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Brazil: The hijab and the concept of oppression

By

Juliana Guarany, Brazil, Blog Correspondent

Read it in Portuguese. 

Image by Malcolm Evans

This week American First Lady Michelle Obama didn’t wear a headscarf on a trip to Saudi Arabia. This led to outrage from some and support from others. It is incredible how a headscarf or hijab, one piece of cloth, can cause such emotional reactions when the wearing of it is simply to signify: this woman is Muslim and her life is guided by the laws of Islam.

It has been said many times that the hijab is a symbol of oppression of women, and it actually has been transformed into that in countries like Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan or Iran: restricted societies have taken advantage of Islam’s values over modesty to oppress women, hiding them behind burkas, segregating them from men in public spaces. Because of that, the hijab has been demonized by western societies, but it really doesn’t have to be like that.

February 1st is World Hijab Day, a date created by New York resident Nazma Khan to encourage non-Muslim women to wear a hijab for one day and experiment how it is to walk out as a Muslim. The website makes a good effort to deconstruct the demonized vision western societies have over the hijab. Many women tell how they felt more protected and appreciated as a person than as a sexual object while wearing it. I have done the experiment in Germany and wrote about it. I talked to friends about it, too. It seems it is one thing when the hijab is a choice made by someone thinking of her religious beliefs. It is a completely different situation when the veil is mandatory by law.

A non-Muslim friend was in Malaysia for her vacation and was invited to try on the hijab. She lives in Germany and has seen many Muslims wearing dark clothes, but in Malaysia, as she could notice, women had colorful veils: “I fell in love with the clothes. I wanted to try it out, but felt a bit insecure, I didn’t know anyone. When I walked by a mosque, a group of women asked if I wanted to try. So I decided to do it. I opted for the niqab, leaving only my eyes out. I was stunned by how my eyes popped out, stronger than ever! I loved the experience”. I asked her if she faced any glimpses or any other problems by walking around without a hijab: “Not even a little bit”, she says, “in the western world we have the arrogance of thinking that anything different from us is wrong. I walked around Malaysia with modest clothes, but my hair was out there and I was never harassed because of it”.

Another friend visited Kuwait and had a very different experience: “it is a tribal society that treats people differently not only based in their gender, but also their social status, their family history and what line of Islam they follow. In the 70s you could see women wearing miniskirts in Kuwait. Now, you need a burka to go out, especially if it’s a traditional region”. As a foreigner, she was able to walk around without a hijab, but had local teens following her into malls and markets. She talked about Saudi Arabia in similar terms as well. Indeed, Saudi film director Haifaa al-Mansour recently spoke about segregation in her country on CNN. She has to direct her film from inside the car because she couldn’t be seen around men. But she said her country is changing – very slowly, but changing.

Another friend could not go out in the streets of Yemen without a burka, fearing she could be kidnapped for being a foreign woman: “It was not just the hijab, but also wearing pants. Just the line of my legs and crunch are seen as an act of disrespect”. In Iraq, she said, the veil can be optional, but going out without it makes people uncomfortable: “it’s like as if I was walking around naked”. But even in those countries, she said, women are not addressed with such disrespect as in Egypt: “I got spit on, pissed on, even a cab driver masturbated when I was in the car”, but that has very little to do with the veil, as both Muslim and non-Muslim women are harassed constantly in the streets. As a more opened Muslim country, Egypt seems to get the worst part of both worlds, creating the most disrespectful environment women can be exposed to.

Charlie Hebdo

In the light of the latest terrorist attempt in France, Muslims have suffered from prejudice. In Brazil, a country with a very limited Muslim community, there have been acts of aggression. Wearing a hijab is just another excuse for harassment. A woman was recently hit by a rock in plain daylight in São Paulo because she was wearing a hijab: “Usually, we do not have any problems, but when a terrorist attack takes place, people around us start to blame our religion due to wrongful information passed by the media.” She clarifies one vision that takes the light of the problem out of religion: “It is wrong to say that Muslim women face violence and are oppressed, because women all around the world face violence and are oppressed just as much. This is not a matter of religion, it is a matter of gender”.

It is sad to see how aggressive the clash of western and Islamic worlds is. On one side, non-Muslims tend to think Muslim women are oppressed by their clothes. On the other, Muslim women send the message that they are the ones being judged only by who they are instead of what they look like. As women in general, we need to unite and, on top of it all, respect the choices we each make.

