Final Reflection

I have learned a lot more about the entire Muslim culture than I had ever knew I could or even had intended to. Not just topics discussed on my blog but other interesting facts that I found during my research that just didn’t fit into my particular area of study. Initially I had intended to research Muslim women wearing the veil in Iraq because I realized I knew nothing about the country we were at war with. However, after starting I realized this approach was far too narrow, and that it didn’t make sense not to include other Muslim women simply because they weren’t from Iraq, especially considering how similar I found all of their practices to be.
I’ve found many reasons for women to wear the veil. My research gave me a completely new perspective on the entire situation. I never looked at the women wearing the veil as a religious conviction, simply as a symbol of submission and inferiority to men. I never considered it to be on the same level as not engaging in pre-marital sex for Christians, or not eating meat with blood in it like for orthodox Jews. When in reality it is the same thing. It is all culturally relative; their religion has just been integrated into their culture.
The major difference I found however is that members of these other religious groups are not terrorized for not abiding by their rules. Women are living in fear of being attacked for not following the modesty rule and going into public without veiling. Yet, this is seemingly only because of religious extremists who take the Bible literally. This occurs in other religions also though, so it’s unfair to pinpoint just Muslims. More often in the South, some Christians who take the Bible very literally do not accept homosexuality; often times this leads to the assault or murder of homosexuals.
I have learned things are very difficult to understand outside of our own culture. It is no fault of your own; it is just difficult to understand something you haven’t been brought up with. You’ve been raised to follow the social norms and behavioral expectations of our own culture, no one else’s. That is why cultural relativism is so difficult. Comprehending and accepting another culture as if it was your own is not an easy task. Even after all this research on Muslim women I don’t feel I completely understand it, I just know the logic behind it, and as an outsider looking in you cannot expect much more.

General Background and Styles

Styles of veiling depend on area and meaning, three common types are shown above.

Left to right definitions:

Hijab; The hijab is a headscarf that usually is worn by Muslim women for religious reasons. The word hijab is derived from from the Arabic word meaning veil. The scarves are seen as a symbol for womanhood and religion. They come in a variety of colors and styles. In the West, the most common style worn is a square scarf that covers the head and kneck but leaves the face visible.

Chador; The chador is common in Iran and is used to enable women to enter public space. It is a large shawl that covers the hair and entire body, and is often accompanied by a headscarf underneath.

Burqa; The burka is considered the most conservative choice of veils being that it is the most concealing. It is a large robe that covers the entire body, including the head and face, with a mesh covering over the eyes, so its wearer can see and breathe. The burqa is most commonly associated with Afghanistan today.

Veil type and color can tell a lot about it's wearer, for example different styles can indicate where they are from, tribal association, status/rank, the event they are attending such as a wedding or funeral, marital status, and so on. Also, the color, the way it is worn, and how decorative it is, are all forms of expressing cultural identity and self-expression in Muslim society. For example, the color red on the veil is known by many cultures to divert the evil eye.

Generally, the veil is worn out of religious conviction because the Qur'an calls for it. This is shown in the two passages below. Also, the law of hijab is a mandatory code for women to veil in public in parts of the Middle East. Failure to comply can result in imprisonment, harassment or physical punishment.

"O Prophet, tell your wives and daughters and the believing womento draw their outer garments around them (when they go out or are among men). That is better in order that they may be known (to beMuslims) and not annoyed..."(Quran 33:59)

"Say to the believing man that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that will make for greater purity for them; and Allah is well acquainted with all that they do. And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; and that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what must ordinarily appear thereof; that they should draw their veils over their bosoms and not display their beauty except to their husbands..."(Quran 24:30-31)


I believe veiling for some Muslim women should be consider as typical as American women wearing a shirt or blouse. It has become part of their life. I believe many or most Muslim women would choose to wear the veil even if they weren't required to. Religions have a way of taking over your life; or integrating itself into culture. Like clergy members wear particular clothing to distinguish themselves from society or how orthodox jews will only eat certain meats; I believe it is more of a choice because their religion calls for it.

