Societal Pressure of American Women: Suppression or Expression?

Women in America are faced with many pressures from society. Women are expected to be beautiful and have the perfect body. Many women try to obtain that goal but they seem to never reach it because American beauty is always changing and there are numerous opinions about what beauty really is. Contrary to this idea, in the Islamic religion, women are expected to cover themselves. A Muslim woman can cover her hair, face or entire body. While living in the Middle East, Muslim women have to cover themselves due to Islamic law. However, in America, one does not have to abide by Islamic law. Many Muslim women continue to cover themselves even though they are not required to do so by law. Many people in America feel that Muslim women who continue to cover are degrading themselves. Some people also may feel that Muslim women are not strong and lack feminine characteristics. In addition, some feel that Muslim women get ignored and unacknowledged in America. Despite the various views of society, Muslim women that live in America continue to cover do so for a variety of reasons such as displaying modesty, upholding cultural traditions, deconstructing gender roles in America and representing strength, pride and self-respect.

Furthermore, in order to fully accept Islam, one must be able to understand the Islamic culture. The word Islam literally means peace. Islam is the surrender of oneself to God, and the surrender of one's pleasures of God. The Holy prophet Muhammad was given God's message from the angel Gabriel, and then it was written in the Holy Quran (Introduction to Islam). An important aspect of Islam is the surrendering of one's pleasures for the pleasures of God. According to Anwar Hekmat, Muhammad instituted the wearing of the veil in the early days of Islam (182). There are several of ways for a Muslim woman to cover herself. She can use the Chador, which allows for the hair and neck to show slightly. The hijab covers the hair and neck completely and the Nahqab covers the entire body except the eyes (Ahmadi and Cole 48). A woman must cover herself in order to prevent creating lust within men. As has been stated before, women continue to cover for a variety of reasons, which go unnoticed in American society.

Firstly, the Muslim community believes that modesty is highly important. Muslim women do not want to lead men on. By dressing provocatively, women are sending a message to men. One can tell many things about a person by observing how they dress. Modesty is not practiced in America. Women are raped and abused for promiscuity as well as for other reasons. Muslim women do not have to show off their bodies to the public, only to the ones that they love and the ones who are close to them. American society has different values than the Islamic society, which could lead to conflict when people of Islamic faith choose to live in America. The article "The Question of Hijab: Suppression or Liberation" written by the University of Southern California, agrees by stating, "As a chaste, modest, pure woman, she does not want her sexuality to enter into interactions with men in the smallest degree. A woman who covers herself is concealing her sexuality but allowing her femininity to be brought out (1)". Naheed Mustafa agrees by quoting in her article "My Body is My Own Business" that, "Wearing the hijab has given me freedom from constant attention to my physical self. Because my appearance is not subjected to public scrutiny, my beauty, or perhaps lack of it, has been removed from the realm of what can legitimately be discussed (26)". One should not have to strive to meet the physical standards of society. Women are in control of their bodies and they are not influenced by anyone else. Having control of your own body can promote a healthier view of yourself because you will not be worried about what needs to be changed, reduced or enhanced.

On the contrary, Anwar Hekmat, Muslim-born criticizer of Islam, adds from his book Women in the Koran, "The law of the veil is not only humiliating to women, but it is an insult to men. It is a clear indication that, in the eyes of Muhammad, all Muslim males were sex-crazed (193)". Some may believe when a Muslim woman covers, she is degrading herself. This is promoting the belief that men cannot control sexual desires towards women. One also could say that attraction is a natural occurrence that takes within all levels of nature. Without attraction, there would be no reproduction and therefore the end of living things. However, in America, one has the freedom to practice any religion one chooses. If a woman chooses to continue to practice Islam, then it means that she chooses her beliefs and lifestyle voluntary. A personal choice is different from being forced into doing something. Many Muslim women choose to continue their Islamic practices in America so they should not be criticized for their own decision.

Secondly, Muslim women may choose to cover to uphold their strong cultural traditions. Covering can be seen as a cultural tradition as well as a religious practice. This tradition of covering up one's hair, face, or entire body is practiced because their mothers and sisters have done it. Every culture has its own traditions and within that culture, it is important to keep traditions passing to the next generation. In the Muslim community, a woman covering herself is not only a religious requirement but also an important part of her lifestyle and culture. In America, we have traditions such as wearing a white dress on one's wedding day and shaking another's hand when greeting or departing. These examples of American traditions may seem completely normal for an American citizen but it may seem ridiculous to the people who live in a village in Niger. The same can be said about the Muslim traditions. People outside of the Muslim culture may have a hard time understanding what they do and why they do it. By a Muslim woman continuing to cover herself even though she is not in her original country, she is standing up for what she believes in and she is staying true to her religious beliefs and her cultural traditions and background. One should have pride in one's ethnic and cultural background. Lyn Reese, specialist in women's history, agrees in her article "Historical Perspectives on Islamic Dress" by stating, "There were other reasons for taking up and defending hijab. One was the growing reaffirmation of nation identity and rejection of values and styles seen as western. Wearing hijab came to symbolize not the inferiority of the culture in comparison to western ways, but its uniqueness and superiority (4)". Sehmina Jaffer Chopra agrees with Lyn Reese in her article "Liberation by the Veil", by saying "The Muslim woman does not feel the pressures to be beautiful or attractive, which is so apparent in the Western and Eastern cultures. The western ideology of, 'if you have it, you should flash it!' is quite opposite to the Islamic principle, where the purpose is not to bring attention to one, but to be modest (1)". Because there are so many different cultures, people must remain open-minded and accepting. Not everyone will be able to share the same beliefs. In order to accept other cultures, one should attempt to learn about other traditions and beliefs and show respect to them.