Juliana is a fellow from Alexander von Humboldt Foundation and, together with Hamburg University, in Germany, is creating a digital campaign to connect all feminist initiatives around the globe. Read her blog Whistleblower and follow her on Twitter, @juguarany

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Germany: Stopping Sexist Advertisements

By

Lea Goelnitz, Berlin, Germany, Blog Correspondent

Sexist advertisement is still the norm in many countries, but fortunately there is resistance

Many companies ignore women as potential buyers when they create their advertisement and so use women to sell their products to men. In general most ads are still dominated by very rigid gender stereotypes, therefore it was quite unusual when the jewelry company Tiffany launched an ad that features a gay couple (though it is still aimed at a male audience, featuring two white men).

Why does this matter? A dialogue comparing German and Swedish ads proves the link between ads and how a society values women and how advanced gender equality is. In the German ad the same product is advertised showing women being stupid, doing chores or being naked, while in Swedish ads men and women are more likely to be portrayed as equal partners or it shows men playing with children. In Sweden, more men go on paternity leave than in Germany and working hours are more adapted to family responsibilities of both partners.

In various countries there is now a movement for more gender equality and more diversity to be reflected in advertisement. One example is Pink Stinks in the UK, which regularly names and shames companies that use limiting and damaging stereotypes or even violence. In the U.S. the Representation Project runs a #NotBuyingIt campaign that is particularly active around Super Bowl weekend.

In Germany, we actually have a so-called advertisement council, which is supposed to intervene in case of discriminatory and offensive ads. But most of the time complaints about sexist ads are rejected because they are deemed as being “humorous” and “entertaining.” As the official council for advertising seems to be unwilling to actually influence ads for the better, new regional/ city ad council were founded across the country.

In Berlin, 15 women from various women´s rights projects founded a working group against sexist, discriminatory and misogynist advertisement in 2014. They developed a catalogue of criteria to define sexist ads, which was presented in front of the city senate and subsequently approved. In some areas of Berlin, it is now illegal to put up ads which violate the criteria. The working group also serves as a platform to which people report sexist ads. The aim is to have a dialogue with the companies, which launch the ads and to explain alternatives to their problematic ads. The role model for this initiative is Austria, where the official advertisement council established an elaborate catalogue and intervenes in discriminatory ads.

The aim of the initiative is to sensitize people to sexism in ads and to explain why certain ads are discriminatory. The views on this are diverse. Sexism is defined along a blurry line. “One obstacle is, that often women themselves do not necessarily recognize sexism in an ad, because they internalized sexism and it is accepted in society at large,” Marisa Riah, who is a member of the working group, explained to me. “Sexist advertisement is one form of violence against one group of people and it helps to reinforce stereotypes and prejudice. Consequently ads have a relevant impact on how we portray people and treat each other. Ads influence people and society and it reflects the values of society as well”, says Marisa about her motivation to be part of the project.

It is still a long way to go, but there is progress. With this initiative, Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg in Berlin, follows other cities in Germany, which managed to establish sexist-ads-free areas just in the past years.

Lea works in journalism and women´s rights and is involved in the women´s rights NGO Discover Football, which uses football as a tool for empowerment and gender equality. Follow her on Twitter, @LeaGoelnitz.

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The Bahamas: Small Islands and Good MANners (Part 2)

By

Alicia Wallace, Nassau, The Bahamas, Blog Correspondent

Via Hollaback! Appalachian Ohio

In Part I, we explored street harassment and the resistance of Bahamians to respond to the evolution of society due to increased population and lived experience of women living in The Bahamas. I used the example of my first memory of street harassment which caused fear and shame. In Part II, we’ll delve into the differences between the Bahamian man’s experience and that of the Bahamian women. The Bahamian affinity for good manners will be weighed against the safety – if only by perception – of Bahamian women.

Bahamian men move through life with a tremendous amount of unrecognized privilege. They are concerned about their egos, manners and courtesies extended to them, and the subsequent feelings they inspire. They are unaware of – or simply unmoved by – the perpetual fear plaguing women simply for existing in a world where men dominate in the physical sphere. They are unfamiliar with a woman’s thought process as she approaches them, or any area where they could be lurking.

What am I wearing?

