Veiling as a Development Issue
As
globalization increases, conflicts of the meaning of veiling reveal various
related development issues. The dominant perspective in the West is that
veiling is a violation of women’s rights as it is oppressive towards women and
conflicts with universal human rights.1 On the other hand, forced
unveiling violates freedom to express religion and culture.2
Women’s Rights and
Religious Rights
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Although
veiling began as a religious and cultural practice in the Middle East, the
spread of Islam has globalized it. Veiling is now a practice of great
controversy displayed, discussed, and critiqued on the global stage. Depending
on the local context, the veil has become a symbol of both the development and
the oppression of women’s rights across the world.3 To Western
women, the veil is often viewed as oppressive, largely due to the negative portrayal
of veils in the media. For example, Western exposure to the Taliban’s use of
the burqa to oppress women in Afghanistan creates a misguided picture of veiling
in Western context.4 However, other women understand veiling as a
way of “demanding control over their bodies and recognition within Western
culture whose social values they reject.”5 In other words, the veil
serves as a source of empowerment for some women. Hebah Ahmed describes wearing
the veil as a liberating experience. She uses it as a way to protect herself
from the implications of gender, such as being sexualized by men. Speaking
about her career working on oilrigs and in labs in the United States, she said,
“no matter how smart I was, I wasn’t getting the respect I wanted.”6
Veiling became a source of protection from the male gaze. In addition, veiling
is a way for women to remain connected to their religious beliefs and cultural
values, especially when within Western countries.7 Forced unveiling
violates the right to express religious beliefs
Globalization
has caused and continues to cause new meanings of the veil to be constructed. The
meaning of the veil became controversial in Iran during the late 18th
and 19th Centuries when Iranian women were being exposed to
educated, unveiled European women.8 Unveiling became a symbol of
progress and was understood as the clear step towards the advancement of women
in society. This idea of societal progress was carried through to Reza Shah’s
ruling where he forced the unveiling of women in Iran. He saw this as a form of
“modernization” of Iran, through the emulation of Western culture.9 Steps
toward modernization became synonymous with steps toward development. However,
this could also be viewed as taking a step back in the development of women’s
rights as many women were forced to remain inside for fear of exposing themselves
and extinguishing their modesty.10 Additionally, this stripped women
of rights to freedom of expression of both their culture and religion.
Cultural Clashes: Constructing Meaning
Around the Veil
The issue
of veiling and unveiling exists across national borders, both within countries
where veiling is common practice, as well as countries that are being
introduced to veiling due to the globalization of Islam. Constructions of the meaning
of veiling are produced through a reciprocal exchange of culture. In countries
where veiling has long been a part of the national culture, such as Egypt and
Iran, the adoption of Western ideals conflicts with former cultural values and
practices. In countries that are relatively new to veiling, the practice conflicts
with cultural values that existed before increased global migration.
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Clashes in cultural values are evident in both
the West and the Middle East.
Source: Claud Paris/Associated Press, New York Times
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The
development issues surrounding the veil manifest within various aspects of the
globalized world. The movement of people and cultures around the globe through
migration, travel, media and the Internet opens the world to new ideas and ways
of thinking. This provides an avenue for people to explore the meaning of the
veil with alternative perspectives and within new contexts. A clash of culture arises with conflicts
between Western and Middle Eastern ideals. Veiling then becomes an issue of
either developing a new culture or preserving a current one. Provincial and
national laws are passed to “deal” with these cultural conflicts, such as forced
veiling to preserve the culture in the Middle East, or forced unveiling in
Western countries to reject the practice.11 It all boils down to
cultural understandings of the development of human rights, particularly
regarding gender equality and cultural expression.
The Media and the Veil
The
media is also a powerful globalizing force, providing audiences access to other
‘worlds’ around the globe, but not before adding cultural spins depending on
the context. The meaning of veiling can be constructed differently even by the
same producer of media depending on the context.12 Therefore,
worldwide understandings of the implications of veiling depend to a certain
degree on the media. This influences what type of development issue veiling is
perceived to be, and how it is dealt with.
Calling for International Interference
With
increasing interconnectedness of nations, the practice of veiling is also an
excuse for international intervention. Understood as an oppressive tool over
women, veiling becomes the subject of international policies as well as
international interference of practicing countries as a way to seemingly liberate women.13
Citations:
1. Ashraf Zahedi. “Contested Meaning of the Veil and
Political Ideologies of Iranian Regimes,” Journal
of Middle East Women’s Studies 75-98, no. 3.3 (2007), http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/journal_of_middle_east_womens_studies/v003/3.3zahedi.html
2. Lorraine Ali, “Behind the Vale,” New York Times, June 11, 2010, 2. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/13/fashion/13veil.html?pagewanted=1&_r=0&ref=muslimveiling
3. Zahedi, “Contested Meaning.”
4. Elaine Sciolino, “The French, the Veil and the Look,” New York Times, April 16, 2011, PAGE, 1.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/17/weekinreview/17BURQA.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&ref=muslimveiling
5. Sciolino, “The
French,” 1.
6. Ali, “Behind the Vale,” 2.
7. Ali, “Behind the Vale,” 2.
8. Zahedi, “Contested Meaning.”
9. Zahedi, “Contested Meaning.”
10. Zahedi, “Contested Meaning.”
11. Sciolino, “The French,” 1.
12. Zahedi, “Contested Meaning.”
13. Elizabeth Klaus and Susanne Kassel, “The
veil as a means of Legitimization: An
analysis of the interconnectedness of gender, media and war,” Journalism, no. 6 (July 2005): 1, http://jou.sagepub.com/content/6/3/335.abstract
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