Understand the Hijab

Submitted by sassy (Canada), Jun 17, 2008 at 22:42

I am a 16 year old Canadian, Muslim teenager who just recently put on the hijab. After reading many of these comments I am shocked at what I am hearing... well reading in this case. I am a strong believer that before we judge something we must first fully comprehend it.

Let me say now that I was never forced to put the hijab on... actually my father didn't like the hijab, he said that I would never find work or respect in a non-Muslim country wearing the hijab. I put the hijab on not because someone told me I should or because my culture indicated that I should, but because I felt that with it I would receive more respect.

Before I put on the hijab I was seen as an average all-Canadian teenager (my light hair and green eyes didn't really help with that situation). But when I put it on I felt liberated, I no longer felt as if I had to wear American Eagle, Hollister and Abercrombie, stick my finger down my throat or wear the shortest skirt possible to fit into the mould that our society pressures us to fit in to. No one cared what I wore anymore, and I was treated with respect, teachers spoke to me in a much more respectful way, guys no longer hit on me and I was able to focus on school rather then the latest gossip (let's just say the whole scarf didn't help with the popularity).

But most of all I respected myself. I learned to love myself because hey no one else was going to see it why can't I appreciate it. I was asked questions from many people in my classes (thankfully able to clear some of the controversy towards Islam) and was actually approached by my local news to be a part of a video on Islam. You have to understand that there will always be psychopaths and extremists all over the world and we can't generalize our judgement due to the actions of these few people.

Yes there are people forced to wear hijab, yes there are Muslim extremists and yes there are Muslim psychopaths but for us as Americans, the so called smartest race of people to base our judgment of Muslims and the hijab on these yuppies is just sad and contradicting all that we stand for. So please, next time you're going to judge something, judge it on facts and research rather then what the media rams down your throat.

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