Can I run in these shoes?

Is he looking at me?

Where are my keys?

Place keys between my fingers.

Swivel safeguard on mace and place index finger on the trigger.

Dial someone’s cellphone number and keep thumb near the call button.

Do not drop any of these essential tools.

Look behind without looking like I’m looking behind.

Shoulders back, head up, eyes looking every which way.

Walk quickly – don’t run – and only on balls of feet so no one hears heels clicking.

Clutch bag tightly, but be prepared to toss it at any minute.

Get in the car quickly, lock all the doors, and start the engine. Don’t worry about the things in your lap right now.

Drive like hell.

Breathe.

Develop the plan for arrival.

Bahamian men are completely unable to reconcile their feelings and expectations of attention with the everyday lived experience of Bahamian women. They can’t begin to understand why any of this is necessary, and how it could even begin to excuse the outright refusal of women to give freely of their time and conversation. They’re steeped in their own experiences.

Bahamians are friendly people.

This is a small place.

My grammy taught me to speak to people when I see them. Anything different is just rude.

Bahamian women are too stuck up.

They don’t want no black man, and they don’t want no Bahamian man.

They think they’re too good for us.

They don’t appreciate how nice we are. We just want to say hello. Give them compliments.

Bahamian women look good! What’s so bad about that?

It’s easy for men to touch fists with other men, known or unknown to them. It’s not at all difficult to give a head nod or an “Erryting cool” to a man they’ve never seen before. They don’t have to know each other to be cordial. There’s a reason for this, but they don’t see it.

What’s the difference?

Power. It all boils down to the power differential. Between men, the playing field is fairly level. They generally have the same strength and abilities, neither holding any more power to cause harm to the other. A man can be relatively certain that another man saying “Sup?” is doing nothing more than acknowledging his existence and the exchange will end at will.

In the case of a man and a woman, there is an imbalance of power due to biological differences. Generally speaking, women can be overpowered by men. Women can be violently assaulted by men. A woman has no idea where an exchange can lead, and has little power to stop it. For this reason, many women choose not to engage at all.

Bahamian men fail to understand that this is not an affront to good manners or common courtesy. It’s survival.

The issue cannot be framed by the person in the position of power based on his own intent. That intent, however noble, is not apparent to the person with the least amount of power. All a Bahamian woman can tell you for certain is how it makes her feel when she is catcalled, followed, or otherwise greeted, and this is, in fact, what truly matters. The impact is of greater consequence than the intent.

It’s not the job of a woman to consider the feelings of a strange man she fears could wrestle her to the ground, drag her by her hair, and sexually assault her. Rather, it is the responsibility of a man to consider the way he is perceived, control his reaction to being ignored, and modify his behavior. If he is truly concerned about good manners and common courtesy, the Bahamian man will understand the position of the Bahamian woman, and he will act accordingly.

Good manners may make you feel good, but behaving in ways that minimize fear and increase access to public space for women should make you feel better. At the end of the day, it’s not about you, Bahamian man. It’s about the impact you have on the Bahamian women you claim you love, honor, and respect.

Alicia is a freelance writer and public educator in Nassau, Bahamas. You can connect with her on Twitter (@_AliciaAudrey and on her blog.

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The Bahamas: Small Islands and Good MANners (Part 1)

By

Alicia Wallace, Nassau, The Bahamas, Blog Correspondent

Hollaback! Bahamas, International Anti-Street Harassment Week 2014

The first time I was street harassed, I was with my mother, wearing a plaid jumper, and 8 years old. It was terrifying, embarrassing, and guilt-inducing. My mother was furious, but I couldn’t tell whether the object of her rage was the creepy 30-something man or me.

“That’s a pretty girl, eh?”

My chest overheated and I froze. Something about it wasn’t right.

“Whatchu sayin’ mother-in-law. I wan’ marry your daughter.”

I looked at her, but quickly realized that was a bad call.

“Get in the car!” she roared.

I did, my head down, legs shaking, wishing my father was there because, surely, this would not have happened in his presence. Men may have looked when his back was turned, but no one had ever dared to say anything. To be honest, my memory and telling of this story is probably colored by my innocence, shock, and youth at the time, but that is, without prejudice, what happened.

