World Hijab Day

In which your Humble Scribe pisses-off the Multi-Cultis.

I let Nightcafe fill in the prompt for this one. Huh.

I have mixed feelings about World Hijab Day, not the least of which is the fact that it is on February 1st — the day that Ruhollah Musavi Khomeini slimed his way off of a plane at the Tehran aeroport and ushered in several decades of religious repression, religious terrorism, and religious brutality spanning not only the country of Iran, but the globe.¹ Somehow I don’t think that date is a coincidence.

Anyhoo, the whole hijab thing is complicated.²

On one hand … if an adult woman consensually, intentionally wants to wear a hijab of her own free will, I can’t gainsay her. Adults get to do things all the time that I find incomprehensible, and as long as what they’re doing neither picks my pocket nor swings at my nose, it’s not for me to run my mush.

On the other hand … there are places where wearing is not an option. Where refusing to wear the hijab — or even wearing it “incorrectly” — is mandatory, non-consensual, and not any part of a woman’s free will.

On the gripping hand … there are countries — Iran and Afghanistan, to name two — where not wearing the hijab, or wearing it incorrectly — is punishable under their legal code. And when I say “punished”, it is brutally so, often with whippings, beatings, sometimes with death.

There are more countries where extra-judicial punishment of women for not wearing the hijab, or wearing it incorrectly, is tolerated or even accepted. The stories of women blinded or scarred by acid attacks, assaulted with sticks or fists, or groped because some rando guano-psychotic religious bugsnipe was outraged by their “lack of modesty”, and the authorities either not putting a whole lot of effort into finding said guano-psychotic, or — should he be found — letting him off with a slap on the wrist are legion.

There are even more countries and enclaves where anonymous polls have found that when Muslims hear that a woman has been raped, the first question the majority of Muslims ask is: was she wearing the hijab when she was raped? If the answer is “No”, the polls find that the majority of Muslims feel she deserved the rape in some way.

Like it or not: these countries where unlawful to not wear the hijab — or wear it “improperly” — and where the legal system will legally punish you for not wearing the hijab (up to and including execution) means that the hijab is a symbol of repression.

Like it or not: these further countries where attacks on women for not wearing the hijab — or wearing it “improperly” — are tolerated (maybe even mildly encouraged) means that the hijab is a symbol of oppression.

Like it or not: these Muslim cultures and enclaves where rapes of women are pre-judged by whether she was wear the hijab or not means that the hijab is a symbol of overt brutal religious-based sexism, prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-minded intolerant dogmatism.

I think of a 16-year-old girl slowly strangled by a crane because she took off her hijab and threw it at the judge in court … and I don’t see “symbolizing religious tolerance” in the hijab.

I think of the thousands of women on the receiving end of scores — or hundreds — of court-ordered strokes of a cane, or lashes of a whip because they didn’t wear their hijab “properly” … and I don’t see the hijab as “empowering”.

I think of the women who will spend the rest of their lives blinded and horrifically scarred due to acid attacks because some guano-psychotic frothing dacoit got his Islamic knickers all up in a twist over her not wearing the hijab … and I don’t see the “dignity and respect” of the hijab.

When your entire community will blame you for your rape because you weren’t wearing the hijab … I don’t see the “freedom to choose the hijab”.

If you want to wear the hijab — honestly of your own free will: you do you, boo. Knock yourself out.

But let’s be completely honest: the hijab is a symbol of religious intolerance, a symbol of institutional sexism, and a symbol of bigotry in a lot of places where Islam reigns supreme, and I have a massive case of the hips over any symbol of brutality being given its own “World Day Of …” or “National Day Of …”³ And I damned sure don’t appreciate local city governments using tax money to celebrate same.

You want to wear it for whatever reason? Cool, but let’s not kid ourselves that there isn’t a big difference in outcomes between your lovely self wearing it in New York City,⁴ versus you not-wearing it in Kabul.⁵

Way too many people seem to be focussing on the New York City part, and conveniently ignoring the Kabul part.

That, however, seems to just be me. Ah, well.

Ian

1. Need I remind the Gentle Reader that Iran is the #1 State sponsor of terrorism unless Pakistan is feeling competitive?

2. I will note for the record an anecdotal story I was told about Kabul just prior to the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan where a Taleban religious cop decided he had witnessed the improper wear of chador, and struck the wearer with his stick. Apparently he didn’t expect the startled voice from under the chador to be baritone; the announcement, “Oh, you mother[deleted]!” in American English seems to have been a bit of a surprise; and the two quick shots from a silenced pistol caught him mid-guppy-mouth. The chador wearer then legged it into the crowd to disappear. It’s heartwarming stories like this that give me hope for the world.

3. What, pray tell, other symbols of oppression or intolerance will be getting their own days?

4. So stunning! So brave! Slay, queen!

5. Seventy-four (74) lashes with a whip.