Rights of and Discrimination against Muslim Women in the United States - Essay Example

Rights of and Discrimination against Muslim Women in the United s As a result of globalization, Multiculturalism has become a part of the socialfabric in many countries, however, accepting and adapting to these racial and ethnic differentiations within the unified society is still at stake. Muslims, particularly women, are denied of their religious rights and harassed on account of their beliefs and practices in various instances. The wearing of hijab is one of the prominent problems that Muslim women’s in US constantly face with. They are stripped off their rights, discriminated and harassed for wearing hijab in public places and work environment. Wearing hijab is a part of Muslim women’s identity and practicing it in the public is their personal right. Moreover, discriminating on the basis of their beliefs is a violation of law against religious freedom and expression. Muslim women struggle to blend with the social fabric of the United States while still retaining their culture and religious identity. The rights of and discrimination against Muslim women who wear hijab in the United States is discussed in a detailed manner with reference to reliable news, interviews and law suits. Among the diverse racial and ethnic immigrants of United States, Muslims is one of the fast-growing groups in the country’s population. The society’s response to the multicultural heritage of the nation seems to be less favorable for the Muslim communities, particularly the Muslim women, who wear ­hijab or other kinds of headscarf. Wearing hijab, in accordance to their religious beliefs, has been seen as a religious identity and practice by the Muslims, however, the society’s view is much different and discriminative. Usually, the Muslim women wear hijab to cover themselves in public and at home, when they are among men who are not their immediate family. This is indeed a part of their religious custom and cultural practice, and has to be viewed as a personal right of the individuals and freedom of that community. Like all other people in the US society, Muslim women also have the rights to practice their customs and religious practices. And so they have to be treated equally and should not be discriminated on the basis of their religion, ethnicity or gender. However, the reality of the society is different for the Muslim women as they have to struggle hard to get involved and accepted within the society, particularly when are decide to retain their identity, not conforming to the majority of the US society’s culture. “Muslim women are more likely than Muslim men to fight back against stereotypes, discrimination and ignorance” (Karasu). The veil that any Muslim women wear is deliberately viewed as an object of exclusion from the community and they are discriminated in various ways. This could be observed in every fabric of day-to-day life for the Muslim women, right from their work environment, educational institutions, and even public places. “The most visible symbol of female Muslim identity, the head-scarf, is thus often interpreted solely as a sign of gender inequality and used on occasion as justification for social exclusion—ignoring its multiple religious and cultural dimensions.” (Ssenyonjo). This act of secluding an individual on the basis of their clothing or religious identity is very demeaning for the society itself. However, it becomes a challenge for the Muslim women to reconcile with the different aspects of their social identity, marked by gender, religion and culture. Since the headscarf is prohibited by many institutions, for variety of reasons, it becomes hard for the Muslim women who wear hijabs to mingle with the society in a normal way. They struggle between internalizing the expectations of their community and rationalizing the conflicts within the society, because of their choice to wearing hijab. Moreover, from the feminist perspective, hijab is viewed a social oppression against women, a symbol of subordination and oppression of women. Most of the Americans view the wearing of hijab as a social repression and backwardness rather than as a religious custom. Because of this social stereotyping, Muslim women are subjected to prejudicial treatment and discrimination in various walks of life. Since American Muslims tend to respect the choice of women in her dressing, she expects the rest of the society to do the same. However, “the hijab is viewed by Americans - as a symbol of cultural difference (and thus inferiority), a threat to secularity, or simply as a personal expression of religiosity.” (Haddad, Smith and Moore 39). This clash of civilization, arising from the wearing of hijab, has created various social and political implications that are far-reaching to be solved. Even though American people pride with freedom of religion, expression and speech, it is still persistent among the society that Muslim community, particularly the women wearing headscarves, are stripped of their rights. They are harassed, fired from work, denied of public places accessibility and also discriminated because for their hijabs. Because the veil easily differentiates the person from the rest of the crowd, Muslim women who wear it are prone to discrimination and are increasingly targeted for harassment. This tendency became heightened in the aftermath of the 9/11 incident in America where the entire Muslims were stereotyped as terrorists and the hijab was viewed as a social threat. It was reported that in 2006, there were more than 154 cases of discrimination or harassment filed by Muslims, and in most of the incidents the head covering was identified as the trigger factor. (“Discrimination Against”). It was also observed that Muslim women who wear hijabs are likely to face discrimination than who does not. “69% of women who wore hijab reported at least one incident of discrimination compared to 29% of women who did not wear hijab.” (“Discrimination Against”). In the work environment, Muslim women are targeted to discrimination, mainly for wearing their hijabs, as it is viewed as an inappropriate wear for the workplace. In many companies the Muslim women are restricted to wear headscarf and if refused, they are terminated. For instance, in United States, Muslim women are denied to wear hijabs while working as police officers and in other institutions like hospitals and schools. There have also been instances where women are fired of their work because of wearing religious garbs in working environments. When the discrimination heightens among the women at work, they are left with no choice but to retain their culture and endure the discrimination or disregard their culture for the sake of workplace conformity. It is argued that allowing such restrictions is a distortion of freedom of religious expression. There have also been many lawsuits and domestic cases against the discrimination of Muslim women at various instances. Recently, a lawsuit was sued against Walt Disney Company by its former Muslim Disneyland employee, Imane Boudlal, who was fired from the theme park for wearing hijab at work. “She alleges in a lawsuit filed in federal court that management failed to address persistent racial and religious harassment from fellow workers and that it refused to accommodate her wish to wear a traditional Muslim headscarf or "hijab" at work.” (Hong). The prominent reason for her harassment and termination was the wearing of hijab and her refusal to accept to the authorities in compromising her religious