Citation:
Shirazi, Faegheh. "The Veil Unveiled." 30 April 2008.
http://www.utexas.edu/features/archive/2002/veil.html

Pictures: http://www.skidmore.edu/academics/arthistory/ah369/finalveil.htm

Noteworthy Event

11/21/2008: “Gang – Rape Victim Sentenced to 200 Lashes”

Background:
In November, an 18- year old woman from Qatif, Saudi Arabia, went to meet a male friend, who she had a relationship with in the past, to get back photos that he had been threatening to blackmail her with. The two were standing outside a mall when they were abducted at knife point by several men. The woman was gang- raped 14 times by 7 men, and the male friend was raped also.
When the case was taken to court, the woman who was raped was sentenced to 90 lashes for being in the presence of a man who was not a family member (an offence known as Khilwa in Shariah law). The women believing this was an inappropriate verdict due to circumstances appealed the decision, only to receive an even more severe sentence of 200 lashes and 6 months imprisonment. The lawyer defending her in the appeal has had his license confiscated and could possibly have charges brought against him.
The men who raped the man and woman were sentenced to 1-5 years imprisonment and between 80 and 1000 lashes. Meaning, the woman who was raped was initially given around the same punishment as at least one of the rapists.
The Saudi justice ministry defended the verdict initially saying the woman was guilty of ‘illegal mingling.’ It then supported the appeal decision, and then went on to warn against agitation through the media – which could have been one of the reasons they did not support the woman, they believed she and her lawyer used media to highlight their case.
Amnesty International points this out as obvious flaw in the system, for this panel of interrogators and judges are all males and are insensitive to cases involving private matters and women. They also note that the ‘Khilwa’ law is inconsistent with international human rights standards.

This article highlights abuses of women and their rights in this culture. Even Amnesty International notes one of the problems as being that the entire panel is made up of men. Men who have been raised in this society and made to believe women are inferior to men, and I believe this is shown in the ruling.
The article also brings up Hillary Clinton’s attempt to help the seemingly powerless girl. The question then is when do you stop thinking things are culturally relative and begin to think they are wrong, to the extent that you would feel the need to intervene. Or if that point even exists.
The culturally relative point is that this woman broke the law and anyone who breaks the law is punished; this is true in all societies. Laws are made to keep order, and they are made according to social norms specific to every culture; depending on the conduct and behavior that is acceptable in that society. If there were no penalties no one would abide by the laws.

Read Further: http://www.wluml.org/english/newsfulltxt.shtml?cmd%5B157%5D=x-157-558645

Citation:
“Saudi Arabia: UPDATE: Saudis back lashing sentence of a raped woman.” Women Living Under Muslim Law. 21 Nov 2006
http://www.wluml.org/english/newsfulltxt.shtml?cmd%5B157%5D=x-157-558645

Current Events: Honor Killings

"Honor” killings of women can be defined as acts of murder in which "a woman is killed for her actual or perceived immoral behavior" (Yasmeen Hassan). The killing is thought to restore honor to the family.

The picture shown above shows how before a woman is stoned in Iran she is half-buried.

2/18/2008: Iran: 14- Year Old Stoned to Death by Father

Newspapers report a father stoned his daughter to death. According to the newspaper, a father found out his 14-year old daughter was having or had a relationship with a boy. After hearing this he and a friend brought his daughter, Saeedeh, up to the mountains were the stoning began. He then shot her four times. Both of the men have said to have been arrested.

In a report done by a separate publication, they quoted the father saying, “When we were taking her [the girl] to the mountains, she was scared but still didn’t know what she as expecting. Upon arrival to the scheduled place, I threw Saeedeh on the ground and started the stoning. She was screaming and begging for her life, but I had to save my honor and didn’t have any other choice than killing her…”

Human rights activists have reported that the number of honor killings has drastically increase in recent years in Iran.

Read Further: http://www.iranhr.net/spip.php?article208

Or at: http://www.wluml.org/english/newsfulltxt.shtml?cmd%5B157%5D=x-157-560591

Citations:

"Iran: 14-Year-Old Stoned to Death by Father." Women Living Under Muslim Law 15 Feb 2008

Yasmeen Hassan, "The Fate of Pakistani Women," International Herald Tribune, May 25, 1999.

3/6/2008: Man Sentenced to 16 Years Imprisonment for ‘Honor’ Killing

Hamda Abu Ghanem, 18-years old, was shot and killed in her home in Ramla, Israel by her brother, in an honor killing.