Thirdly, the result of Muslim women continuing to cover themselves in America is the deconstruction of gender roles. Gender plays a tremendous role in American society. Women are used to advertise by using sex appeal. This affects both men and women. Men desire a woman who has a great deal of sex appeal and women want to become a woman that is greatly desired. This is not the case in Muslim communities. Women must cover themselves because it is believed that Muslim men must control their desires for women. By a Muslim woman covering herself, she is not degrading herself. It is showing that she does not have to show off her body and she does not have to give into the societal view of what a perfect woman looks like. American puts pressure on women to have a certain weight, shape, size and height. This pressure can cause many girls and women to possibly harm their own bodies trying to become the image of the perfect woman. This causes physical and mental damage. This is also true for men as well, but American society seems to be more focused on the appearance of women. A Muslim woman is protecting herself from any damage that could be done by societal pressures by being confident enough in herself to continue to wear covering while living in America. It would be easier to say that some American women are degrading themselves more than Muslim women, because American women are advertising their bodies. The article "Virtues of Hijab" in the Al Jumuah magazine agrees by stating, "When a woman wears the hijab she is less likely to be exploited for her beauty and femininity ;her intelligence and skills, instead of her looks and sexuality, judge her" (22). Syed MA Rahman agrees in his article "Seven Conditions for Women's Dress in Islam" by stating, "Islam protects the woman. It is for this reason that Allah gave these rules. In today's society womankind is being exploited, female sexuality is being openly used in advertising, mainly to attract the desires of men and therefore sell the product.

Lastly, covering represents strength, pride and self-respect in Muslim women. A woman does not need to rely on her appearance to achieve strength within herself. The outer covering should not affect what goes on in one's mind. A Muslim woman is capable of being just as intelligent as anyone else. Covering represents strength because it takes a large amount of strength to be able stand up for what you believe when you live in a society that is free, but also critical and sometimes not accepting. It also takes strength to know that you are beautiful even though you are covered and that no one can see you. Just being able to stand out as someone different everyday takes a remarkable amount of strength that many Americans probably do not have. The article "The Question of Hijab: Suppression or Liberation" written by the University of Southern California, agrees by stating, "A Muslim woman who covers her head is making a statement about her identity. Anyone who sees her will know that she is a Muslim and has good moral character. Many Muslim women who cover are filled with dignity and self esteem; they are pleased to be identified as a Muslim woman" (1). Jen'nen Ghazel Read agrees in his article "To Veil or Not to Veil?" by saying, "Such research has revealed that Muslim American women creatively negotiate their gender, religious, and ethnic identities in light of dominant U.S. social norms and modernist discourses that often define these women as "other"" (2-3). By covering themselves, women can focus on enhancing their minds, solidifying their religious faith and creating a spiritual path instead of which color lipstick would match their eye shadow.

Conversely, Waheeda Carvello disagrees by stating in her article that, "For too long the inferior role of women in Muslim society has become so entrenched that their marginalization is not even recognized (1)". One may agree by believing that a Muslim woman is presenting herself as being inferior to men by covering herself. In addition, one may believe that women have just accepted an inferior role in the Muslim society. These women could develop an unknown feeling of inferiority and can be convinced that that is their true place in society. Nevertheless, these ideas are thoughts that come from people who are not followers of the Islamic religion. Islam cannot be compared to anything else, it just has to be accepted as a belief that it widely spreading.

As has been noted, Muslim women who reside in America chose to continue to cover themselves and practice their religion. Even though it may seem strange to people outside of the faith, one must understand that everyone has his or her own beliefs. It is hard to understand something you know very little about. Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world. One of the reasons why it is growing so fast is because you can identify a Muslim by their dress especially a woman. By recognizing a Muslim woman in her covering, one is also recognizing the religion of Islam too. This could spark interest and curiosity in someone and could eventually bring a person into the Islamic studies. "Islam is not just a religion, and certainly not just a fundamentalist political movement. It is a civilization, and a way of life that varies from one Muslim country to another but is animated by a common spirit far more humane than most Westerners realize (Mazrui)". Islam is a complex study, belief and lifestyle that cannot be understood by just looking at a covered Muslim woman. Many Muslim women only show their eyes to the public. People should open their eyes to see Muslim women for who they really are.

WORKS CITED

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