Not much has changed since then. My mother doesn’t have to drive me everywhere, I don’t wear a school uniform, and there’s a 2 in front of that 8, but things are basically still the same. The feminist in me hates the truth in it, much less to admit it, but I always wish for the presence of my father or my brother when I’m harassed. They are still my protectors. They are still my best prevention tactic. In the eyes of the world at large, I am still only made safe, only honored, only protected, only of value and worth because of my relationship to men. Black men. Tall men. Thick men. Men with beards. Men with deep voices. Men with an authoritative walk. A powerful voice. A monopoly on strength. Testosterone. Oozing heterosexuality. Prone to violence. Voted most likely to bust a cap in someone for their woman – be she a mother, wife, daughter, or girlfriend – at the drop of a hat.

I’m not the only person who ever had that experience. I’ve had conversations with people of different ages and races about street harassment and how it made them feel. I spoke, as Director of Hollaback! Bahamas to a group of 8-12 year old girls about street harassment, and watched with horror as they each raised their hands in answer to the question, “How many of you have experienced street harassment?”

In The Bahamas, there’s an idea that girls only experience street harassment and other acts of sexual violence because their behavior or presentation is inappropriate. Her skirt is too short. She’s wearing too much lip gloss. Her mother was “like that”. Ain’ no daddy in that house. She likes grown people’s conversations too much. She walks “too slack”. She, she, she, she, she.

There’s also the overriding idea that people must be courteous, and this means speaking to everyone you see or pass. It’s not unusual for people to say a general “Good morning” when entering an occupied space which includes doctors’ offices, classrooms, banks, stores, and buses. This extends to the street, people greeting one another in passing on sidewalks.

The capital of this archipelago of islands, Nassau, is 21×7 miles. It is, indeed, a little rock. There was a time when all of its inhabitants – like other islands – were connected. People reprimanded children walking by after the school had rung because they knew it was so-and-so’s son or daughter. Those days, however, are a relic of the past, no matter how tightly anyone tries to hold onto it. The population of this country is reaching for 400,000, and I’d venture to guess that one-third of it lives in Nassau. This little rock is densely populated, and the degrees of separation have increased and decreased the likelihood that we can identify one another as Miss Madeline’s grandson or the tuck shop lady’s son-in-law. As a result, common courtesy is a bit less common, and there are many who continue to fight this change, seeing it as a plague brought by a rebellious generation. This, of course, is false.

Let’s take a moment to reflect on the memory of an 8 year old girl in her elementary school uniform, crossing the street with her mother. Think of the fear she felt when a man her father’s age spoke of marrying her. Feel her shame when her mother shouted at her to get in the car. Cary the weight of the blame she carried for years, and the burden of trying to make sure it never happened again. How could she find the balance between exercising her good manners and “keeping herself to herself”? No little girl should ever have to navigate this terrain, but for many Bahamian girls, this is a part of growing. There is little choice, and decisions have to be made. That 8 year old girl shouldn’t have to act based on expectations of good manners rather than her own safety, confidence, and comfort, the problem is not that little girl. Let’s face it. Those things are mutually exclusive.

We’ll explore the real reason for the evolution of societal interaction in Part II.

Alicia is a freelance writer and public educator in Nassau, Bahamas. You can connect with her on Twitter (@_AliciaAudrey and on her blog.

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USA: “Unwilling Undressing”

By

Dr. Dena Simmons, New York City, USA, Blog Correspondent

By the time I arrive to my apartment,
I am already undressed,
my clothes,
scattered along Metropolitan Avenue.
The man in the brown business suit,
standing in front of Step-In Lounge starts
with my rubber rain boots,
one
by
one,
until another man cuts him off,
ripping my pants from my body
when he jerks off
at the sight of my thighs.
Right by Uno’s Bar and Grill,
another man peels off my shirt
with his “Take my number.”
In only panties and a bra now, I walk in the rain.
Before I know it,
a gang of teenage boys hiss at me,
leaving me
naked.
I look back at the trail my clothes have created
at each objectifying comment, and
like Hanzel and Gretel,
who used white pebbles to lead them home,
I hurry to gather my clothes,
searching for my dignity
along
the
way.

Dr. Dena Simmons serves as the Associate Director of Education and Training at Yale’s Center for Emotional Intelligence. She is a recent graduate of Teachers College, Columbia University, where her research focused on teacher preparedness to address bullying in the middle school setting.

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