aibu to feel slightly on edge when I come across women in the full black burka?

[caroleharolde]

I just always feel slightly threatened, I know the vast majority of Muslims are lovely nonviolent people but.just this sight always unnerve me. Be honest, who hadn't felt a bit uncomfortable when passing by a huddle of the burqa wearers? Not trying to be racist, I'd feel the same if it were Christians or Jews or any other religion wearing it.

I find any face covering sinister. Most communication is non verbal. If I can't see someone's facial expressions I do find it unnerving.

This would be in the case of any face cover, for religious reasons or otherwise. So YANBU.

I honestly worry about people getting enough vitamin d with their whole head and body covered!

The Quran most certainly does not imply that all men are potential rapists nor that women are at fault or are asking to be raped if they do not cover. It is a gross misrepresentation and to be quite frank it is highly offensive too

Nobody has said on here that it does; they've suggested that individual Moslems might feel this way, but certainly not that the Quran says so

Your comment about Quranic quotes being used in isolation to justify a view may have been somewhat disingenuous, since I'm sure you realise that, through their personal interpretation of the many attendant commentaries, this is exactly what Shi'a imams do themselves - unlike the majority Sunni group, who on the whole stick with the traditional hadiths

Hardly surprising, perhaps, that much of what's perceived to be "militant Islamism" is based within the Shi'a community - an issue which, as you may also know, worries many muslims too

I am quite when i see threads which proclaim that they are all for liberal christians, jews, muslims etc but they cannot tolerate:

a Muslim fasting (why would they do that to their body!)
A muslim wearing niqab (must be oppressed repressed suppressed)
A muslim wearing hijab (man must make her do this)
A muslim surgeon not wanting to wear short sleeves (think of H&S)
A muslim cancelling christmas!!! (How dare they)

All based on half facts and stereotypes with a good dose of bigotry and a few scattered lies for tabloid effect!

As for those who claim to work with the 85% asian female muslim community, what do you really know about the issues faced by muslim women. Give me evidence based facts please.

Or is simply that you feel just like the European colonial powers felt it was their duty to bring Western civilization to what they perceived as backwards peoples.

Defuse- who said that they didn't or couldn't tolerate those things

By the way you sound very angry

Who cancelled Christmas? Did they cancel Hannukah and ramadan and Eid as well?

If it's good for someone to cover their face in the public sphere, it's good for anyone else too.

If H&S doesn't apply to someone 'cos of their choice, it doesn't apply to anyone else either.

We wouldn't want to get rid of one bigotry in order to impose another.

in islam, men have a role to fulfil and women have a role to fulfil. The woman is categorically NOT inferior to man.

But is says many times in the Koran that men are superior to women. And this is believed to be the literal word of god.

As for those who claim to work with the 85% asian female muslim community, what do you really know about the issues faced by muslim women. Give me evidence based facts please

Gladly, if you could tell me what sort of facts you'd like? The problems of career progession for those who have to seek permission even to leave the house, perhaps? The issues created when a male applicant demands that the (white female) course leader be removed, purely because he found her presence offensive? The tearful apologies from the female attendees later, who couldn't say anything at the time for fear of being beaten by their relatives for "disrespecting" the men?

I'm truly sorry if relating these incidents upsets you, but - since you've said you dislike unfounded assumptions - can I suggest that you do yourself little credit with silly remarks about colonialism/backward peoples, etc? I'm also still looking forward to seeing your responses to many of Jimmy's evidence based facts ...

I don't blame defuse if she sounded angry, though I don't think she does, just exasperated.

So should we impose our own thoughts and choices on someone else by saying they can't/shouldn't wear a burkha or niqab because of how it makes a few people feel over how the person wearing it feels?

I reckon to do so would be as bad as forcing someone to wear something against their will tbh.

Yonisareforever. If that is your opinion that these women are being controlled then are you are victim blaming to say you don't like the women. Work on fighting the patriarchy within the men not just telling women off.

I'm yet to read anything positive in support of the burqa.

It's been my experience that those in regular contact with Muslims tend to have a far greater understanding of the issues, which perhaps isn't surprising. Because of some of the things they see, they're also FAR less likely to indulge in the kind of "competitive liberalism" we sometimes see on here

^^^^^ good post

Here's the problem. Those who are critical of calls to ban the burqa perceive it to be an attack on personal freedoms. They view the burqa as an individual choice - which is arguable - and a religious requirement, which it is not. They look straight past the woman hidden from public view under heavy cloth, and instead applaud our multicultural tolerance. This is a mistake. The burqa has nothing to do with ethnic diversity and everything to do with a war against women. Those who wear it, and those who insist it be worn, subscribe to an ideology in which women are inferior sexual temptresses, whose female form is a problem and must be covered. This is based on the contradictory proposition that men are both superior and yet unable to control their sexual urges if they see women in their natural human state. If this wasn't deadly serious, it would be funny.

I bow to your obvious superiority over those poor little Muslim women's ability to make their own choices.

How very magnanimous of you.

jimmy perfectly summed up.

How am I superior ? Please explain

Excellent post jimmy

I think many are missing the point, it's not about OUR perception of what the Quran says, it's about the individual and how they chose to live their life according to their beliefs on how the Quran applied to them.

I don't think all Christians follow all that the bible dictates, and many Christians may disagree on what certain passages actually mean. Same with Islam and any other religion.

I'm a humanist. I don't believe in a God, but fully support the rights of others to follow a religion as long as it isn't to the detriment of others.

Therefore, although I accept that, as with many religions, there maybe factions of Islam that actively oppress women, I also fully accept that many women are not oppressed and make choices that suit them, even if this may be interpreted as a sign of oppression by others that don't know them as individuals.

Therefore, I will not condemn the wearing of the burka. Especially given that historically, this country was catholic, and still has a following of Catholics, who don't see women as equal! That's not quite so obvious and visual as the burka though is it!

puzzled. I asked for evidence based facts - not a few statements which cannit be corroborated.

I am not angry, just annoyed at the constant stream of hysteria regarding such a tiny percentage of women. Comparing a woman who wears a niqab to a dog on all fours us downright disgusting and offensive. My remarks about western colonialism are not silly. They are a fact and history is full of the impact of colonialism and the superiority complex of Europeans when it came to colour or way of life.

Many people have moved on from this mentality,but it isevidentthat there are many who still havent.

defuse you say this - You can pick out verses to suit your own agenda . Then proceed to pick out a few verses to suit your agenda. WTF

It is difficult to free people from the chains they revere. ~Voltaire.

If Muslim women feel they are oppressed and forced to wear something they'd rather not,I think the impetus to change it should come from THEM.

Unfortunately, the sections of the Muslim brotherhood that dictates what anyone should wear are the same sections that can wreak unimaginable violence against its women as well. It is a Catch22 situation.