feelings or assumptions.

would you be called racist if you felt uncomfortable with a person wearing a mini skirt?