“THE CHALLENGE WAS TO WEAR A HIJAB AND SEE HOW IT FELT”
AN E-PAL RESPONDS: “Relentless soft JIHAD!!! Why not put on yamulkas ‘to see how they feel?’………or nuns’ habits ‘to see how they feel?’………….or ‘go Amish’ for a day ‘to see how it feels?’…………… or wear an Abe Lincoln black top hat ‘to see how it felt’ to him?”….cb
THE CHALLENGE WAS TO WEAR A HIJAB AND SEE HOW IT FELT UMW students don hijabs, gain understanding of Islam
Wearing hijabs, Riham Osman (right) and other University
BY AMY FLOWERS UMBLE
Date published: 9/11/2010
A survey by a University of Mary Washington student found that many people equate Muslim women’s traditional clothing with oppression or terrorism.
But Thursday night, many UMW students said they identified the hijab–traditional Muslim head covering–with courage and respect.
UMW psychology major Abir Ibrahim made a documentary a few months ago exploring views on Islam. She asked people what came to mind when the saw a woman wearing a hijab.
Many replied with “terrorist” or “oppression.”
A junior from Reston, Ibrahim discussed the documentary with fellow UMW Islamic Student Association member Wiaam Yasin. The pair decided to hold a hijabi challenge, asking students to don hijabs for the last day of Ramadan.
The challenge coincided with the ISA’s fast-a-thon, where students are asked to sacrifice food and water for a day in order to understand the holy month of Ramadan, when Muslims fast to draw closer to God.
“I feel like people just look at us like we’re different,” said Yasin, who is also from Reston and regularly wears a hijab. “Now that they’ve tried it, I feel like they’re more understanding.”
The participants showed off their hijabs during an event Thursday night, when nearly 100 students and professors–Muslims and non-Muslims alike–broke the fast and talked about their experiences.
Anyone wearing a hijab is recognized as Muslim. UMW student Raihana Sherdil doesn’t wear a hijab usually, but she donned one for the challenge.
“You feel like you have to do everything right, because you’re a walking representation of Islam,” said Sherdil, a Muslim from Woodbridge.
Many participants said they worried the hijabs would bring negative comments. But aside from a few stares, they received little feedback.
“I think this is a good way to teach others about Muslim culture and religion,” said UMW sophomore Sima Dajani from Vienna. She feels it’s especially important to educate others in the current climate, where controversy involving Muslims often dominates the news.
“I still feel like a lot of people today associate 9/11 with Muslims,” Dajani said. “A whole religion of 1.5 billion people should not be characterized by what a few people did, and a mosque shouldn’t be a symbol of terror.”
Nilab Sadat, a senior from Kabul, Afghanistan, said she was originally worried about studying in the United States. She worried about how she would be treated as a Muslim.
But looking around UMW’s Great Hall, seeing Muslim, Jewish, Christian and non-religious students wearing hijabs, Sadat said, “This brings all the students together, to know about each other, to respect each other, to understand each other.”
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