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Muslim students on campus decide whether wearing head scarves brings females closer to religion
By Adeniyi Amadou
Posted: 12/2/08, 3:14 AM EST Section: Feature
respect and admire their decision," Hasan said. "I think it is a lovely way to show your faith, so long as it is the woman's choice and not one forced on her by a man or patriarchal attitudes."
Maryam Abbasi, an American of Indian descent born in Los Angeles, and a medical student at State University of New York Upstate Medical University, fits her religious observance into her jam-packed schedule, trying always to reconcile the unsettling contradictions of Islam in America.
"I always wanted to wear it, but I felt kind of shy about it because I was afraid of what other people would think, how they would react," said Abbasi, who started to wear the hijab on Sept. 20, during the Muslim Holy month of Ramadan.
"At first I was afraid about traveling, how other people will react," Abbasi said. "Now I am older I realize that it doesn't really matter what people think."
Because the Quran's injunctions are open to many interpretations, Islamic laws in different countries vary widely in what they define as modest dress, Hasan said.
Hijab prompted debates across the country about where Islam fits into an open society.
The fierce debate about hijab also spilled into other parts of the world and is especially salient in staunchly secular Western European countries like England.
Islamic head scarves are banned in schools and universities in Germany and France.
As part of the xenophobic response to Sept.11, Najah Zaaeed was forced to quit her job in real estate and mortgage. She also stopped wearing her hijab.
"With my line of work it was very difficult," she said. "I would try to show houses to clients and, because I was wearing hijab, people (homeowners) wouldn't open the door."
A graduate student in social work, Zaaeed said that when she tried applying for other jobs, some employers simply told her, "Sorry, we don't hire Muslims."
She endured the occasional stares from strangers in public places.
"Now it's not that I got used to it," she said. "I just look past it."
Maryam Abbasi, an American of Indian descent born in Los Angeles, and a medical student at State University of New York Upstate Medical University, fits her religious observance into her jam-packed schedule, trying always to reconcile the unsettling contradictions of Islam in America.
"I always wanted to wear it, but I felt kind of shy about it because I was afraid of what other people would think, how they would react," said Abbasi, who started to wear the hijab on Sept. 20, during the Muslim Holy month of Ramadan.
"At first I was afraid about traveling, how other people will react," Abbasi said. "Now I am older I realize that it doesn't really matter what people think."
Because the Quran's injunctions are open to many interpretations, Islamic laws in different countries vary widely in what they define as modest dress, Hasan said.
Hijab prompted debates across the country about where Islam fits into an open society.
The fierce debate about hijab also spilled into other parts of the world and is especially salient in staunchly secular Western European countries like England.
Islamic head scarves are banned in schools and universities in Germany and France.
As part of the xenophobic response to Sept.11, Najah Zaaeed was forced to quit her job in real estate and mortgage. She also stopped wearing her hijab.
"With my line of work it was very difficult," she said. "I would try to show houses to clients and, because I was wearing hijab, people (homeowners) wouldn't open the door."
A graduate student in social work, Zaaeed said that when she tried applying for other jobs, some employers simply told her, "Sorry, we don't hire Muslims."
She endured the occasional stares from strangers in public places.
"Now it's not that I got used to it," she said. "I just look past it."
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Maria
posted 12/02/08 @ 5:08 PM EST
In the late 80s, some Muslim women, many of them Asians, wore the hajib with their jeans. I was kind of shocked because I never had seen such a combination before. (Continued…)
nomadofthehills
John Vanek
posted 12/03/08 @ 10:41 AM EST
Just about all of us reading this article have grown up in the post 9/11 era.
However, why should that change anything? As students attending a university, we should be more educated than the general public. (Continued…)
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