Many of these cases do not end up going to trial because of the code of silence between family members. It is considered very risky for family members, especially daughters or wives to speak up against their brothers or fathers, for fear of punishment or even death. (New York Times)

This case differed in that manner. Twenty relatives decided to speak up. This enabled the court system to send the man, Rashad, to prison for 16 years.

Read Further: http://www.wluml.org/english/newsfulltxt.shtml?cmd[157]=x-157-560850

Citation:

Kershner, Isabel. "Israel: Man sentenced to 16 years imprisonment for 'honour' killing." Women Living Under Muslim Law 04 Mar 2008.

Picture from: http://www.estatevaults.com/bol/archives/civilization_ca/

I tried for a long time to understand honor killings, and I could never think of a reason when killing would be acceptable. I think this in itself reflects on the culture I’ve been raised in; the social norms I’ve become accustomed to and what I have never been exposed to. I grew up in a small wealthy town in New Hampshire; murders are rare, most deaths are by natural causes. It is possible that someone from a place with a high crime rate and a large amount of poverty, who has come to expect these things, could understand better than I am able to.
However, cultural relativism asks you to step back and see why a culture does the things it does, not necessarily to understand it. So honor killings occur when someone, usually a family member of the killer, has somehow behaved ‘immorally,’ usually by the standards of their religion. In order to restore honor to the family members of the culprit, he/she is killed.

Current Events

“Insurgent and religious extremists use rape, acid and assassination to force Iraqi women to wear the veil - the symbol of submission,” Lesley Abdela. This quote was the initial reason I chose this topic for my research. Women’s rights [at least in Iraq] are at an all time low and the severity of what is happening to them is at an all time high.

Iraqi women thought a new era of democracy would bring them freedom of choice, but now religious extremists are making it worse than ever for them. A violent oppression of women is spreading across Iraq, with very little light being shown on it from politicians, religious leaders or the media.

Many Iraqi women, until now, have never been forced to wear the veil. However, now the extremists are sending a message, loud and clear. Dead women and girls are turning up all over the country, all with veils tied around their heads. These extremists believe, taking the Qur’an quite literally, that women should be covered at all times. They believe a women’s place is in the home, and all women are inferior to men, no matter the age. It is clear they will stop at nothing to make all women conform to their beliefs.

It is because of this that I have decided to include current events in my blog. I believe what is happening currently to women is just as important as the history, because what is happening now will soon be history. To truly understand a culture you must look into every aspect, and the current treatment of women is the most important at this time.

Citation:

Abdela, Lesley. "Iraq's War on Women." Open Democracy 17 June 2005 07 Mar 2008 .

In a Society Where it is More Disadvantageous to Veil than it is Advantageous, Why Do It?

Most women in Java chose to veil out religious conviction, saying that wearing the veil is a requirement of Islam and of the Muslim religion. Almost all of the reasons discussed in this article for why women chose to veil can be categorized into one of these three groups: personal, religious or political. But for whatever reason, these activists share a common ‘vision,’ of a new society founded on the principles of the traditional Islam.

Since wearing the veil has only recently becoming more and more common, it is sometimes referred to as a movement. As Brenner says, this movement “imagines a society reinvigorated by its acceptance of a truly Muslim way of life (p. 680)”. They believe that stubbornness of the Java people’s tradition of Muslimism makes it impossible for them to reach an enlightened Muslim society. A lot of this activism is coming from campuses. Islam students are creating organizations, seminars and study groups in much larger numbers than before. When these clusters meet they offer a setting for discussions, support and prayer. By doing this these Islamic groups are creating a support system for one another and in doing so are forming greater ties. “Members encourage each other to read and discuss Islamic texts so as to better comprehend their meaning and their relevance to daily life” (p. 677).

These activists also expect one another to refer to the Qur’an for guidance in dealings of day to day life. We have discussed this in lecture; people like to feel as if they are a part of something. With these great expectations they are putting on one another they are getting in return a deeper commitment. By associating themselves with greater or majority Islamic community followers believe they are truly committing themselves.

These activists also believe that the Westernized Muslim practices “lack morality and religious faith, and are materialistic and self-indulgent” (p. 678). For women these traditional practices are more attractive because they put more importance on moral and spiritual agendas than ‘New Order’ visions that put more importance on bureaucratic or commercial ones.

