To not know how to explain to DSs why women wear a niqab?

[MrsJamin]

I live in a really diverse area - we've often seen women wearing a niqab on the school run and today I wondered what I would say if DS1 or 2 asked why they were wearing one. I honestly don't know what I should say or how I could explain it. They're 4 and 6. A good idea is welcome as I don't know.

Solosolong This was the first result I got for "will a woman be punished for not wearing a burka?" It may of course be a complete fabrication but it sounds pretty judgemental to me.

islamqa.info/en/7436

"Based on the above, we cannot say for certain whether a woman who does not wear hijaab will enter Hell, but she deserves the punishment of Allaah because she has disobeyed His command to her"

StepDoor, not just ONE. Here's another few who think the same. The last link is extremely repulsive even by Islams' standards.

Muslim Cleric: If Women Don’t Want to Get Raped, Politicians Should Make it Illegal for Them to Dress Provocatively
www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2012/07/20/muslim-cleric-if-women-dont-want-to-get-raped-politicians-should-make-it-illegal-for-them-to-dress-provocatively/

Muslim Imam Claims Women Who Don’t Wear Hijabs are 'Asking to be Raped' Arrested for Trying to Rape Woman
www.frontpagemag.com/2013/dgreenfield/muslim-imam-claims-women-who-dont-wear-hijabs-are-asking-to-be-raped-arrested-for-trying-to-rape-woman/

Saudi Arabian cleric declares babies should wear burkas
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/saudiarabia/9848469/Saudi-Arabian-cleric-declares-babies-should-wear-burkas.html

Hi, I would of totally agreed with you until my daughter started school in September.
I live in London and I'm white british.
My daughter,s first friend in reception is a cute little asian boy and as I was collecting her from school she said mummy this is my new friend, and guess what his mum appeared wearing the full niquab but her hands were showing.
Well to say the least I was speechless for a couple of seconds as I hadn't come into contact with anyone wearing a niquab before and all I could see was her eyes that were totally focused on me.
It was then that I said something like to the effect of Hi, hello how are you.
I then was really shocked/taken back as she replied to me in the strongest East London accent I had heard.
Since that day nearly 4 weeks ago, we chat everyday at the school.
I have never seen her face only her eyes but she is a vibrant funny young woman and very likeable.

MM those links are so bad that they made me laugh - and not in a good way. Just appalling.

My children are frightened by people completely covered in long black garments, with only their eyes exposed. I have to confess to finding it very strange looking. If you look at it aside from any question of religion, objectively it is a rather strange thing to do, isn't it?

Yes, strange particularly as it is what Victoria women in the UK fought so hard against having to wear all enveloping clothes which meant it was hard to do sport, run, cycle and all the rest, which limited them as human beings. However men and women can wear what they like as far as i am concerned. My only exceptions are schools can set their own rules and secondly I would like to see all religions removed from all state schools and in court - we need to see people and probably NHS hospitals - would be quite trick to do heart surgery as a female surgeon if you were fully covered.

When I was out earlier with my son we saw lots of women covered (we live in a very mixed area) some very smart looking Jews in hats and best dresses on their way to worship, a man in really short shorts who looked rather silly and loads of other types of clothes in between and I certainly said to my son how much I like variety. I think I would find living in a country village where everyone was pretty much the same (not that they necessarily are) more boring. What I would not like to see however is (a) any restriction on girls wearing shorts and T shirts because more of a certain religion live in a certain area or (b) any fetter on my right to say there is no God and that most religions damage women and are very sexist and that I suppose the feminist movement within all the major religions.

Of course there are lots of men out there with all sorts of terrible views. No one should be forced to wear a niqab, or anything else if they don't want to.
It does concern me though that women are writing here about why they make the personal choice to wear what they do, and other women are just dismissing their views.
Avamiah I also really enjoyed that about DD's London primary school. That I met all sorts of parents from very different backgrounds from mine and had a chance to interact with them and find that they weren't so different after all. It's definitely a big advantage for our DC too, and hopefully they won't display the prejudice that is so evident here as elsewhere in society.

I'm not dismissing their views. I think women who choose to cover are wrong, sexist and silly and damage other women and their children but I am not dismissing their views. I am exercising my views to let them know they are wrong and I hope they listen and realise the damage done by covering up and change. That's what a free country is all about.

Solosolong If someone chooses the medium of a national newspaper to present a ( not particularly well argued) explanation of why she is wearing a burka the flip side of that is as greengrow has said others may disagree.

I found that Guardian article you linked to be silly and self-centred. The quote below is particularly silly. How lucky she is to be living in the UK and yet not the slightest acknowledgement that for many women it is oppressive and involves compulsory conformity.

As for your dismissal of Mia's links. I agree Mia picked some particularly extreme individuals but it's not just a few nasty men is it? - it's part of the legal system in many countries.

You and others have said repeatedly it's all about individual choice and that a woman in western Europe does not have to think of the consequences of her actions on women in less tolerant regimes. I don't agree with that for the same reason as I think "empowered" lap dancers are hindering equality as well.

It is not a garment of oppression, it is a garment that represents a timeless modesty that does not conform to society.