Oh, I definitely don't like the hijabs, and I'm actually not that fond of Islam as a relgion (I'm a comparative religion major, and that was my least favorite study). And I also think that all immigrant groups need to assimilate at least enough to not offend their new nations at every possible turn. The groups in question can start their own schools if it's simply unbearable.
It's not for the sake of the Muslim girls that I object to the ruling. I think they'd be a lot better off without the hijab and wish they'd dump it of their own accord. I think that the community needs to pull its head out of...the sand...and start listening to what other people say. On an emotional level, I want to see the miserable headscarves and burkas totally eliminated and give these chauvinist men a good sturdy kick in the family jewels. However, that's not my right. I'd have to settle for trying, on a private level, to convince girls I knew to do it. And ultimately, that's the only way to change a culture--one rebel at a time.
No, my objection to it is for the French. I can see why they're upset, though the attitude of hypertolerance (not as opposed to intolerance, but as opposed to having some cultural expectations for new immigrants to meet) has created a lot of the problem. But when you start to give the government the right to determine what religions might be expressed in the public sphere by individuals--especially in the name of some overriding state ideology--you're headed into dangerous waters. You see it over and over again in European dealings with the various Jewish populations--restrictions on expression, refusal to allow the building of synagogues, rules about what Jews must wear, etc. It happens over and over again in various places around Europe. And certainly it's not healthy for the targeted population, but it's also not healthy for the persecuting population--letting that foot get in the door is flat out scary to me, not because of the targeted group, but because I can see bloody Old Europe starting to raise its fist again.
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branchandroot
Re: I agree
Date: 2004-01-28 06:37 am (UTC)It's not for the sake of the Muslim girls that I object to the ruling. I think they'd be a lot better off without the hijab and wish they'd dump it of their own accord. I think that the community needs to pull its head out of...the sand...and start listening to what other people say. On an emotional level, I want to see the miserable headscarves and burkas totally eliminated and give these chauvinist men a good sturdy kick in the family jewels. However, that's not my right. I'd have to settle for trying, on a private level, to convince girls I knew to do it. And ultimately, that's the only way to change a culture--one rebel at a time.
No, my objection to it is for the French. I can see why they're upset, though the attitude of hypertolerance (not as opposed to intolerance, but as opposed to having some cultural expectations for new immigrants to meet) has created a lot of the problem. But when you start to give the government the right to determine what religions might be expressed in the public sphere by individuals--especially in the name of some overriding state ideology--you're headed into dangerous waters. You see it over and over again in European dealings with the various Jewish populations--restrictions on expression, refusal to allow the building of synagogues, rules about what Jews must wear, etc. It happens over and over again in various places around Europe. And certainly it's not healthy for the targeted population, but it's also not healthy for the persecuting population--letting that foot get in the door is flat out scary to me, not because of the targeted group, but because I can see bloody Old Europe starting to raise its fist again.