These activists groups are a very good example of how rituals maintain cooperation. The groups expect one another to reading the Qur’an and abiding by it in daily life, and then they will meet again and discuss it further. As we have covered in lecture and read about, by expecting the members to become more involved and committed — they feel a certain importance because they are a part of something. This feeling only encourages them to participate more.

This occurs in American culture also. There are many religions here that have members that are considered “extremists” among them (not a personal opinion). This is not unlike the gay marriage dispute among Christians. Evangelic Christians believe homosexuality is a sin, and unnatural. However other Christians believe that some Evangelicals are just extremists that take the Bible too literally.

Citations:

Brenner, Suzanne. "Reconstructing Self and Society: Javanese Muslim Women and "The Veil"."American Ethnologist 23(1996): 673-697.

Picture from: http://kashmiri-nomad.blogspot.com/2007_04_01_archive.html

Women of Java

In Java, although Muslim is the predominant religion of the Javanese people, wearing the veil has only recently become moderately common. In Java, most Muslims do not veil, Muslim activists actually feel that veiling is excessive and is only done by extremists; excessive because the Qur’an only calls for full dress when praying, not for everyday dress.
In typical locations where the veil is worn, public space is considered a male domain. In these places the veil is worn by women as an “extension” of the shelter of the house and enables them to enter these places without harassment. This is not true in Java however, where public space is public to all, not specifically men. So in contrast, what is happening here is the opposite. Women seen wearing the veil in public are typically harassed; in some cases young men grab the veils or throw stones at the women.
In order to better understand what is so attractive about the veil, it will be most obvious in a society that doesn’t require and/or expect it to be worn; such as Java. Women who wear the veil here can actually be hindering their freedom more than expanding it. A lot of employers will not hire women who wear the veil. Brenner says one woman she talked to who worked for the government was told she would not be able to get promoted because of her decision to wear the veil.
So in a culture where wearing the veil is more disadvantageous than it is advantageous, and particularly amongst well-educated, middle class women, how is it that it is becoming more and more popular?

Citations:

Brenner, Suzanne. "Reconstructing Self and Society: Javanese Muslim Women and "The Veil"." American Ethnologist 23(1996): 673-697.

What This Rearing Leads To

*The research done and the information given is from a neighborhood unit called Mahalla in the town of Kunduz, in Northern Afghanistan.

Boy’s childhood and adolescence goes from schooling to apprenticeship. Girls however do not have a distinct separation between the two like boys do. Girls are commonly married shortly after puberty, around the ages of twelve or fourteen. Since they are expected to have children shortly after, this leaves very little time to indulge in the variety of things boys are able to do at the same age. Since girls go from staying in the house with their mothers to creating and tending to their own households, they are never given a chance to truly enter their culture in a public manner.
Shalinsky notes two major events that separate boy’s childhood from girls; circumcision and “induction into the world beyond the household.” The latter is what I would like to focus on. Since girls never go through this induction, it seems they are not as accepted into society as boys are. This major difference I believe is what brings about one of the veils many origins and uses. In a region where public space is considered primarily a male domain, I believe the veil is what makes women able to enter public space without harassment, a space that they have never been properly inducted to.
As Suzanne Brenner describes in her article, Reconstructing Self and Society: Javanese Muslim Women and “The Veil,” that: “the veil can serve women as a form of symbolic shelter that, as a portable extension of the secluded space of the home, enables them to enter public male space without being subjected to criticism or harassment” (p. 674).

This is notably different than in our culture, and possibly one of hardest aspects to understand. I believe the difficulty in an American woman’s understandings of the veil roots from the struggle we’ve been through for so many years to obtain equal rights to men. So much work is attributed to eliminating sexism; we wonder why these women are being so seemingly submissive when we are so seemingly assertive.
This is a good example of how religion is integrated into our culture. Religion requires obedience and has many expectations. After following all of these rules into our everyday life (how to dress, what and when to eat, etc.) religion just becomes incorporated into our everyday life. In a place such as Afghanistan where everyone around you and your entire family not only practice these daily rituals but expect others to as well (including wearing the veil), you are very apt to do it yourself.
Putting this in a different perspective, look at the type of clothing business women wear in the United States. Even if they would prefer to wear provocative clothing in the work place simply because they like it better, many/most choose not to simply because the there is an expectation of dress. And if women, both here and in Afghanistan, were to stray from these expectations, they would become the victims of criticism and insults.

