France’s lower house has passed a bill that will see the niqab and burka banned from public life. Both are garments worn by some Muslim women and cover the face. The niqab leaves only the eyes visible while the burka covers the whole face with only a mesh panel through which to see.
As someone who considers herself to be a bit of a feminist, I do not agree with wearing them. I see it as denigrating and oppressive even for those that choose to wear it, forget being forced to. But on the other hand, if I choose to walk down the street in thigh-high boots, a skin-tight dress, clown-esque makeup and big 80s style hair, that is my choice. Am I also not being slightly oppressed by the male-dominated fashion industry dictating what is or isn’t in style that season? Am I not being dictated to as to what is or isn’t sexy or attractive? If I feel the need to wear a skin-tight dress, is this not also denigrating that one must wear such a garment to attract someone of the opposite sex?
There are so many issues at play in this debate. From French values and culture and integration into it, to personal freedoms and choices, religious freedom versus secular intrusion, and of course xenophobia and stigmatisation. What this all boils down to, though, is fear of what is different. The French are an interesting lot. On one hand you have a strong democracy founded on basic values of liberty, equality and brotherhood; and on the other you have a strong anti-immigrant, xenophobic culture that tries desperately to cling to the ‘French values’ and French culture.
What is most interesting about the government’s argument here, that this will encourage Muslim integration and assert French values, is that it is actually counterintuitive. Firstly, by stigmatising and singling out a religious group as being different or ‘un-French’ you are hardly encouraging them to become further integrated into a society that is seeking to restrict them. Can it not be argued that the French government is oppressing this section of society just as much as they argue these garments do? Is this not trading one oppression for another?
Secondly, perhaps French values need to adapt. France has one of the largest Muslim populations in Europe. Does it not make sense that French values should be shaped by new generations? Clearly, oppression of women is not a value any society should hope to adopt, and therefore I fully agree with attempts to prevent women being forced by husbands or fathers to wear these garments; but can you always prove that this is the case? Wouldn’t it be more productive to address the oppression head-on rather than hiding it in a fashion debate?
While the law does not specifically mention Islam, niqabs or burkas, it is very clear who and what it is aimed at. I do wonder whether someone wearing a balaclava (ski mask) around Paris would face a similar €150 fine. There is still a chance that the law will be declared unconstitutional and, personally, I hope it does. While I disagree with the garments and the oppression they arguably stand for, I also disagree with oppressing a minority of people who, in the end, are not harming anyone by their choice of dress.
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