To feel sad to see 5 year old girl in hijab

[INeedSomeSun]

Probably will get flamed for this & iabu as its not my business.
I am not racist in any way. I am Asian myself and have many Muslim friends.

Growing up, I never saw any muslim girls with hijabs. This is a trend which has been growing since the late 90s.

I know that the meaning behind the hijab is to protect modesty and show committment to Islam. It is supposed to be the girls/womans decision after much thought and dedication.

At 5 years old they are still getting changed in the classroom for PE and she won't be able to do this now with boys around. How will she play and do PE freely? She has been singled out by the views of her parents.
Also, she will barely know what religion means, so she has not made an informed decision for herself.

Normally she is chasing about with my DS and other kids before school.Today she was just stood there, perhaps embarrassed or told not to?
I felt very sad

Fuzzy: yes, that's terrific work you are doing. Does every Muslim woman do that? But I think it's important that women do not validate the terrible, appalling, horrific oppression of women in some countries by wearing its symbol when they don't have to. This is how things start, small, taking a stand. It's how all human rights movements start.

Morris, muslim women are asked to wear it when out, its outerwear for us, you throw on a jacket I throw on a cloak and headscarf.

I'm not expected to stay indoors and be domesticated, I have an Islamic right to education and to earn money. Both of which I do.

But that means the women have given up on independence, self-sufficiency, a life under their own control. Just given up on it.

Crumbled I've no idea what every Muslim woman does, my friends and social circle do, one of my closest friends used to work for NGO's i Pakistan specifically to help women.

Hijab is Gods law, its not a symbol of opression, when I wear it to work I obliterate that mindset, as I am clearly not oppressed or stupid or incapable.

Crumbled, there are many jobs that accept women in a face veil, loads of women work for home and have very successful businesses, a lot of the women who wear face veils teach in Islamic schools.

All should remember that not ALL women who wear headscarves are oppressed and not ALL muslim women are ruled by men. Lets open our eyes a bit please this is exactly what I was thinking, a woman in eygypt explained to me that the majority of women made a choice to wear full veil, some full face cover and some just a scarf over hair, she was an educated working woman and was happy in her choice, yes I guess there will be some who are pressured into a choice but then many western women are pressured too in their choices, peer pressure, religion, controlling partners dictating, media images etc. Its a religion and those that follow it will do as they see fit regardless of anyone outside the religion liking it or not. the followers of a religion will be the ones to campaign for change just as catholic followers have for relaxation of some of the 'rules' just as many other religions have, why do those outside care so much? what business is it of ours? is it just the fear of anything we don't understand or conform to? I frankly am not at all bothered what anyone else chooses to do or wear or who they pray to unless it is seriously impacting on me at all.

Crmubled a lot of women give up independance and choose to stay at home and birng up families and rely on their husbands regardless of religion.

I persoally couldnt as I have had a very bad experience of marirage, but if a woman has a good relationship and chooses with her partner to be the main parent I can't really comment.

Hijab is not Gods law. It is your interpretation of Gods law.

The muslim God is the same as the christan God but i dont believe my Gods requires me to wear a scarf or cover any part of myself.

God not Gods

No cantspel it is Gods law Islamically and very clear, you don't believe it to be thats fine, your beliefs are not my beliefs and my beliefs are not yours.

There are no Gods.

Just men taking control and exerting power. Usually extracting money as well.

Women at the bottom of the pile.

Hijab isnt to be worn until a girl reaches puberty. it is meant to be obligatory at that point not optional.
the little girl May very well be copying her Mum or other female role model. Could just be a phase ..

Yanbu. Very sad, poor girl.

I've never paid anyone to be Muslim!

There is a 2.5% tax on wealth which has been held for an entire year, which must be given in charity each year, but that has to be distributed by the giver and begin with those closest to you in need.

I choose to wear a headscarf, nobody else in my family does.

It's very very personal.

I disagree. I love my country - I'm English - but for a long, long time I wouldn't display or wear an England flag because of what it came to represent. I refused to validate that, and it's only in the last year or so that the association has receded. It's the same thing, in my opinion.

I xposted with you Crescentmoon. Perhaps you don't know, but for a long time many people avoided displaying an England or Union flag because it represented the NF and racism (and racist thugs). It's exactly the same thing. God's law is one thing: its interpretation is cultural and therefore a choice.

Crumbled, my wearing a headscarf obliterates the negative and worng associations that people have of Islam and muslim and muslim women in hijab.

I will be part of the reason why wearing a hijab will not be considered as oppressive to women and certainly people who meet me when they think of women in hijab and think of me will most certianly re-assess their prejudices.

My neighbour has a St george cross flag on the door frame, I was thinking it was a football thing.

we fly a union jack; and another flag

its about reclaiming these things IMO

I am an educated, professional woman wearing hijaab. I am in no way oppressed or down trodden. Hijaab was totally my choice; my parents were very against it. It is like a second skin now.

Mary covered her hair because she was living in the middle east over 2000 years ago.
The history of the hijab predates islam and would be a senseble choice is you were living in a desert community over 2ooo years ago. Protection from the sun, sand and desert winds so i can see why it was a common piece of clothing.
Life today in Western europe doesn't compare with life in the middle east all those years ago

I work in a predominantly Asian area - there seems to be a growing number of young women (teens and older) wearing headscarfs. I don't believe in God, but understand that faith is important to many and generally keep my views to myself. (I actually enjoy a church service for the peace it seems to bring).

To get to the point the scarfs seem to be getting bigger and more elaborate. Some are truely beautiful and are often coupled with stunning make-up - instead of being about modesty it seems to shout out "look at me" - I really don't understand why.