Citations:

Shalinsky, Audrey C. "Learning Sexual Identity: Parents and Children in Northern Afghanistan." Anthropology & Education Quarterly 11(1980): 254-265.

Brenner, Suzanne. "Reconstructing Self and Society: Javanese Muslim Women and "The Veil"." American Ethnologist 23(1996): 673-697.

Starting at the Beginning

*The research done and the information given is from a neighborhood unit called Mahalla in the town of Kunduz, in Northern Afghanistan.

To thoroughly understand a religion or culture it is important to start from the beginning, so I will start my blog by looking into child rearing in this specific community. Male and female children are raised and treated very differently, starting as early as from the womb.
Some have said that mothers of boys are able to feel movement in the fourth month and are thought of as “hot,” while mothers of girls feel movement in the in the fifth month and feel idle or lazy. This could be viewed by some as the initial superiority of men over women. Also, in some communities when boys are born they are face down, for the dishonor of potentially seeing his mother’s genitals, whereas girls are face up. Even details of the most “common” acts such as naming, covering the child, and mothers giving the breast on demand, are thought by some researchers to vary widely; for example, boys being given the breast longer than girls.
At a certain age women begin to convert their child, both boys and girls, from breast milk to solid food. The difference in this process is that women will tease the young boys with their breasts; this practice was not done with girls. Another significant difference is the age at which boys and girls are toilet trained. Normally there is more urgency to train girls than there is for boys, usually before the child even learns to walk. Shalinsky attributes this to ‘modesty rules.’ Regardless of age, it is never tolerated for women or girls to be immodest. She even states that on many occasions she witnessed a wife being reprimanded by her husband for allowing their daughter to walk around without a diaper.
Another noteworthy difference is, unlike boys, girls are raised close to their mothers, in a very literal sense. While boys are pressured into joining peer groups and taught there should be a natural rejection from their fathers, girls conversely find a bond in the strong emotional attachment they share with their mothers. This bond only grows stronger as the child matures, through “culturally patterned identification.”
Since girls accompany their mothers so often, it is only natural that they would pick up their mothers views of their fathers, or of husbands in general. One of these would be a women’s choice to only do certain things to please their husbands out of fear of polygamy. In this culture, the motherhood role is viewed as more of a goal than the wife role.

As we have discussed in lecture, the environment in which a child is raised is a fundamental aspect of the person he/she becomes. Your environment can shape and construct your culture. A lot of times it is there where we learn the basic ideals and social norms that we become convinced of; such as gender roles.
I personally feel the most important aspect to understand about child rearing is that it is culturally relative. It is necessary to understand that all cultures have their own logic, and as an outsider you don’t need to accept it, just make sense of it. Methods of child rearing vary culture to culture; i.e. Americans’ want their children to be independent because that is a trait our culture values, so babies here are not held as much as in other cultures and have their own rooms.
Because I understand this I am able to understand the values in this culture, for example, modesty rules. This culture expects women to be modest (even as toddlers), just like our culture expects children to be polite and use their manners. In our culture many times we won’t even allow the child to proceed with their on- goings until the child says the “special word.” Cultures can be more a like than we think.

Citations:

Shalinsky, Audrey C.. "Learning Sexual Identity: Parents and Children in Northern Afghanistan." Anthropology & Education Quarterly 11(1980): 254-265.

How My Topic Was Chosen and a Note*

Recently I was doing research on different topics when I found an article titled, “Iraq’s War on Women,” rather than on Iraq. It was an interesting article, but there was one specific quote in it that made my mind up on what my blog would be about; “Insurgents and religious extremists use rape, acid and assassination to force Iraqi women to wear the veil – the symbol of submission.”
I’ve decided to focus my blog on women in Iraq, or more specifically the veil; what it symbolizes and the women behind it. I came to a realization while I read this article that I know nothing about the country we are at war with. I find specifically the veil interesting because women in the United States have come so far with equal rights that it’s difficult to understand other cultures that seemingly haven’t. My hope is that from researching this for my blog I will come to understand more about this culture and maybe not accept it, but find the logic behind it.


*Note: In every entry I will note the specific location where the information pertains to. The reason for this is it cannot be assumed all practices are the same everywhere and although they are all from Muslim practices, small details will vary.