practices. Many such discrimination cases happen in US are unreported or never brought to light, but is widely persistent, making the workplace for hijab-wearing Muslim women to be horrendous, when refused to accommodate to the company’s demands. So, it is evident that not only Muslim women are targeted to harassment on the account of their religious clothing but are also expected to conform to the so-called norms of the society for escaping the societal oppression. All Americans have the right to religious freedom and expression and this includes Muslim women’s rights to wear hijab in work, education institutions and public places as well. As per the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution, the government does not have any rights to prohibit the wearing of hijab in public. It also mentions that no discrimination can be enacted against women who practice hijab. This means that Muslim women can deliberately practice their religious practice and cannot be subjected to any kind of discrimination in the society. According to the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), the government and officials are barred from restricting the practice of hijab among Muslim women. Moreover, the civil rights law “prohibits an employer from firing, refusing to hire, or disciplining a woman because of religious practices like hijab, unless the employer can show that it offered a reasonable accommodation.” (“Discrimination Against”). Similarly, refusing to hire for the reason that co-workers or customers with be uncomfortable with the practice of hijab is also illegal according to law. Thus, it is evident that American constitution provides ample rights to the Muslim women in practicing their religious dressing, but still, social discrimination, threats, and harassment are persisting in the society. Even though law has been enacted to protect the oppressed, infringement of rights tend to occur in various contexts. After the French government banned the wearing of hijab by Muslim women in public, disturbances began to arise among the Muslim communities, regarding their practice of hijab in many places. Even some of the educational institutions and hospitals in European countries started prohibiting the wear as a cause of uniform or conformity. When refused to conform to the rules, Muslim women were fired or denied for accessing the public resources and entering public places such as parts and restaurants. Some human rights campaigners have condemned this French law as an infringement to human rights. “Amnesty International, for instance, has argued that it violates womens "rights to freedom of expression and religion." (“French veil”). Unlike some European countries, where there is a legal law against wearing of hijab, the US has no bans of this custom. Nevertheless, the women who are wearing hijab are still targeted in the society with discrimination and harassment. The reasons remain still controversial, but the fact is that Muslim women find difficulties in interacting with the society. Even in US, Muslim women are harassed in the account of security check in airports and in places like public buildings, shopping malls, and swimming pools, by being asked to remove their hijabs and other religious garments. When they do not agree or submit to the checking they are denied of entering the place. This kind of harassment in the public as well as discrimination in work places needed to be brought to the attention of the authorities and taken legal actions by the persecuted. Unless and otherwise, these kind of infringements are likely to exist in a society where stereotyping and discrimination are prevalent. In a domestic case of Hani Khan vs Hollister Co. in California, the discrimination was distinctly because of her hijab and she was terminated as the scarf did not fit to the ‘look policy’ of the company. According to the opinion of Hani Khan in an interview, she mentioned that the only reason for society to exclude hijab-wearing women is that they tend to be reserved and modest. She adds that it is not the Muslim women who have difficulty in interacting with the society but the other members who react differently to them. “The only difference is that the other person might react differently when they shouldn’t.” (Mohammad). So, the notion of hijab interrupting the social communications is just a matter of fact among individuals who perceive it differently. America, being a land of liberty and equality, discrimination and racism still exist in the society, but the discrimination based on religion, relating to the wearing of hijab by Muslim women is a manifestation of racism. The living conditions in which the Muslim women live today are at stake, particularly after the 9/11 incident. To add to this fact, the media hype had made things worse, by associating them with terror and portraying the entire Muslim community as a threat to the society. Some reports say that most Americans are likely to see Muslims as a subject of discrimination than any other community. “According to a report issued in 2009 by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, nearly 6 in 10 American adults see Muslims, as being subject to discrimination more than the Mormons, atheists, or Jews are.” (Mohammad). Thus, the stance against hijab in the American society is more of the individual perspectives, rather than viewed as a general social issue of the United States. It is evident that Muslim women are subjected to discrimination, on the basis of wearing the hijab, which is not seen as a distinct religious identity, but a threat and an act of gender oppression. The discriminatory attitudes towards Muslim women, based on the Hijab, are mainly from the perspective of the non-Muslims identifying it as an attire of discomfort or threat. It has become a struggle for the Muslim women to dispel these societal misconceptions about Islam and Muslims as a whole, when integrating socially and culturally within the society. They constantly struggle to balance their lives between their freedom of religious expression in the Western culture and the restrictions they face from the pressures of the society. However, until they are empowered to speak for their religion, to stand up for the rights, and break the social misconceptions, they are likely to continue facing struggles in the stereotyped society. From the part of the society, the distorted notion of hijab has to be expelled and the Muslim women has to be permitted to wear their hijabs without any restrictions, on the basis of the principles of pluralism, equality and non-discrimination as well as respect for the rights of others. Works Cited “Discrimination Against Muslim Women.” American Civil Liberties Union, Web. 26 Apr 2014. “French veil law: Muslim womans challenge in Strasbourg.” BBC News, 27 Nov 2013. Web. 26 Apr 2014. Haddad, Yvonne, Jane I. Smith and Kathleen M. Moore. Muslim Women in America : The Challenge of Islamic Identity Today. Oxford University Press, 2006. Hong, Joe. C. “Muslim woman sues Disney over wearing hijab at work.” NBC News, 13 Aug 2012. Web. 26 Apr 2014. Karasu, Seren. "Applied Psychology OPUS." The Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development. 2013. Web. 26 Apr 2014. Mohammad, Rasha. “Struggle of a Veiled American Woman.” On Islam, 3 Mar 2010. Web. 26 Apr 2014. Ssenyonjo, Manisuli. “The Islamic Veil and Freedom of Religion, the Rights to Education and Work: a Survey of Recent International and National Cases.” Chinese Journal of International Law, 6.3 (2007), pp.653–710. Read More